Sump or canister for tropical

I used some plastic mesh
For my 40 gallon barb tank, I cut a plastic pot scrubber pad and clipped that around the weir.

For my 75 gallon Mbuna tank I currently working on, I may put a screen around the overflow box while they are young. I will remove it once the Mbunas are full grown. I may not use a weir on this tank, just let the water overflow into the box.
 
Last year I sold my 500 litre sumped marine tank [soft corals, copperband butterfly, flame angel, etc] and replaced it with an Aquael 240 litre freshwater tank, filtered by a Oase 600 Thermofilter canister.

This had nothing to do with preferring freshwater to marines, just downsizing now that I'm getting [very!] old.

I found that the sump filtration, which I had for about 13 years, was a bit leaky, noisy and needed constant topping-up, despite my cover glasses. However, it was also very flexible in terms of the different media I could use, hid equipment like the heater, and enabled me to grow caulerpa as a filtration aid. I kept a Copperband Butterfly for over 8 years, for example, and it was still a picture of health when I traded it back to my lfs.

Now, with my Aquael 240, I rely for filtration on the freshwater plants I'm growing, and on my canister filter. It contains a heater, and also a prefilter, which is very clever; I clean it every week, and the main filtration in the canister doesn't need to be touched for about 6 months. It's very quiet, especially now that it's been run-in for several months.

My conclusions for freshwater tanks are these; if you can build your own quiet, non-leaky sump to a high specification [beyond my DIY abilities I'm afraid] then it's the bees' knees of filtration - especially if, as others have suggested above, you use fluidised K1-type media in it. Otherwise, the latest canister filters are a great off-the-shelf option, especially if you can get one with a prefilter, as both Oase and Aquael offer.

This is not to denigrate Hamburg Matten-filters, or even the humble sponge filter, though these often need a fair degree of hiding from view.

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This is my Aquael 240, in its early stages; bit more of a jungle now!
 
and also a prefilter, which is very clever;
That is clever! My opinion and goals for filtration system, separate mechanical and bio filtration. With your marine tank, you are well aware of the amount of organic material being produced in the tanks. An easy way to get this stuff out of the tank before it starts to breaking down into ammonia should be the goal. So a big thumbs up to Oase with the prefilter.
 
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I love my Fluval FX4- it's on my 75 gallon tank which is overstocked and heavily planted. It does a great job, makes water changes easier, and, as mentioned above, only needs maintenance about every 4 months.
 

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