Recently, very exotic inhabitants (stingrays, discus , large fish that can sufficiently pollute the water) began to appear in aquariums, having quite specific requirements for living conditions. In this regard, it became necessary to install larger sewage treatment systems in large aquariums than conventional filters . In such cases, aquarists usually equip sump filters for the aquarium.
Using a Sump for Aquariums
Samp - communicating with the aquarium vessel, which goes to water. There are several stages of cleaning in it, as well as aeration and water heating systems can be brought out to the sump to avoid occupying a place in the main aquarium. The water from the main tank enters the samp, is cleaned and re-supplied to the aquarium by means of a pump. All this allows us to maintain favorable conditions in an artificial reservoir for a long time.
Samp can be used for both marine and freshwater aquariums. The only difference is that with the arrangement of the marine aquarium, water will have to be added manually instead of the evaporated water, and with the freshwater variant, automatic water supply can be arranged.
The principle of the samp filter
The principle of the device is the following: it is usually divided into five compartments. In the first one there are different in density sponges, responsible for mechanical water purification. The second and third compartment is filled with a porous material (for example, claydite) in which about a month after the start of the sump develops a colony of nitrifying bacteria that also purify the water. In the fourth compartment there is a heater, in the fifth - an aerator and a pump that pushes water back into the aquarium. There can also be installed a system of automatic supply of fresh water and drains for some of the water already in the aquarium. With such a device, fresh water will always be supplied to the tank, which will further prolong the life of the aquarium and make its ecosystem more stable. Usually built-in aquarium samp is used for large tanks with a volume of 400 liters, but you can make a samp for a small aquarium. In this case, you can equip only one compartment to develop a colony of bacteria.