Aqua One sump maintenence first time/algae growth/bloom

[Fievels]

Hi,

We have recently got ourselves an Aqua One 130L tank and it has with it a sump, Aquis 700. We have had it running for a couple of months now with no problems.

However, this past week we went away and while my neighbor was looking after it it got an algae bloom making it very bright green water. I'll limit the light to the tank, have done a 40% water change and will continue to do that over the next few days to deal with it.

My question really is about the sump though, as it is the first time I have had one.

While cleaning out the tank I noticed the pipes down in the cupboard look hideous, with black/brown blotches of algae growing in them. I haven't yet done a clean of the sump.

* What do I need to know when I do clean out the sump?

* Should I be concerned about the build up in the pipes?

* The inlet to the tank has the pipe with lots of holes in it and trickles into the tank waterfall style. Does it need to be above the waterline to create flow? (The pipe that curves in from the back makes it difficult to fill the water level up above the black lid of the tank, making the look of the tank not quite as pretty).

Thanks for your help.

[Godly3vil]

You have a canister filter, not a sump.

Generally I recommend only cleaning canisters when there is a noticeable loss of flow but every couple of months works too.

You can buy a hose cleaning brush kit to clean the hoses when needed. When cleaning the actual canister it is a good idea to not clean/replace all the filter media at one time, 1/3rd is what I recommend. Also, make sure you only rinse the media in water you have removed from the tank for a water change, this is to make sure you don't have a huge beneficial bacteria die off and start a fresh cycle.

Having the spray bar above the surface is good as it will disturb the surface which will help with oxygenation.

[Adrienne]

This time of the year, with longer days and brighter light, tanks do tend to get green water (algae). Doesn't have to be direct light even so if you can keep the drapes pulled in the room it will help. Blacking out your tank for three days - no lights, put something really dark over the tank, should deal to it. Fish can survive not being fed for this time as well. If nothing else works you might have to look at a UV steriliser.

[Fievels]

Thanks for the advice! Not a sump... haha, good to know! Such a newbie! What then is a sump?

Good advice on the cleaning too Glad to know the algae in the pipes isn't a problem.

Will try covering tank for a few days. Ta!

[Adrienne]

A sump is a second tank located generally below the main tank. Pipes run between the two and the water runs out of the top tank, through several different types of media and is pumped back into the main tank. Heaters etc are usually also placed in the sump.

[fmueller]

Good explanation from Adrienne. The main difference between a canister and a sump is that the former is a sealed container that is siphon fed, while the latter is open and is fed via an overflow in the main tank.

Canisters are great for medium to large size tanks you don't want to drill; but where quiet filtration is important, you want to get the technology out of the tank, and you want an easy to set up, off-the-shelf filtration system. Sumps are great for large to very large tanks, especially when they are drilled or have a built-in overflow. Sumps lend themselves more to DIY systems, and can be set up very cheaply, but can require significant fine tuning to run quietly.