All Pond Solutions Aquarium Filters

[hensonc4098]

Hi there,

I'm going to be upgrading my 35L to something substantially bigger - I have been offered a half decent price on a juwel 180L, but it only has juwels own internal filter, which I think I would like to change to an external.

I have just been looking at the AllPondSolutions aquarium filters which seems to give quite a lot of bang for your buck, and have the optional extra of having a built-in UV filter.

Does anyone know how hot or not these are?

Cheers.

 

[Dan-CR4]

APS external filters are good for the money, but take the predicted litres per hour with a pinch of salt. I had the 1000 lph model in my juwel vision 180 and at most the filter was probably kicking out 400 lph. Quite a few others have stated this as well. It kept my water clean and healthy, but if you need a lot of flow then either get a powerhead to run along side or get a different filter.

 

[dbanner]

I had the all pond solution ef2000 on my juwel vision 180. I wouldn't advise any of the lower models for a 180 litre or more purely because the flow rate drops so much. The 2000 drops to around 940 litres per hour which to be fair is not good but will be sufficient for the sort of tank your looking for.

In general they are good value but like always it's a case of "you get what you pay for". Mine preformed well on my 180 but wouldn't put it on anything larger as I don't think it would cope. Like I said if your looking at a 180 litre tank the get the all pond solution 2000 model. I'd save a bit of money and get the one without the UV as I was told they are just pretty much a waste of extra electricity.

I run 2 tetratec ex1200's on my 450 litre and they are better than any other filters iv had including a fluval fx5 and a fluval 406. Plus the tetratecs are only £89 each. If you can afford to get one then do so.

 

[hensonc4098]

Thanks guys,

It's going to be for a low tech (for now) planted tank, so I would like a fair amount of flow to try and prevent algae breakouts from low CO2 patches. I'll look at the 2000lph, and price up competitors like the tetratec. I may just get the 2000lph APS and then possibly get a powerhead if needed (got one for my other tank for under £15) so then I have 2 flow outputs rather than one.

Cheers about the UV - never really heard of anyone using UV filters unless it's for marine or very sensitive fish, which it's not going to be.

Thanks again.

 

[Dazzler666]

I have an APS 1400 uv on my 120 litre and i thought it was great. Much better than the two Fluval 304,s im running on my 5ft, easier to clean, never leaked, never broke & loads of media storage plus generally all round better build quality. Im even considering changing my Fluvals for two SunSun externals (Basically an APS but cheaper still & got good reviews from what i read!!).
My Fluvals are rubbish & i will never get any again, was only because they came with the tank is why i have them but i personally wouldnt buy them with my own money.
Id also go with UV as ive read it helps kill nasty bacteria and definately helps with algae control. As/when i upgrade i would definately get UV again, and doesnt cost much more especially if you look at actual UV filters.
Hope this helps.

 

[dbanner]

I have an APS 1400 uv on my 120 litre and i thought it was great. Much better than the two Fluval 304,s im running on my 5ft, easier to clean, never leaked, never broke & loads of media storage plus generally all round better build quality. Im even considering changing my Fluvals for two SunSun externals (Basically an APS but cheaper still & got good reviews from what i read!!).
My Fluvals are rubbish & i will never get any again, was only because they came with the tank is why i have them but i personally wouldnt buy them with my own money.
Id also go with UV as ive read it helps kill nasty bacteria and definately helps with algae control. As/when i upgrade i would definately get UV again, and doesnt cost much more especially if you look at actual UV filters.
Hope this helps.

You could use a UV but it's not going to do a lot apart from costing you more to run. Also the bulbs in the all pond solutions filters don't last very long at all. Don't get me wrong they are well priced filters but for £89 new I'd definitely go for a tetratec ex1200 over an all pond solution 2000 any day. I have to agree with you on the fluval filters. Like I said iv owned the APS 2000, fluval fx5 and a 406. Iv also had a 405, 306, 205 and a U2 and I didn't really like any of them.

Tetratec ex1200 combined with an external 300watt hydor heater any day of the week

 

[hensonc4098]

Think I'm gonna go for an ex1200 since they're really not a lot more expensive and everyone says they're streets better. I've got an external inline heater already that I meant to use on another tank and then didn't bother, so that will be used on this tank

 

[dbanner]

You have made the right choice and you won't be disappointed. The tetratec has 4 trays inside which packed full of media. It's also has 2 levers so you can easily restrict or stop the flow if needed. Iv found the tetratecs to be quieter and much easier to self prime than the APS filters too. I know the 300watt heaters by hydor fit straight onto the pipe of the ex1200. Not sure if the 200watt would fit though. Never tried one so don't know if the connections are smaller. I used to use 2 300 watt internal heaters but iv found 1 300watt external is more than capable on its own to keep my water at the desired temp. Less clutter in the tank too

It comes with a spray bar too but i don't use mine, all i use is the elbows and leave the spray bars off to get a bit of extra flow

 

[Alm0stAwesome]

Just thought I would add that it is the 300w hydor heater that you need to use with the EX1200, the 200w won't fit.

 

[hensonc4098]

Yeah, luckily it's the 300w one that I've got. Was looking at lily pipes on ebay there... Tempted like, since it's looking more and more likely that I'm gonna be setting up FE CO[sub]2[/sub] (see my post in the planted tanks section in ferts, flow and CO[sub]2[/sub] if you can answer any of my questions on that front) and think it would look bang on with all glassware and hardly any hardware in the tank. Even been looking at putting the CO[sub]2[/sub] inline as well, to reduce what's in the tank, although dunno if I'll have enough space on my pipe for both!

Since the tetratec is 16mm hose, would it be the 17mm lily pipes I would need to get? It's something like this that I was looking at - similar to ADAs stuff but a LOT cheaper And they have said that it'll be packaged appropriately for air travel (they offer refunds otherwise... lol) The same seller also sells inline atomisers for the CO[sub]2[/sub].

 

[Alm0stAwesome]

Wow very nice! I couldn't be without my spraybar though I love the flow I've got in my tank although I would loove some nice glasswear like that!

I just tell myself I'd smash it hehe

 

[hensonc4098]

It's really not that expensive from ebay otherwise I wouldn't be considering it - I'm too clumsy to have anything expensive

The glassware from ebay though starts at about £30 including postage, although this is from Hong Kong. The cheapest from the Uk is probably nearer £50 for the set.

 

[dgwebster]

A good choice there i've been running the ex1200 for about 2 years now and love the #40## thing. Only problem ive had is my son managed to climb it one day and broke one of the pipe connectors. Other reports suggest this is an area to easy snap off so i impart this advise:

The bit that snaps on these is where there is a plastic join. You can safely glue them back together with some two part epoxy resin as its all external to the waterflow. This buys you a week waiting on the replacement parts. Alternatively buy a pack of two (they are £10 ish) in advance just in case.

 

[hensonc4098]

Thanks for the advice - I'll likely bookmark a page that sells them just in case. Luckily I don't have any children to climb on it and it should be safe in the cupboard, but better safe than sorry!

 

[dgwebster]

Im the only one i know that did it that way: frantic mum on the phone to me at work about 'water pissing out your fish tank what do i do'.

Most other cases are simply people dismantling for maintenence to clean the tubes and muckle fisted about it.