thoughts on filters

[whip]

I'm researching a 75 gal tank. The tank will most likely be full of mbuna type fish. I was wondering what people think of the different canister filters? It seems the Eheim is the best and most money. The Fluval is Ok, and The Rena is good for the money. Has anyone used the PennPlax Cascade? The price is definitly right, but how good is it? The people that are using canisters, are you using any additional filters such as Ug or HOB? I use UG in all my current tanks, but I'm thinking of using sand. Some have told me you can't use sand and an UG together. Opinions?
Has anyone ever used a marine type wet/dry sump? The design of the Tidepool unit looks well thought out. They are pircey, but if they are good enough for marine use they will be real good for FW. Are they over kill for FW? I also like the idea of puting the heater in the sump away from the active fish. I read an article on marine refugiums. Could you grow FW algae on some lava rocks in the sump? It would be in an enclosed stand and I could hang a flouresent light over the sump. I'm also reading a lot at this site about diy sumps, very interesting. Just an Idea, I may be nuts.
I will use lava rocks for the caves and I had an idea I wanted to run by the "pros". If I stacked the rock above the water line and had the filter return flow over the rock, would this work as a small wet/dry bio bed? What about having the water return under the caves and flowing around the rocks? Would this increase the bio bed? Is it worth the extra work? Has anyone used an external filter to power an UGJ?
These are just some brainstorms(brain farts if I'm wrong) I have had while doing some reading. Let me know what you think.

 

[The-Wolf]

IMHO
Eheim is the way to go.
put it this way, if you buy a Ford car, you don't expect
the quality and performance of a Rolls Royce do you?

 

[andywg]

Sand and UG is a no-no.

I use a sump on my 90 gallon (UK) tank. I am a huge fan. it can take a while to setup but it gives you some great buffering qualities (more water, more gas exchange surface area) and you can hide heaters and the like. But a lot of people don't want to drill their tank, and while overflows are a possibility, I'm not a fan.

If you do go for a sump, you don't have to make it wet/dry you can just make it like an open topped canister filter packed with something like Alfagrog.

I had my sump tanks custom made and drilled and set the whole system up. It took a while to iron out some gremlins, but the end result is a fantastic tank with plenty of filtration. (plus, if any of the cichlids get too feisty you can "sin-bin" them for a while in the sump B) )

If you want more info on how I set-up my sump let me know and I'll pm you.

HIH Andy.

 

[asaint]

Sounds like you have a lot of questions and are trying to decide what type (canister, wet/dry, hob) filter you want to use.

I own a cascade canister filter. Nice filter for the money. Not as quiet as a fluval or Eheim though. There is a review of a cascade canister at this link;

http/www.cloudytanks.com/reviews/canisters/cascade700.htm

best of luck,
asaint

 

[CFC]

For performance and simplicity you cant beat a Eheim, they are quite simply the best comercially made filters on the market.

For tanks over 100 gallons a sump is the best way to go, this can be set up as a wet/dry or simply as a large area of biological filter media.

The idea of the raised rock formation is a interesting one, yes it would effectively work as a wet/dry and increase the size of the bacteria colonies BUT, the reason almost all marine fish keepers have moved away from wet/dry filters is that they are victims of their own success and can create horrendous nitrate problems. I feel that this would also be a issue with your idea.

The idea of a FW fuge is one that has been doing the rounds between the more experienced hobbiests for a while, having a seperate area for growing plants or algea as a nitrate filter where herbivorous fish cant get to them and lighting requirement can be met more easily is a excellent idea on paper but unfortunately impractical as the size of the fuge would have to be almost the size of the main tank to be effective, however if space isnt a issue then go for it.

 

[whip]

Sand and UG is a no-no.

I've heard this a lot. What is the reason?

 

[whip]

If you do go for a sump, you don't have to make it wet/dry you can just make it like an open topped canister filter packed with something like Alfagrog.

Is Alfagrog exclusive to your side of the pond? I've never heard of it. what is it?

 

[sunflower]

Sand and UG is a no-no.

I've heard this a lot. What is the reason?

Surely the fine grains of sand would just clog up an UGF?

 

[whip]

The idea of the raised rock formation is a interesting one, yes it would effectively work as a wet/dry and increase the size of the bacteria colonies BUT, the reason almost all marine fish keepers have moved away from wet/dry filters is that they are victims of their own success and can create horrendous nitrate problems. I feel that this would also be a issue with your idea.

Do you feel you can have to much filtration? I never thought this was possible. In freshwater it's easier to do water changes, it shouldn't be as big of a problem as SW. I got the idea from the pond my cousin built last year. Withen a month of starting it up the waterfall was covered in algae and I knew the microbs were there too. It seemed like a good idea at the time.

 

[keane]

Sand and UG is a no-no.

I've heard this a lot. What is the reason?

Surely the fine grains of sand would just clog up an UGF?

Yep .

Exactly the reason.

steve

 

[TwoTankAmin]

Sand and ugf is also a no no as sand compacts leaving minimal flow through space. UGFs need a minimum of 3 inches of medium sized gravel to work optimally.

I have a planted 75 gal which has the following filtration: Eheim Pro II 2026, AquaClear 300 and a Hot Magnum using the micron cartridge. The Eheims are available with buily in heaters ( which I do not like) or you can get an inline heater which connects to the return.

I don't use sump systems because I put another tank full of fish and plants where the sump would be. More fish or a sump- there is only one choice for me.

If you want to maximize bio, then consider bio-wheel filters.

You can power a ugf or rugf (a better choice) using a canister. The one issue with that is the best performance from under gravels is obtained by using a fairly slow steady flow. A canister may be too big for this kind of flow.