Is a proper canister filter really more work?

[Sleeping Giant]

10 mins vs 10 seconds (or less) with literally any other filter.

 

[simplicity]

If you don't like the overflow box visual and want some frosted back then you can just do a peninsula. It will still be cleaner then a canister + whatever equiptment you end up needing.

grabbed the first pic off google but you get the idea.. you can put it against a wall and frost the back and add lighting if that is your thing.

I think a cannister is the complete opposite of a clean set up. The idea of it seems good but not for anything outside of the most basic set up... once you start dosing 2 part for the corals or anything then you have wires going up the tank and over the lip. I just can not wrap my head around how a cannister is supposed to be the clean looking option.

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Peninsula style aquariums are my favorite, by far... such a clean impressive look. That first pic is gorgeous. You know, I could do the peninsula style since the left side of the aquarium will be next to a taller cabinet with maybe 6 inches between them. Decisions, decisions.

 

[Tamberav]

Peninsula style aquariums are my favorite, by far... such a clean impressive look. That first pic is gorgeous. You know, I could do the peninsula style since the left side of the aquarium will be next to a taller cabinet with maybe 6 inches between them. Decisions, decisions.

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Well ya that is what you should do then if your goal is a clean display tank.

Anything less would be imperfect.

 

[Sleeping Giant]

Peninsula style aquariums are my favorite, by far... such a clean impressive look. That first pic is gorgeous. You know, I could do the peninsula style since the left side of the aquarium will be next to a taller cabinet with maybe 6 inches between them. Decisions, decisions.

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Mine is between the walls of my house, visible on both sides

 

[Sink_or_Swim]

If you don't like the overflow box visual and want some frosted back then you can just do a peninsula. It will still be cleaner then a canister + whatever equiptment you end up needing.

grabbed the first pic off google but you get the idea.. you can put it against a wall and frost the back and add lighting if that is your thing.

I think a cannister is the complete opposite of a clean set up. The idea of it seems good but not for anything outside of the most basic set up... once you start dosing 2 part for the corals or anything then you have wires going up the tank and over the lip. I just can not wrap my head around how a cannister is supposed to be the clean looking option.

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I totally get what you're saying. I'm experimenting with trying to get the peninsula look without actually being able to set the tank in peninsula position. Don't have ability to add a sump, so going the canister filter route. Like I said, it's an experiment. I have a feeling it has a high chance of being a fail, but fingers crossed, lol. Also not everyone doses and has a need for extra tubing, etc. I do have a decent sized HOB reef octopus skimmer I'll be using but am going to try and situate a rock structure in front of it to hide it a little. Will be updating my build thread so everyone will be able to see if this kind of setup is worth the trouble or not, lol.

 

[ReefGeezer]

Peninsula style aquariums are my favorite, by far... such a clean impressive look. That first pic is gorgeous. You know, I could do the peninsula style since the left side of the aquarium will be next to a taller cabinet with maybe 6 inches between them. Decisions, decisions.

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Saltwater is not good for hardwood floors. I would not use anything that is prone to leaking or flooding. That would include canisters and in-line skimmers. You might also think about protecting the floor immediately under the cabinet.

 

[Sink_or_Swim]

Yeah, that blue aqua color is stunning. I have that permanently on in the kitchen under bar... so there's always that hue and I think it will match the aquarium, especially with the LED in the back. I've also heard that the marine lights can overpower the LED, but I don't know. They are pretty cheap, but I'm not sure how much of a pain in the butt it would be to remove the film once installed.

Here's the video (I skipped ahead to the middle but you can see what it looks like all hours of the day since it's a 12 hour long video):

That would be a cool with the aquarium and cabinet lights matching.
I thought about the main lights overpowering the serene light too... I guess I'll just have to see. Maybe it will look best as the lights start to ramp down in the evening. As far as the film goes, I worried about that as well, but I opened the box and the instructions say you just use water to adhere the film. So it should be easy to remove if needed/wanted. I've used the same type of frosted vinyl films on the glass on my front door to keep my dogs from seeing out and barking their heads off at everything, and it adhered with water as well. It's crazy how well that stuff sticks in place but can just be peeled off, with no adhesive.

 

[Sleeping Giant]

Saltwater is not good for hardwood floors. I would not use anything that is prone to leaking or flooding. That would include canisters and in-line skimmers. You might also think about protecting the floor immediately under the cabinet.

Sumps overflow too

 

[Sink_or_Swim]

Yeah, that blue aqua color is stunning. I have that permanently on in the kitchen under bar... so there's always that hue and I think it will match the aquarium, especially with the LED in the back. I've also heard that the marine lights can overpower the LED, but I don't know. They are pretty cheap, but I'm not sure how much of a pain in the butt it would be to remove the film once installed.

Here's the video (I skipped ahead to the middle but you can see what it looks like all hours of the day since it's a 12 hour long video):

That is so awesome - can't wait to play around with it! As a former art ed major, I appreciate the ability to change the background to compliment the colors of the fish, lol.

 

[Sink_or_Swim]

Mine is between the walls of my house, visible on both sides
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Nice! How long did it take for that toadstool to get that big?

 

[simplicity]

 

[simplicity]

That is so awesome - can't wait to play around with it! As a former art ed major, I appreciate the ability to change the background to compliment the colors of the fish, lol.

I love that, too. The mood setting abilities are endless... imagine someone seeing it for the first time - quite impressive.

Of course, there's a fine line between wow and tacky. I don't want las vegas in my house lol.

 

[simplicity]

Saltwater is not good for hardwood floors. I would not use anything that is prone to leaking or flooding. That would include canisters and in-line skimmers. You might also think about protecting the floor immediately under the cabinet.

It's not good for a lot of things.. $$

If I put something underneath the cabinet and water does get on there, then the water could get stuck underneath the carpet and mess the floors up more than now. I could try to get something super thin to soak up any spills. Just have to be extra careful. I'm probably going to get a large tray that sits in the cabinet so any spills go in the plastic tray.

 

[ReefGeezer]

It's not good for a lot of things.. $$

If I put something underneath the cabinet and water does get on there, then the water could get stuck underneath the carpet and mess the floors up more than now. I could try to get something super thin to soak up any spills. Just have to be extra careful. I'm probably going to get a large tray that sits in the cabinet so any spills go in the plastic tray.

You'll really be in the $$ if you screw up those floors. I speak from experience. A tray inside the stand is a good idea even if you drill the tank and use a sump.

 

[Sleeping Giant]

Nice! How long did it take for that toadstool to get that big?

I purchased it from a local reefer. It was large already

 

[ReefGeezer]

Sumps overflow too

I disagree. When a sump, a very simple piece of equipment, is installed and operated properly, no, they don't. All of the connections are semi-permanent and once installed, are never disassembled, and are unlikely to leak. When installed and operated properly, a canister has many more potential points of failure that must be assembled and disassembled regularly. Simple risk assessment techniques demonstrate a canister is much more likely to put water on the floor. It is not even a reasonably debatable position.

 

[Sleeping Giant]

I disagree. When a sump, a very simple piece of equipment, is installed and operated properly, no, they don't. All of the connections are semi-permanent and once installed, are never disassembled, and are unlikely to leak. When installed and operated properly, a canister has many more potential points of failure that must be assembled and disassembled regularly. Simple risk assessment techniques demonstrate a canister is much more likely to put water on the floor. It is not even a reasonably debatable position.

So if you have a return pump failure in a sump, there's no possibility of overflow in a sump??? Ever?? Everything has failure points, even your aquarium.

 

[Spare time]

I'm not sure I get the joke? Do you enjoy spending 60x as much time doing the same thing anyone else can do in a few seconds? Do you also prefer to go 20mph in a 60mph lane? lol

 

[Spare time]

So if you have a return pump failure in a sump, there's no possibility of overflow in a sump??? Ever?? Everything has failure points, even your aquarium.

No its not possible to overflow it unless you massively overfilled the sump or got the wrong size.

 

[Sleeping Giant]

Because if you aren't willing to look or take care of your tank for longer than a couple of seconds, what's the point??
For us canister heads, 10 minutes of our lives is nothing to worry about