Sump Vs. Canister

I have been wondering if a canister filter could be used in place of a sump for a less complicated saltwater setup. Could you use the separate media baskets to hold media such as chaeto, carbon, and live rock and sand, and then have a filter pad to keep good clarity?

You could use a canister filter in place of a sump on a simple saltwater set-up. Probably anything bigger than a nano tank (larger than about 25 gallons) needs a sump or at least a HOB or internal protein skimmer. Keeping chaeto in the canister won't work, because chaeto needs light. I wouldn't recommend keeping LR or LS in a canister either. However, if you ran carbon, chemi-pure elite, purigen, along with filter padding (or some combination of the aforementioned), I think that would work well. However, while this would provide adequate mechanical filtration and allow you to sustain a saltwater aquarium, a system that is based heavily on biological filtration (using LR, LS, with a sump/fuge) would be better off and save you money in the long run (the price of mechanical media adds up over time, and it needs to be replaced about every 4-6 weeks).

I was picturing LS being used in a basket and being held in by pantyhose as I used to do with my carbon. I only thought of the canister idea so you don't have to plan out and customize a sump and hope to get everything right and pray for no electrical failures. I'd hate to have 25 gallons siphon out while I would be away.

I think the flow in a canister would be too strong for keeping sand in a canister filter. Even in panty hose, I think the sand would blow back into your aquarium. Also, the point of keeping LS and LR is so that bacteria, pods, and other critters can colonize them, which wouldn't work out well in a canister filter.

As for sumps and power outages, there are several solutions for this. One is simply drilling a couple of holes in the return output to break the siphon in case of a power outage. That's what I did.

+1 on the no sand in a canister.

They used to sell something called a "fluidized sand reactor". It looked like a tall phosban reactor with sand swirling around. It didn't work too well.

I would use carbon or a phosphorous absorbing product in a canister, depending on what you want to remove. You could also use something with a lot of surface area like Bio-max (or the like) in place of live rock for extra bacteria.

i've always gone with sumps. Canisters are a PITA if you've ever used them before. Definetly dont put sand in a canister.

sump = able to have protein skimmers, Auto top offs, refugium, ect ect. possibilities are endless.

with a canister, you pay alot of money for something that is mainly designed for freshwater setups. did i say they are a PITA to clean?

Yeah I was wondering out of curiosity as I have one setup on my FW tank. Thanks for all the input. From what I've picked up on Canisters sound like they would be a PITA for a Saltwater setup