Corner tank info for Aquamanis

[New Boy]

Aquamanis....

My tank is a Trigon 190 made by Juwel (not sure if you get them in Australia but the website is www.juwel-aquarium.de/index.php. It holds 190 litres/50 us gallons/42 imperial gallons. As it's a quarter of a circle with radius 70 cms, I can work out the surface area as (70 *70 * 3.141592654)/4 for fish stocking.

It came with a built in filter (black box at the back that has heater and powerhead-built onto replaceable sponges and does 600 litres per hour). I didn't feel that the filter was sufficient so I also run an external fluval 304 – an extra 1,000 litres per hour.

Lighting is 2x18 watt bulbs which I don't think is strong enough for plant growth (although I'm not sure) but the fish aren't that keen on any brighter so I'm happy with replacing a load of plants every three months to keep the fish happy. I've got that on a timer to come on at 10 in the morning and go off at 11 at night.

Ok, now general comments. I had to get a mini-step ladder to be able to get to the built in filter and heater and to do gravel cleans at the back, not a major bother but a bit more expense.

The front of my tank is bowed, which I like but some tanks have 'joins' right in the middle of the front part of the tank, - if that makes sense – that make viewing a bit more difficult. Also it's difficult to put background outside the tank as you won't be able to see it from some angles due to the way light plays on three sided tanks (but you can see algae on the inside of the glass from all angles!!).

I've found that the 'king' fish will hang out in front of the glass and scare the other fish down the back - which means that you don't see some of the fish as much as you probably would in a rectangular tank.

They all sound quite negative but I love my corner tank. Since I got two bristlenose catfish my algae has dissappeared. If I was to start again I would look into putting background inside the tank (see the juwel website, looks quite impressive). I’ve built a fortress like cave for the fish at the back to give them security which means in a corner tank that I can have a large open area at the front. Might be worth asking moderators whether corner tanks are better/worse for dead spots generally……Any other q's let me know and I'll try and answer

Cheers
Andy

 

[Alien Anna]

Andy, I've got an older, smaller version of the Juwel Trigon. It's a good tank but the light isn't great. I'm assuming you've got Juwel reflectors in the lights? They effectively double the amount of light you get in your tank. You don't need Juwel branded reflectors, btw - Arcadia reflectors are just as good.

I was talking to one of the guys at Tri-Mar this morning, who knows all about Juwels. He recommended to get a Powerglo and a Growlux bulb on the light fittings - expensive, but worth it if you want to get the most out of your wattage.

If you can get a Juwel light fitting you can actually fit two on your tank (4 bulbs), although you'd have to make some replacement covers out of sheets of ply. I've seen Juwel lighting sets for sale on Ebay so you don't have to pay the as-new price. You can also bolt an 18" Arcadia light fitting to the lids by drilling two holes and using those plastic screws and light clips. Actually, I'll probably be doing that myself - then I can have 4 different lights in one tank

The Juwel column filter is a very efficient bio-filter and does oxygenate well despite appearances (a chemist friend tested his with an O2 meter). However, I think its clumsy and unsafe as fish can get trapped behind it. I'm planning to replace mine with an Eheim Ecco.

 

[New Boy]

Thanks for the lighting tips. I'm ok with the internal box filter because my fish are too big to get behind but good point for small fish or fry.

Do you think that a corner tank is more or less likely to have dead spots? The two filters that I have actually point from the corner along each side of the tank as I thought that this would be the best way to avoid dead spots.

What size Trigon have you got and what fish have you got in it?

 

[Alien Anna]

Do you think that a corner tank is more or less likely to have dead spots? The two filters that I have actually point from the corner along each side of the tank as I thought that this would be the best way to avoid dead spots.

What size Trigon have you got and what fish have you got in it?

Personally, I always move the corner filter once a fortnight or so and clean the gravel underneath, just to make sure there are no dead spots. I have had problems with dead spots in the past so I'm a little paranoid about it. I suppose that's one of the few good things about my snail infectation

It's not actually a Trigon, but it is a Juwel corner tank. It's a German model at least 12 years old so its rather on its last legs. Technically it's a 110 L tank, but because the filter outlet means the water has to be quite low (2" from the top) that effectively drops its capacity to about 95 L. It's got a slightly larger capacity than when I bought it and it had that hideous Juwel background on it, covered in hair algae and stinking

The current population is:
4x cherry barbs
Pair pearl gouramis
6x cardinal tetras
6x rummy-nosed tetras
1x bristlenosed plec
1x pencilfish (last of a school)
3x golden apple snails

And hopefully, if all goes well with the introduction, 3x pygmy chain botias. I've got three large pieces of bogwood in there covered in dwarf anubias bushes and a huge Java fern. I also have two Amazon swords that I've almost successfully killed from a problem with my lights when I was on holiday. I have a Nutrifin CO2 generator in there but the rest is Juwel's own.

 

[aquamanis]

Thanks Newboy, that was very helpfull. I was thinking of a 1 metre x 1 metre (sides) x 70cm high which is I,ve been told is the maximum height you would want for the surface area to volume ratio? And I would like to make a below tank sump/filter which will be concealled inside a large corner cabinet. I can see problems with reaching the back corner as you pointed out but do you think I wiuld have any other problems with a setup like this? Thanks Mate.

 

[New Boy]

Alien Anna,
Was the internal background not any good then? I'm hoping to get a 300 or 400 L tank in march next year (garage conversion so more room to get a bigger tank) and I was going to move the current fish to that tank and re-jig the corner tank - I was thinking of doing the undergravel filter thing with a powerhead attached and reduce my dead spot risk (I too am a little paranoid about them but have been lucky enough to not experience one so far) and also fully sealing some Juwel background on each side. Hadn't got as far as thinking what type of fish, too much choice but probably be hard water types as they'll suit the local water.

Aquamanis,
That sounds like a very nice tank, are you making it yourself? So that means the diagonal of the tank will be as big as 141 cms (is my maths correct?). Have you thought about how you'll light the tank? Not really my strong point, but have you looked at the lengths of tube available and the strength that you'll need for that depth tank - I think the 'tube' shape is built more for rectangle tanks really. As I mentioned background is a bit tricky (and I hated the half algae/half mirror effect that I used to see). Apart from that I'm green with envy that you're getting a tank that big with a sump filter!

 

[aquamanis]

Yes Newboy, thats about the length of the front, I worked it out to be about 145cm or so. I,m not going to make it myself but I,ll probably either make or modify the cabinet as I,m a secondhand furniture dealer and come across corner units all the time. With the sump I estimate it should be around 450-500 lt. As for lighting I was thinking of using a 250watt high pressure sodium. These are the bees knees for Hydroponics (much better than metal halides, they have a 30% blue and 70%red spectrum where as metal halide is predominately blue) I,ve never read or heard anyone using one though so maybe they aren,t suitable? Do you think an undergravel filter is better for this type of tank? I would still have a sump as well for the extra water capacity.

 

[Alien Anna]

Alien Anna,
Was the internal background not any good then? I'm hoping to get a 300 or 400 L tank in march next year (garage conversion so more room to get a bigger tank) and I was going to move the current fish to that tank and re-jig the corner tank - I was thinking of doing the undergravel filter thing with a powerhead attached and reduce my dead spot risk (I too am a little paranoid about them but have been lucky enough to not experience one so far) and also fully sealing some Juwel background on each side. Hadn't got as far as thinking what type of fish, too much choice but probably be hard water types as they'll suit the local water.

Hi,
my experience of the Juwel backgrounds was that it was a trap for hair-algae (my tap water nitrates and phosphates are out of sight). Being in the tank for over 10 years, it finally went rotten and stank like a polluted beach

The reverse powerhead idea for under-gravel filters was discussed on another section of the forum. Apparently, there is some kind of problem with oxygen-depleted gasses being pumped through the gravel. An under-gravel heater was apparently a better solution - the convection currents it causes draw oxygen-rich water in the gravel and dirt and debris tend to rise to the top.

 

[New Boy]

Aquamanis,
in my experience undergravel filters aren't very good. I've never managed to keep any plants alive with an UGF and I remember doing a full clear out annually that was a nightmare. Now I've used an external canister filter I'll never go back.

Alien Anna,

Do you think it would be worth putting Juwel background in the tank if you have bristlenoses or don't have algae hair problems? My nitrate and phosphate are also high from the tap which is why every three months I spend £10 on mail order for plants to keep them down. Never had much trouble with hair algae...brown algae is another matter until I got bristlenoses.
Ta
Andy