[titus]

Hello,

I second what Darren just said. You don't need bio ball or filter pad. At the most, you only need carbon and phosphate removing material. However, both of these are not needed on a constant basis, just occasionally when it's needed to. And by the way, this is when a good sump design comes in. If your sump is designed well, with areas where you can place media such that water must flow through it, or special canister connnected directly to the main pump, the carbon and phosphate sponge will be more effective, and you can activate the use of these material when needed with ease.