A layer of Poret^® Filter Foam devides this sump container, providing excellent mechanical and biological filtration.

When I first set up this 240G tank, my plan was to use nothing but the best for biofiltration by employing Fluidized Bed Filters (FBFs), which have a huge biofiltration capacity. After a while it became clear that the FBFs were overkill for my setup, and caused more maintenance trouble than they were worth. I retired the FBFs, and the micron filter bags, which I had installed with mechanical filtration in mind, took over the biofiltration task as well. They did an admirable job for some years, but when I heard Stephan Tanner of Swiss Tropicals talk about Poret^® Filter Foam, I recognized that I had found a better filtration option, and this happened just at a time when I was keen to try out something new. Well over a year after making the switch, I haven't regretted my decision to use Poret® Filter Foam for my biggest tank. The foam is a little more expensive than the micron filter bags, but it allows very little bypass. To achieve the same low bypass with the bags, I would have had to use proper holders, and the bags plus holders are a lot more expensive than the foam, which doesn't need a holder.

Poret^® Filter Foam fits very snugly inside this sump container, allowing for very little bypass.

Here are some further advantages of Poret^® Filter Foam over the previously used micron filter bag system:

• Easier to set up - no modifications to drain pipe necessary.
• Entirely avoids the whole noise issue of blocked off drain pipes described at the bottom of this page.
• Doesn't trap fish that find their way into the sump, but prevents them more efficiently from being sucked into the pump
• Easier to take out and clean

Poret^® Filter Foam is available in large sheets, and can easily be cut to size using a sharp kitchen knife.

Poret^® Filter Foam (right) is made of the same sturdy material as pre-filters for Danner Mag Drive Pumps (left).

As a precaution, I cut overflows into the Poret^® Filter Foam divider using a sharp kitchen knife. The awkward drainpipe constructions seen in the background were necessary to accommodate the previously used micron filter bags, and are no longer necessary.