Tank Circulation Questions [New Question]

[Bobbynogz]

I've just purchased a second hand Rio 180 - it comes with no heater and filter, but I've heard the standard ones are crap anyway.

Here's my plan:

A resin 3d background from www.aqua-maniac.com
1 Tetra Tec Ex1200 external filter
1 Hydor 300w heater

The inlet will be drilled through a hole in the 3d background to ensure there are no dead spots behind the background. My theory is, colder water will sink from the spray bar (having been previously filtered and heated by the ex1200 and Hydor 300w) and then back into the inlet. Will this work guys? Or will there not be enough circulation in the tank? Will the spray bar included in the ex1200 be enough to oxygenate the tank, or will I require a seperate air pump?

Is the Hydor 300w a bit overkill for my tank? My reasoning for getting it is that the price difference is only about £5 from the 200w. Am I right in thinking if water drops to below the threshold, the pump kicks in and heats it - therefore there is very little difference in having an overpowered heater? It'll simply heat the water faster and then flick off sooner and if I upgrade my tank it'll suit that too.

Cheers!

Can anyone see any big problems with this?


New question in latest post. Cheers!

 

[dbanner]

The inlet bar will be plenty to oxygenate the water so no need to run a seperate air pump and the 300 w external heater will be perfect with the ex1200. The 200 w wouldn't fit the pipe of the 1200.

I run the 300w hydor heater and 2 ex1200's on my rio 400 and they work together perfectly. More than capable of doing the job. Iv noticed more and more people getting and advising people to get this combination as the filters are really good and also relitavely cheap. I actually prefer mine to all the fluvals iv had which include the 405, 406 and fx5. Also the heaters are excellent. One 300 w does great in mine which is 5 foot, 450 litres. What happens is the heater fits onto the filter inlet pipe (you need to cut the pipe to where you want the heater to go) and then constantly pumps warm water around the tank so you get no cold spots in the tank and also less clutter iv set mine to 26 degrees c and iv had no problems at all. I'd recommend this filter and heater combo to anyone.

I do use an external pump as well as my filters but that's only because I like the look of the bubbles coming off the air stone

 

[Bobbynogz]

The inlet bar will be plenty to oxygenate the water so no need to run a seperate air pump and the 300 w external heater will be perfect with the ex1200. The 200 w wouldn't fit the pipe of the 1200.

I run the 300w hydor heater and 2 ex1200's on my rio 400 and they work together perfectly. More than capable of doing the job. Iv noticed more and more people getting and advising people to get this combination as the filters are really good and also relitavely cheap. I actually prefer mine to all the fluvals iv had which include the 405, 406 and fx5. Also the heaters are excellent. One 300 w does great in mine which is 5 foot, 450 litres. What happens is the heater fits onto the filter inlet pipe (you need to cut the pipe to where you want the heater to go) and then constantly pumps warm water around the tank so you get no cold spots in the tank and also less clutter iv set mine to 26 degrees c and iv had no problems at all. I'd recommend this filter and heater combo to anyone.

I do use an external pump as well as my filters but that's only because I like the look of the bubbles coming off the air stone

So obviously the 300w heater will do the job, but will it be overkill and overly inefficient due to wasted energy? You can get 200w Hydors with 16mm pipe so it is still an option.

 

[KkAaNnEe]

Heaters only turn on when needed so it wouldnt overkill at all, only if It got stuck 'on' you would have a probem but it would be hours before any drastic temp increases

 

[dbanner]

The inlet bar will be plenty to oxygenate the water so no need to run a seperate air pump and the 300 w external heater will be perfect with the ex1200. The 200 w wouldn't fit the pipe of the 1200.

I run the 300w hydor heater and 2 ex1200's on my rio 400 and they work together perfectly. More than capable of doing the job. Iv noticed more and more people getting and advising people to get this combination as the filters are really good and also relitavely cheap. I actually prefer mine to all the fluvals iv had which include the 405, 406 and fx5. Also the heaters are excellent. One 300 w does great in mine which is 5 foot, 450 litres. What happens is the heater fits onto the filter inlet pipe (you need to cut the pipe to where you want the heater to go) and then constantly pumps warm water around the tank so you get no cold spots in the tank and also less clutter iv set mine to 26 degrees c and iv had no problems at all. I'd recommend this filter and heater combo to anyone.

I do use an external pump as well as my filters but that's only because I like the look of the bubbles coming off the air stone

So obviously the 300w heater will do the job, but will it be overkill and overly inefficient due to wasted energy? You can get 200w Hydors with 16mm pipe so it is still an option.

Nope, it won't be overkill. I used one in my vision 180

 

[Bobbynogz]

Thanks for the replies fellas, for the extra few quid I'm going to go with the 300w alongside the ex1200.

Do you think I should go for this setup, or simply get an Eheim Professional all-in-one thermofilter? What are the pros/cons? My immediate thought would be if part of the Eheim failed, I lose a heater and filter in one go making the impact on the tank more drastic.

Tetra Ex1200 + Hydor 300w = £150
Eheim Professional 3 250T = £199
Eheim Professional 1 = £129

There's another £50 in it to get the newish Eheim all in one, I am on a budget, but is it worth the stretch? Alternatively I could get the original series of Eheim Professional 1 thermofilter, for £20 less.

 

[dbanner]

I'd personally go with the ex1200 and 300 w hydor. I love mine and find more and more people are umstarting to use use this combo or already use it and are advising others to do so.

I got my ex1200's for £89 each (brand new and delivered) and my 300w hydor was £32 (again brand new and delivered)

 

[Bobbynogz]

I'd personally go with the ex1200 and 300 w hydor. I love mine and find more and more people are umstarting to use use this combo or already use it and are advising others to do so.

I got my ex1200's for £89 each (brand new and delivered) and my 300w hydor was £32 (again brand new and delivered)

Oh brilliant, could you point me to the site you got it from?

 

[dbanner]

The filters I got online from Warhouse-aquatics.co.uk. They give you bubble points for making each purchase plus you get 5% off your first order.

What bubble points are is money off basically. You get 1 point for each £1 you spend and each point is worth 3p off your next order. So what I did was order the filters first for £180 (for the 2) so I got 180 points to use on my next order (540p = £5.40).

So I ordered the heater when my filter order was processed and I got the points (next day to ordering filters) and got the £5.40 off my heater

If your ordering one filter you will get the 5% off so the filter will be roughly £75.99 and you will get 90 points (£2.70) off te heater so you'll pay roughly £112 for the filter and heater

 

[Bobbynogz]

The filters I got online from Warhouse-aquatics.co.uk. They give you bubble points for making each purchase plus you get 5% off your first order.

What bubble points are is money off basically. You get 1 point for each £1 you spend and each point is worth 3p off your next order. So what I did was order the filters first for £180 (for the 2) so I got 180 points to use on my next order (540p = £5.40).

So I ordered the heater when my filter order was processed and I got the points (next day to ordering filters) and got the £5.40 off my heater

If your ordering one filter you will get the 5% off so the filter will be roughly £75.99 and you will get 90 points (£2.70) off te heater so you'll pay roughly £112 for the filter and heater

Legend. Thank you very much mate, appreciated!

I did see the bubble points thing already but forgot what site it was on (my history is filled with thousands of aquarium websites haha).

 

[dbanner]

No problem mate there are always deals to get out there.

Haha my history can get like that. Although its usually mostly filled with clothes shops the girlfriend has been on lol

 

[Bobbynogz]

No problem mate there are always deals to get out there.

Haha my history can get like that. Although its usually mostly filled with clothes shops the girlfriend has been on lol

As long as your bank statement doesn't look the same.

 

[dbanner]

Nope, I'm getting pretty good at hiding the cards lol

 

[Bobbynogz]

Just found a spare Aqua One Powerhead:500 in a box downstairs from my coldwater tank (came with it when I bought it). I've never used it but though I could put it to good use in this Juwel Rio 180ltr. The diagram in the first post shows my layout for filter, heater etc, but I am concerned about possible dead-ish spots in the bottom left and right corners/sides of the tank. Would it be a good idea to position a pair of these powerheads at either end, pushing a flow of water towards the centre and then into the filter inlet?

More importantly, is this Aqua One Powerhead:500 actually a water circulation powerhead? Or is it specifically for filter units? It doesn't come up on any searches as a standalone powerhead but as a spare part for a filtration system. I'm rather worried about sticking it in water if it's not what I think it is!

Link to the item in question:
http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jCbexgEfDU

It's fairly small - my idea was to perhaps silicon some pipe either side (extending the inlet/outlet) and then hide it within a hollow resin rock, dremelling out holes for the pipe. It'd then fire water from the edges of the tank into the central filter inlet.

Would this be beneficial? Will I end up in hospital from electricution because I'm a dimwit and about to throw a non-submersible pump into water?

 

[dbanner]

Sorry but I know next nothing about these so can't comment on them. All I can say is your ex1200 will be more than enough on its own in your 180. I used to run 1 ex1200 in my 450 for a while but got another to be on the safe side but it's a BIG difference from a 3 foot to a 5 foot tank.