Advice: Two filters in 50 gallon? Too much filtration?

[smackitsakic]

Hi all, I’m new here (first post) but not new to the hobby.

I upgraded to a 50 gallon tank a month ago. It came with a Penguin Biowheel 150 and I still have my Aqua-Tech 20-40 from my last tank. Would it be wise to run both of these in the new 50 gallon to have that extra filtration? Will this be sufficient?

Right now the tank is stocked with just a small Pleco and a Parrot Cichlid. Will be adding more schooling fish in a few weeks - likely Tiger and Cherry Barbs with a few Clown Loaches.

Your advice on my filtration setup is appreciated. At some point I may upgrade to a canister Fluval 306. Would that be smarter than running these two filters I have in there now?

 

[HoldenOn]

I always like one central filter, but it's actually good you have 2 imo. Parrots and plecos are MESSY! If you have a filter on both ends you get a nice widespread waste control (you should still clean the substrate every so often). That being said you'll need a ton of plants and some wood for territories (parrots are cichlids after all), and to slow down the flow so no-one is getting blown across the tank . Also stay away from clown loaches, they end up needing a huge tank and are pretty susceptible to disease. Also I wouldn't mix barbs, the tigers are hyper aggressive, I would recommend the cherry barbs with some larger tetras (black skirts are nice). Do you know your general hardness (you can find it by looking up "city name water report)? I'm pretty sure these species are compatible, but it's always good to have a 100% answer.

 

[2tank]

@smackitsakic you don't really need two filters but it does make a difference, in removing dust and bits of floating debris.

 

[AbbeysDad]

It's pretty common to think that filters clean the water, when in fact this is not so. Filters merely make water look clearer, not cleaner or more pure. (See The Dirty Truth About Filters).
So if your water looks clear, another filter isn't really doing much for you. However, having 'said' the above, an additional filter does provide a couple of small advantages. In a newer aquarium, much of the beneficial biology lives in the filter. With two filters you can alternate cleaning so one is always untouched. Two filters also provides a back-up in the event that one fails.
Then again, once a tank becomes established (6 months or more) there is far more BB in the substrate than in any filter.
Bottom line - you can run two filters, but in time, the payback is minimal.

 

[Retired Viking]

I agree with @AbbeysDad The payback would be minimal but you can run two with no downside.

 

[Fishmanic]

On my 29 gallon tank I run a marineland 200 filter on one end and a large air pump powered sponge filter on the other end (near my plecos territory). If one filter should fail, at least I wont lose the cycle. Works for my tank.

 

[smackitsakic]

I always like one central filter, but it's actually good you have 2 imo. Parrots and plecos are MESSY! If you have a filter on both ends you get a nice widespread waste control (you should still clean the substrate every so often). That being said you'll need a ton of plants and some wood for territories (parrots are cichlids after all), and to slow down the flow so no-one is getting blown across the tank . Also stay away from clown loaches, they end up needing a huge tank and are pretty susceptible to disease. Also I wouldn't mix barbs, the tigers are hyper aggressive, I would recommend the cherry barbs with some larger tetras (black skirts are nice). Do you know your general hardness (you can find it by looking up "city name water report)? I'm pretty sure these species are compatible, but it's always good to have a 100% answer.

Thanks for the response. Good to know that two filters is ok in your opinion. And yes I clean the substrate during my weekly water changes using a water flusher attachment.

Mg city’s water report says hardness is 392 mg/L. Does that make sense?

I’ll have to post about stocking my tank. We have young kids and they really want 12-15 tiger barbs in the tank. What else could we add in addition to the parrot and pleco? We have plenty of hiding spots for them (a couple of caves, a ship and some other hideable decor).

 

[HoldenOn]

Thanks for the response. Good to know that two filters is ok in your opinion. And yes I clean the substrate during my weekly water changes using a water flusher attachment.

Mg city’s water report says hardness is 392 mg/L. Does that make sense?

I’ll have to post about stocking my tank. We have young kids and they really want 12-15 tiger barbs in the tank. What else could we add in addition to the parrot and pleco? We have plenty of hiding spots for them (a couple of caves, a ship and some other hideable decor).

Yea that makes sense. That's pretty hard water, the parrot will be fine, but what kind of pleco do you have? Tiger barbs need it softer than that, I would really recommend looking at a different fish, I'm sorry. @Wills @AilyNC @NCaquatics @AdoraBelle Dearheart also have hard water and can advise you on fish you could keep.

 

[Wills]

Hi welcome to the forum

392 is really hard water so you need to be careful with what you stock. For water that hard I would be looking at livebearers like mollies and swordtails and rainbow fish like Dwarf Neons and Sunsets. Catfish you would be best off with Synodontis catfish like Petricola, Eurupterus, Multipunctatus.

Wills

 

[AilyNC]

I run two filters in my 34G/127L tank. I like having the two though tempted by one big external like one @Ch4rlie has his eye on.

@Wills covered the hard water fish. Here's some info I had on fish suited to your water hardness.

 

[Ch4rlie]

The filter AilyNC speak of is the Oase Biomaster Thermo 350, looks pretty decent and some well known keepers recommend them.

But two filters is ok though, I’ve had two filters on one of my tanks in the past though admittedly one filter was just for extra filtration and polishing the water with extra filter floss is all, made the water look really crystal clear tbh.

 

[CassCats]

Yea that makes sense. That's pretty hard water, the parrot will be fine, but what kind of pleco do you have? Tiger barbs need it softer than that, I would really recommend looking at a different fish, I'm sorry. @Wills @AilyNC @NCaquatics @AdoraBelle Dearheart also have hard water and can advise you on fish you could keep.

Nah ive got very soft water here at 89.5ppm lol


Tiger barbs can go up to 357ppm, so yeah your water is a touch too hard for them unless you plan on some RO mix.


Skip the loaches too. Need softer water and a 5-6 foot long tank--50 gallons is too small for clown loaches.


What species of pleco? This may also be unsuitable for your tank size and water hardness depending on the species.

 

[AbbeysDad]

Some time ago I created a bit of a firestorm on a FB fish related group after I saw a photo of a 55g with 3 large canister filters underneath. The fellow was bragging "there's no such thing as too much filtration". But there is and overkill is just a waste of money.
------
Folks are too easily convinced that filters clean the water...after all it looks clean or cleaner. In reality, uneaten food along with fish and plant waste collects in the filter where it decomposes and pollutes the water. Adding more filters doesn't change this simple fact. It also troubles me when I hear of canister filters not serviced for many months. It's always better to get the crud out of the system rather than let it rot and decay - out of sight, out of mind.
Anyway, the fellow was not happy when I suggested he was over filtering!
------
This also reminds me of folks that add lots of bio-media thinking they will increase the beneficial biology. But BB colony(ies) size(s) is relative to the available food and O2. So adding lots of bio-media does little except lighten the weight of the wallet.

 

[smackitsakic]

Nah ive got very soft water here at 89.5ppm lol


Tiger barbs can go up to 357ppm, so yeah your water is a touch too hard for them unless you plan on some RO mix.


Skip the loaches too. Need softer water and a 5-6 foot long tank--50 gallons is too small for clown loaches.


What species of pleco? This may also be unsuitable for your tank size and water hardness depending on the species.

The pleco is a common pleco. It’s about 5” long and I’ve had it since it was tiny. Probably had it for 2 years now.

I’m a bit bummed about the hardness. I can probably figure out a softener/RO system to be able to get barbs. I can skip the clowns. What are good tank mates to tiger barbs? Here is my tank by the way.

 

[Retired Viking]

Some time ago I created a bit of a firestorm on a FB fish related group after I saw a photo of a 55g with 3 large canister filters underneath. The fellow was bragging "there's no such thing as too much filtration". But there is and overkill is just a waste of money.
------
Folks are too easily convinced that filters clean the water...after all it looks clean or cleaner. In reality, uneaten food along with fish and plant waste collects in the filter where it decomposes and pollutes the water. Adding more filters doesn't change this simple fact. It also troubles me when I hear of canister filters not serviced for many months. It's always better to get the crud out of the system rather than let it rot and decay - out of sight, out of mind.
Anyway, the fellow was not happy when I suggested he was over filtering!
------
This also reminds me of folks that add lots of bio-media thinking they will increase the beneficial biology. But BB colony(ies) size(s) is relative to the available food and O2. So adding lots of bio-media does little except lighten the weight of the wallet.

Totally agree, too many people spend too much money on expensive filters and replacement cartridges when a simple sponge filter does just fine for far less cost.