Can U Over Filter

[Carlovel1]

what filter is that? does it hang on the outside of the tank??

it is a small external filter

Yes, I realise that, but I'm getting a 50l tank for christmas and I don't want a internal, I was thinly maybe a hang on, but that external looks interesting, I just want to know the make.

dont know ask oldman57

You mean Oldman47

 

[jm_]

I think there is two question here wrapped in to the subject over filer

yes you can over filter, generally that's not great ie if you have 5 canisters that's over filter and problems would be so much water out having to be returned, a custom tank with weir would solve most there and a sump holding tank and pump it back, bit fiddly to get the levels but its doable, that way the fish should be fine and the tumbling or water is good for the water, and the sump you could do all sorts to help the water further

Returning the water, that amount its hard as be like a hose pipe on FULL blasting a tank so your need few pumps to return the water and care to break the waters fall - this is the tricky bit

I might use over size return pipe to take the capacity but loose pressure so its pushed in the water column rather than pressured back in and try to use spray bars for others etc to break the pressure of the return or the fish will hate it

Hope that makes scene

 

[OldMan47]

As far as filtering a 50l tank using an external, I would tend to go with the simple and relatively inexpensive Rena XP1, mostly because I have several of that brand and find it nice to be able to interchange parts. Other nice options are the Hang On Back, HOB, filters. Many of them come with very nice options and are plenty big enough to filter, and even to over-filter, that small tank. In the US, the most common and cheapest filters are often the HOB type, with the AC product line of HOB filters having a deserved better reputation than most. The quality of those filters may be not much different than other brands, but they have the distinct advantage of being flexible in what filter media you use in them. Many of the HOB filters in the US require the use of proprietary filter media which I find to be a significant negative feature.
An example may make that clearer. This filter element is required for a few of my HOB filters and I am unable to substitute anything else for them.

On the other hand, even my smallest canister has very flexible media. This is a picture of one of the Rena filters partially taken apart for cleaning and is one of the larger ones that has parts that will fit right into the smallest Rena. Almost any media can be used in this filter. That includes media made by Eheim, Rena, Fluval and lots of other people. I even use kitchen pot scrubbers in that filter, as are visible in the picture.