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I moved away from canisters and on to a sump when I moved into larger tanks, but a sump on a 15 gal is a bit absurd.
Look through a few of the setup and/or cleaning vids on Youtube for both. That may steer you best. There are pros and cons for each. Cleaning is where many tend to fall short.
As you watch the vids look at the crud that's in them, especially the ones that are only cleaned once every two or three months. All of that crud is organic material that is in the process of breaking down into (eventually) nitrate. The more often the filter is cleaned and the more efficiently that stuff is removed the less there is to reduce to nitrate.
Thumbs up on losing the undergravel. Real nitrate generators. And I like that you vacuum regularly. Don't fall back on that. It's a major component in keeping planted tanks, more so than many beginners think.
Good luck.
Look through a few of the setup and/or cleaning vids on Youtube for both. That may steer you best. There are pros and cons for each. Cleaning is where many tend to fall short.
As you watch the vids look at the crud that's in them, especially the ones that are only cleaned once every two or three months. All of that crud is organic material that is in the process of breaking down into (eventually) nitrate. The more often the filter is cleaned and the more efficiently that stuff is removed the less there is to reduce to nitrate.
Thumbs up on losing the undergravel. Real nitrate generators. And I like that you vacuum regularly. Don't fall back on that. It's a major component in keeping planted tanks, more so than many beginners think.
Good luck.
