Who Gives A Fish Forums

Y'all sleeping on sumps, but aight. If you go canister, at least grab a pre-filter sponge. Saves you from opening the whole thing every time. My boy's Discus tank crashed 'cause he skipped that step. Had to cycle all over again.

theGorilla wrote: ↑Fri Apr 25, 2025 1:05 pm Good call, Foldo. Just remember to rinse the media in tank water during changes, not tap. Chlorine'll wreck your bacteria. My Discus started coloring up nicely after I switched to that routine.

Yep, learned that the hard way. Lost half my bacteria colony once by rinsing under the sink. Never again.

Pre-filter sponges are a must. I swap mine out every 2 weeks and rinse the old one in tank water. Keeps the main filter from clogging. My Discus are in a 75 with a SunSun, and the water's crystal clear.

Also, don't forget to check the flow rate after a few months. Canisters can slow down as gunk builds up. My FX4 dropped to a trickle once, and I didn't notice until the water got cloudy. Discus were pissed, lol.