New 60 Gallon

[brandi_k1985]

Hello everyone, this is my first post here. I hope you can help me. I got a 60 gal with everything from a yard sale. It was a very good price. It has the rock gravel, decorations, air hoses, air pumps, 2 whisper 30-60 filters, a heater and the hood with lights. It was $50. When I got it, it looks like they just emptied the water and that was it. I cleaned the tank, took out the gravel and rinsed it, cleaned all the tubes. I plan on puting it all back together tomorrow. My question is will it cycle faster if I use the used filters. They are kinda dirty. I did not rinse them or anything. There is 3 of the 4. So I will have to get a new one. Or should I get all new filters?

 

[Jayarie]

Well ive never heard off the brand but my filters did as they can good bacteria in the sponges the break them down and also a nitrate removal so if its a sponge filter i would think it would do the same.

Jay

EDIT = Very nice deal my tank is 60l and it cost me £80 which is about $150

 

[Colin_T]

if the filters are dry then they won't help the tank cycle any quicker. If the tank was running with fish in when you bought it, then it would.

I would chuck the old filter media and replace it with new stuff and start from scratch.

 

[waterdrop]

And you might want to discuss what media to get. You won't need carbon and you will want to consider sponges, ceramic rings, ceramic pebbles, bioballs, biostars, etc. There may be members familiar with the whisper filters and how flexible they are in the media they can take.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[dcarmor927]

welcome! i'd do the same as pointed out above, getting new media, you'll need the sponge cartridges and filter pads...also you want to do a fishless cycle

read up on it here (if you havent already):
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=113861

also i have a whisper 60 filter and it works pretty well...with both filters you should be good

 

[drobbyb]

There may be members familiar with the whisper filters and how flexible they are in the media they can take.

~~waterdrop~~

The whispers take the slide in inserts just like the Penguin and the Emporer filters. You can stuff the back with filter floss or a small bag of ceramic ring type media.

 

[waterdrop]

There may be members familiar with the whisper filters and how flexible they are in the media they can take.

~~waterdrop~~

The whispers take the slide in inserts just like the Penguin and the Emporer filters. You can stuff the back with filter floss or a small bag of ceramic ring type media.

Oh good, there is somebody who knows them:

Help me out here. I think then that these must be the types I've come to think of in my mind (with no hands on) as the least flexible out there. Are these the ones where each type of cartridge is fixed inside a rigid plastic frame that is meant to fit a slot formed on the inside side edges of the filter box, then slide down vertically into place? This always made me think the water flowed horizontally and not vertically and that it would be hard to re-create the taller thinner layers of media if one were trying to do custom media. I'm picturing that they are all HOBs but is that right?

~~waterdrop~~

 

[OldMan47]

You are correct. The whisper series are not very flexible as far as media. You basically take what they give you because nothing else fits very well. The water flows from the impeller chamber to the space behind the cartridges and then through the cartridge into the tank. The height difference between the water behind the filter and the water in front of it is what moves the water through the media. Both fully assembled cartridges and refillable cartridges are made, so you can actually add a little biomedia into the filter in the place that they expect you to put the carbon. Otherwise you are pretty much stuck with what they give you.

A note that you did not ask about. A whisper 30-60 is designed for a tank between 30 and 60 gallons. That means that your filter is going to be very marginal for that tank but should work with a light enough fish load. If you decide to upgrade to another HOB filter, the AC series is a bit more flexible. I use canisters most of the time so I have very little experience with HOBs.

 

[brandi_k1985]

Thanks everyone. There are 3 new filters cartidges that came with the tank. Which I am glad they are kinda expensive. Well $15 for 3 or 4. I think. I went to petsmart and look at prices and got new air hose also. I looked at a few posts about fishless cycleing so I will try that. I never really ever did that to my other tanks but they were small and always had pretty hardy fish. This time I want different fish so Ill do a better job at getting it set up for them. Thanks for the help again.
Oldman, there are 2 whisper 30-60 filters. So I think it should keep it pretty clean.
Just for those who dont know what it looks like I put up a picture, or at least I hope I did.

 

[drobbyb]

That's the one. It does indeed have the slide in inserts. What you can do is not use the insert at all. Just get a large filter sponge and slide it in (or stack it up) inside the cavity. Essentialy it makes your HOB a power sponge filter with custom purpose made sponges.

 

[waterdrop]

That's the one. It does indeed have the slide in inserts. What you can do is not use the insert at all. Just get a large filter sponge and slide it in (or stack it up) inside the cavity. Essentialy it makes your HOB a power sponge filter with custom purpose made sponges.

drobbyb, What's your opinion for the OP? Might a stack of coarse, then fine, sponges do better than the inserts, or should the inserts be used for now until they are used up and maybe then switch over. I sometimes worry a bit about unintentionally altering the flow rate when doing custom media or of missing on the tightness of the media to the filter box walls and allowing water to go unfiltered. Would be interested in your opinions as now would be the time to get it right.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[drobbyb]

That's the one. It does indeed have the slide in inserts. What you can do is not use the insert at all. Just get a large filter sponge and slide it in (or stack it up) inside the cavity. Essentialy it makes your HOB a power sponge filter with custom purpose made sponges.

drobbyb, What's your opinion for the OP? Might a stack of coarse, then fine, sponges do better than the inserts, or should the inserts be used for now until they are used up and maybe then switch over. I sometimes worry a bit about unintentionally altering the flow rate when doing custom media or of missing on the tightness of the media to the filter box walls and allowing water to go unfiltered. Would be interested in your opinions as now would be the time to get it right.

~~waterdrop~~

I would use the sponges like the aquaclear ones. Not too fine as to restrict water flow and not stacked too tightly. You can also use a small bag of your favorite bio media along with your inserts. The inserts are a filter floss type welded bag with a rigid plastic frame. You can take the carbon out and replace it with whatever you like.

I'm just trying to give flexibility on this type of HOB filter. The inserts do a decent job for a medium fish load.

Just to add, you can see a picture of the insert here: [URL="http/www.aquarium-supply.biz/Bio_Bag_Dis..._p/rte26161.htm"]http/www.aquarium-supply.biz/Bio_Bag_Dis..._p/rte26161.htm[/URL]

 

[statenfish]

good choice to enter the hobby! Just a warning its more expensive than drugs and twice as addictive!! lol Seriously though, i would not use any of the equipment u bought untill you wash it thoroughly. When people are about to discard a tank they tend to let the essential maintenance fall by the wayside. As far as cycling i usually add a few feeder goldfish to help me out. All mine usually survive and get added to my established tanks for their retirement. Good luck!

 

[waterdrop]

That's the one. It does indeed have the slide in inserts. What you can do is not use the insert at all. Just get a large filter sponge and slide it in (or stack it up) inside the cavity. Essentialy it makes your HOB a power sponge filter with custom purpose made sponges.

drobbyb, What's your opinion for the OP? Might a stack of coarse, then fine, sponges do better than the inserts, or should the inserts be used for now until they are used up and maybe then switch over. I sometimes worry a bit about unintentionally altering the flow rate when doing custom media or of missing on the tightness of the media to the filter box walls and allowing water to go unfiltered. Would be interested in your opinions as now would be the time to get it right.

~~waterdrop~~

I would use the sponges like the aquaclear ones. Not too fine as to restrict water flow and not stacked too tightly. You can also use a small bag of your favorite bio media along with your inserts. The inserts are a filter floss type welded bag with a rigid plastic frame. You can take the carbon out and replace it with whatever you like.

I'm just trying to give flexibility on this type of HOB filter. The inserts do a decent job for a medium fish load.

Just to add, you can see a picture of the insert here: <a href="http/www.aquarium-supply.biz/Bio_Bag_Dis..._p/rte26161.htm" target="_blank">http/www.aquarium-supply.biz/Bio_Bag_Dis..._p/rte26161.htm</a>

ok, thanks for that, interesting