Fluval Roma 240 Vs Juwel Rio 240

[DBT85]

Well I ordered the final bits this morning which will all be here tomorrow.

37.5kg kg of Unipac Granite Black sand
TetraTec ex 1200 filter + a set of the white media (which I gather is the polishing type rather than the biological type that shouldn't be changed)
A fish net just in case
A massive gravel cleaner/siphon
250ml of Seachem Prime

It also seems that my dad might have decided to join me after giving up the hobby about 20 years ago (no idea why) as he has been looking at some tanks including the Roma 125! Similarly to me he couldn't think of anywhere to put it until my mum said they should get one and put it in the alcove and just move the stuff that was already there. We shall see what happens!

I'm at work now on nights all week and won't be in any fit state to do it Friday when I get home so won't be setting it up until Saturday. I do need to take a small amount off the base of the cabinet in order to fit it all in a little better but from the look of the cabinet that should be simple enough and I have the tools here to do it properly and neatly.

The tank also did some with a bottle of Nutrafin Cycle so I just need to decide whether to bother using it or not. I'm in no major rush so if it still takes 4-6 weeks to cycle then do be it, but I suppose there is no harm in using it. Maybe I need another thread lol. If I do use it I still wouldn't be adding any fish, I'll just feed the tank Ammonia instead.

 

[minnnt]

Sounds like you have it all worked out mate. You won't regret the filter choice.

 

[DBT85]

The Ex 1200 is bloody huge!

There will probably be a dedicated thread and lots and lots of pics once I start on Saturday, just stunned at how huge it is. I saw the dimensions but somehow that didn't prepare me lol.

 

[minnnt]

You should see the 2400....

 

[DBT85]

You should see the 2400....

I dread to think, however that's been discontinued hasn't it?

What I'm also going to do with this is test the actual flow rate with media in and with media out to see what kind of hit it takes and to see how the real numbers stack against advertised numbers.

 

[doresy]

The Ex 1200 is bloody huge!

There will probably be a dedicated thread and lots and lots of pics once I start on Saturday, just stunned at how huge it is. I saw the dimensions but somehow that didn't prepare me lol.

Remote controlled too!!!!

 

[minnnt]

I achieved 864LPH.

The 2400 is still available AFAIK but it is a real dog of a filter. Noisy as hell.

 

[DBT85]

Remote controlled too!!!!

hehe I needed something to show scale!

 

[Tizer]

i stepped up to these from a fluval 305 and i was quite shocked at the size, that said, i was concerned about two of them making loadsa noise, but there is next to none which is ace.

few people have done the tests already, roughtly 900 lph i think most worked it out at.

 

[DBT85]

Ahh ok 850-900lph with media in still seems quite good!

The sand arrived today and my cabinet has arrived at my LFS so I can pick that up on Friday morning after work.

Once I;ve got it all set up I'll put my 305 up for sale. I know it won't contain everything you get if you buy one new but it'll still have the two short hoses and all the media and stuff so I'm sure someone can get some use and offset my purchase of the 1200.

I tallied up everything I've spent so far and its £570 lol. If the guy I just texted about bogwood comes back it'll be £600 and I don't have any fish or plants yet Hopefully I can get a little for the 305 and the 300m heater that I also don't need (bought an external heater).

 

[minnnt]

Let me know how much you want for the 305.

 

[Tizer]

It might be wise to tuck the 305 away in the garage or something rather than flog it, just in case your new filter packs in and you need something to keep you going until it gets repaired. Better safe than sorry.

 

[minnnt]

I run two on all my tanks... Best way I find.

 

[DBT85]

Thanks for the suggestion Tizer. As I just said to Miiinnnnnttttt in a PM I'm going to pick up another 1200 in a couple of months once I've forgotten how much I've spent already That'll be better for spares and media replacement than having two different filters.

As far as my tank goes, good news is that the guy selling some bogwood near me got back to me and I'm collecting in the morning. 3 pieces for £30 with one being about 24" across and one being about 18" across and the other being about 12" across. That'll do!

Looks like my dad is putting any aquarium plans on hold though as putting one in the alcove in the living room just isn't going to work for a couple of reasons. What he has said is that when my brother moves out (next few months) he will seriously consider moving his PC desk upstairs and then put a tank against the chimney breast in the dining room. That would also allow him to go for 4-5ft if he could find one for a reasonable price which would be cool.

Anyway, lots of pics will be up on Saturday/Sunday so I'll shut up for now

 

[DBT85]

We'll the good news is that I picked the rather heavy cabinet today as well as my three bits of bogwood. The woman in MA @ Croydon also said I could nick some of their biological media to give everything a kick start.

The annoying news is that the black adhesive background I ordered hasn't even been posted according to eBay (i'm hoping the seller just didn't update) and my wife is out all day tomorrow until about 7 so even if the background arrived I would't be able to get any water in until Sunday .

I have marked up the panels that I need to trim down so I can get that done and built tomorrow and the sand cleaned ready to go when I can. Maybe I'll go visit a couple of LFS' once I've done all I can!