questions about tanks

[3inone]

can i ask what is sump tanks and why having a tank with sump will require another type of filter? (heard from somewhere)

and what is IOS ?

cause of exposure to the different types of aquatic set up, im getting keen on the big fish types, hence wanting to learn more about the popular sump type tanks they use.

[BFG]

A sump tank is a secondary tank under the display tank. It's usage is to add an extra volume of water as well as a place to house your aquarium equipment. It can also be designed to be the main filtration unit too.

IOS or Internal OverFlow System is an avenue to channel water to be directed to the sump tank below. It also does the job of skimming the water surface of the tank so that the oily particle or scum is removed to be filtered out in the sump tank and keep the water surface free of this oily particle and promote good gaseous exchange.

A sump tank does not have a single design. It can be created to whatever the tank owner wants it to be. There is not a single design that exist for every tank. You could create the sump to be the main filtration unit or as a secondary unit, a water holding container, with your canister filter as the main filtration unit.

A sump tank also has a secondary function, in that it could tell you the volume of water that is loss via evaporation or water splash. You could create a compartment to hold clean water in order to top up the water loss during evaporation or water splash. You could manually add water via a pump or purchase a state of the art automatic laser guided water leveller ( like the one I am currently using ) attached to a pump to top the water for you. In both case, you would still need to top up the water compartment yourself if the water level falls. There is a way to have something automated for that but it involved modifying your existing water pipe to the tank and attaching a solenoid and what not.


Hope this helps!