Filter Advice -

[d&a]

I recently got a new 55 Gallon All Glass 48x13x20 and a All-Glass Black Deluxe Full Hoods 48"...and I was wondering if stocking 2 AquaClear Power Filters 500/110 on the back of that hood is possible. Does anyone know off hand if it contains two cut-off pieces to place 2 HoB filters?

And is 2 AquaClear Power Filters 500/110 overdoing it?...I do want perfect water condition with good water movement, and I thought 2 HoB filters would do the job...or am I wrong. Or would Marineland's Emperor do the job better, or canister or combination of either.

Bear with me, semi-new to this hobby.

By the way, I'm planning to make it a Cichlid Tank, primarly from Lake Malawi.

 

[Tolak]

Hoods are designed to be cut out to accomodate filters & such, a pair of AC 500's would fit, but you would probably have to do a little trimming.

I use mostly Aqua Clears for hob filtration, I've tried others, & they don't work as well. I run filters to near death, extend intakes so I can do 50% water changes without shutting them down & such. Other filters choke, plug, and freeze up.

For larger overstocked tanks I like to do a combo of a hob & a canister. Hobs are better at mechanical filtration, AC's are awesome for that. Canisters are better at bio filtration, the only canisters I have running are Eheims.

 

[BBrain]

A pair of compound-action aviation snips is the tool you want, to notch out for your filters. They cut that plastic like butter:

 

[d&a]

Thx for the replies ... and the idea of a Canister + AquaClear 500/110 HoB would be nice...

... , wow canisters are sure pricey...

...Might stick with the 2 AquaClears 500/110 HoB filters instead then

 

[BBrain]

Whether or not two Aqua Clear 110's are overkill or not, I'm no filter expert, so I'll just pass on that I've often read that you should have 5 to 10 water changes per hour.

I'll do some math here, too. I have the Aqua Clear specs in front of me and they say that those 110's have a maximum flow rate of 500 gal/hr, and a minimum flow rate of 167 gal/hr. So....if you have two on full, that's 1,000 gal/hr, giving your 55 gallons 18 changes per hour. With them both on low, you'll get 6 water changes per hour. (all according to my math skills, that is! B) )

Personally, I like the idea of running filters at low speed. The slower the water passes through the filter media, the greater the contact time with the media. If the water has more time in the media, more toxins would be removed, and more ammonia and nitrite would be converted into harmless compounds, than if the water was rushing through. So with those two 110's on low speed, you're within the 5 to 10 water changes per hour, so I'd be happy with that choice.

Hopefully, more experienced aquarists will chime in here, and give their opinions on filter ideas with those fishes.

 

[d&a]

Personally, I like the idea of running filters at low speed. The slower the water passes through the filter media, the greater the contact time with the media. If the water has more time in the media, more toxins would be removed, and more ammonia and nitrite would be converted into harmless compounds, than if the water was rushing through. So with those two 110's on low speed, you're within the 5 to 10 water changes per hour, so I'd be happy with that choice.

... never thought setting the filter settings on low speed would improve the filtration process, I've always thought increased water movement throughout the tank would be a good for the tank, therefore at higher speeds, but I didn't know it would hinder on the filtration process. Thx for the heads up

 

[Tolak]

That's the cool thing about AC's, media flexability, very similar to a canister. You could run one full tilt, with sponge & some floss as a mechanical filter, turn down the second & load it with ceramic media for bio filtration. The problem with low flow is keeping the water circulating throughout the tank to eliminate dead spots. The filters should eliminate ammo, nitrites, & whatever else at any speed. The flow rate depends more on the fish you keep.

As far as overfiltering, as long as the fish aren't being blasted around the tank the flow is fine. I have a 55 with an AC 300, Eheim 2222, 2224, & home made 1,000 lph filter. It's around 880 gph, turns it over around 14 times per hour once you figure in the pressure loss from media. It's got large angels, who aren't supposed to like a lot of current. Someone should tell them that, especially the koi male & gold female that just started pairing.

 

[BBrain]

That's the cool thing about AC's, media flexability, very similar to a canister. You could run one full tilt, with sponge & some floss as a mechanical filter, turn down the second & load it with ceramic media for bio filtration.....

Great idea, Tolak! I'll be doing that ASAP.

Also, good point about flow rates vs. individual fish. I have a variety of fish species in my tank, and you can see that some species like to hang in strong flows, such as my Otocinclus and Lemon Tetras. Well, some of my Lemons....the ones that like to stay in shape! Others like to take life easy in the calm spots of the tank, just showing off their pretty colours....posers! B)

 

[d&a]

That's the cool thing about AC's, media flexability, very similar to a canister. You could run one full tilt, with sponge & some floss as a mechanical filter, turn down the second & load it with ceramic media for bio filtration. The problem with low flow is keeping the water circulating throughout the tank to eliminate dead spots. The filters should eliminate ammo, nitrites, & whatever else at any speed. The flow rate depends more on the fish you keep.

Oh, since it is my first time using AquaClear and a selective variety of filter media, I was wonder what is the recommended media to buy. I've been using Marineland's line of filters throughtout my whole fish keeping experience, for them you just slip a pre-packaged filter piece, but as for AquaClear's filter you would get to buy a range of filter media...

...so what exactly would be recommended for me since I'm using 2 AquaClears 500/110, from what Tolak posted before..."Sponge & Floss" only in one filter?...and what exactly is ceramic media?

 

[Boids-n-more]

This is comeing second hand but i thought i would pass it on , A guy at my local fish store use to work at marineland and swore on there filters when he lived in the bay area. Now that he's here in Arizona where the water is hard he is switching over to aquaclear filters cause the handle the hard water better. I noticed you wanted to keep cichlids and they like a harder water so you might want to think about going the aquaclear way. He told me that the inpellar shafts would get a build up real fast compared to his aquaclear filters. Just something to ponder on.