2 Tanks , 1 Fx5 !

[djarmstrong]

Assuming both tanks are side by side. Drill a hole at the top of both tanks. Then pipe them together.

Put the intake one tank and the return on the other.

Ten bucks in materials.

Posted on mobile.monsterfishkeepers.com

Sorry but i dont really want to drill holes in my tanks .

Just because if the idea of the pipe doesn't work correctly then i am stuck with a hole in the sides of my tanks , and then when/ if i sell the tanks i prob's wouldnt get as much for them and it would be harder to sell .

 

[Jgray152]

The FX5 doesn't push 600gph filled with media.

Yes it does. Its been tested

The FX5 is rated at 925 gph...

Marketing hype. That is what the pump is rated without any sort of restrictions (Ie, no canister)

The difference in elevation between surfaces of each 'container' will dictate the speed at which the siphon moves water...

Yes, but also the larger the pipe the more flow you get with less water drop in the tank with the filter intake since there is less restriction. You don't want to use 1" pipe. 1.5 - 2" should be enough to not allow the water to drop much.

I don’t get the bio capacity comment…

Assuming he will have a heavy bio load in each large tank, the single Fx5 may not be able to handle it.

 

[Toby_H]

Marketing hype. That is what the pump is rated without any sort of restrictions (Ie, no canister)

I wouldn't call it "hype"... they have to rate it somehow, and the motors output at zero restriction is a solid way of rating them. They can't truly rate it by it's "actual capacity" as there are hundreds of minute details that will affect the "actual" output thus altering what it "should" be rated. Take Eheim for example. They use a claimed actual rating, but in practical use they don't really function at that capacity...

Yes, but also the larger the pipe the more flow you get with less water drop in the tank with the filter intake since there is less restriction. You don't want to use 1" pipe. 1.5 - 2" should be enough to not allow the water to drop much.

I completely agree the diameter of the tube/pipe connecting the two containers will be a major factor in how fast the water moves from one tank to the other... therefore how high one tank will build up above the other... But if you want the lower tank to be within a few inches of the rim I am willing to bet it will take more than a 2" dia pipe/hose connecting them to allow 10 gallons per minute (600 gph) to move through it...

There are equations to calculate all of this, but since it's a purely hypothetical situation that no one is actually interested in trying... I'm not going to bother figuring it out...

Assuming he will have a heavy bio load in each large tank, the single Fx5 may not be able to handle it.

I've kept a lot of fish tanks over a lot of years... and I've never owned a tank that had insufficient surface area to house enough bacteria to handle a consistent bio load... So I completely disagree with that concept... but that is a whole other debate...

 

[Jgray152]

I wouldn't call it "hype"... they have to rate it somehow, and the motors output at zero restriction is a solid way of rating them. They can't truly rate it by it's "actual capacity" as there are hundreds of minute details that will affect the "actual" output thus altering what it "should" be rated. Take Eheim for example. They use a claimed actual rating, but in practical use they don't really function at that capacity...

Its is marketing hype and nothing but.

How many people will get the filter because it says 925 GPH?? How many members on this forum know that 925 GPH is NOT what they will EVER see the filter push? I can tell you right now there are more people thinking the filter flows 925 GPH then its actual flow.

The pump flow rating is USELESS on canister filters because you will NEVER reach it no matter what you do. Its all hype. Marketing. Would many buy it if it said 600 GPH? probubly but 925 GPH sounds better and that's what they put in bold on the box and the canister will never flow 925 GPH.

Many don't know the difference between pump flow and filter flow, Hagen knows this.

They don't need to include the pump rating at all but they do to make the filter sound better, infact, it makes their design sound piss poor if you ask me. Thats a large drop and head pressure has no effect on this since canister filters have equal pressure on the output as it does on the intake. I bet the ID of the intake port to the impeller has something to do with this since its almost half the size of the ID of the impellers eye.

Eheim is VERY close to their actual rating and honestly, the 602 GPH rating Hagen uses as the filter flwo rate is spot on with and without media.

I completely agree the diameter of the tube/pipe connecting the two containers will be a major factor in how fast the water moves from one tank to the other... therefore how high one tank will build up above the other... But if you want the lower tank to be within a few inches of the rim I am willing to bet it will take more than a 2" dia pipe/hose connecting them to allow 10 gallons per minute (600 gph) to move through it...

There are equations to calculate all of this, but since it's a purely hypothetical situation that no one is actually interested in trying... I'm not going to bother figuring it out...

I can only assume and I am pretty sure 2" will be sufficient and since it is hypothetical I am not going to get into equations to figure it all out either like you said. 600 GPH is not a lot when considering the flow of a 2" pipe.

I've kept a lot of fish tanks over a lot of years... and I've never owned a tank that had insufficient surface area to house enough bacteria to handle a consistent bio load... So I completely disagree with that concept... but that is a whole other debate...

I say lets make another thread about it

 

[Toby_H]

Its is marketing hype and nothing but.

Playing a bit of Devil's Advocate...

Then what should they rate them as? The hypothetical "filter flow" or the real, measurable pump flow?

You are right that "head pressure" doesn't impact a canister, but hose diameter, intake design, bends in the hoses, media, debris cought in media, etc, etc all do impact... and all vary from one set up to the next... therefore basing any "filter flow" is hypothetical and will vary from one unit / set up to the next.

So they use the scientific number (pump's max flow) as opposed to a hypothetical number that varies (filter flow)...

And how can we suggest Eheim's number is close? Put a couple more bends in the hose, let the media mature a bit and it could vary considerably... I don't care what perfect lab conditions can produce... I care what we should expect to see in real life applications well beyond the first week of use.

So I agree they shold better clarify the rating system they are using... but I do feel it is the proper way to rate it...

When they measure the Horse Power of a vehicle... they measure the torque of the engine not the pulling power of the car...

This is just how things are measured...

600 GPH is not a lot when considering the flow of a 2" pipe.

600 gph is 1 gallon every 6 seconds... I'll give you that a 2" pipe is a pretty big pipe... but a siphon between two surfaces that are only and inch or two apart is SOOO slow...

I say lets make another thread about it

You make it... I'll participate...

 

[tcarswell]

Getting both inlets/outlets to remove/replace the EXACT same amount of water will be nearly impossible... keeping them balanced will be literally impossible... An exceptionally minute difference will add up quickly allowing one tank to overflow...

The solution to this is to create a constant siphon between the two aquariums. Precaution must be taken to not allow the siphon to become plugged or to allow air bubbles to enter the siphon tube...

The siphon will ensure both tanks are at the same level and will account for any minor differences in the filters balance...

Since both tanks will be (essentially) filled up to the top of the rim, there will be little room for error. Now considering that a siphon is very weak (read as slow) when water levels are very close to the same elevation... so you will still want to take every step possible to create a balance with the filter. This would include making the distance from the inlet/outlet to the T/Y the same distance, the same diameter hoses, have the same bends, etc, etc from one tank to the other...

But even with all that in place... the inlets will get clogged at different rates causing an imbalance in flow via the filter... forcing the siphon to keep the tanks in balance... and since the siphon will be so weak/slow I would only trust this balance unless the water level in the tanks were kept a couple inches below the rim. There is no way to predict clogging/restriction/imbalance therefore you will want to keep a very close eye on this system...

Note: The larger the diameter of the siphon the better it will work to keep things in balance... using multiple siphon tubes is also a wise option...

Great post. I had not thought about that... Makes me want to make one big sump for my kitchen and bedroom tanks

 

[Jgray152]

Then what should they rate them as? The hypothetical "filter flow" or the real, measurable pump flow?

the filter flow is not hypotetical and if you search you will find that the filter flows between 550-630 GPH. So advertising a 600 GPH filter flow rate is more accurate than the 925 GPH pump flow rate that will NEVER be reached while the pump is on a canister.

Look at the Eheim 2262. They used there 2262 pump that flows 900 GPH. They stuck it on a canister and they claim their canister filters at 900 GPH. BS!. People have tested their 2262 lowers than 600 GPH.

People buy them because they are all excited that they have a filter claiming to move 900 GPH but they get upset when they find out it only moves 600 GPH. Which would YOU rather prefer you read on a box filter specs?

You are right that "head pressure" doesn't impact a canister, but hose diameter, intake design, bends in the hoses, media, debris cought in media, etc, etc all do impact... and all vary from one set up to the next... therefore basing any "filter flow" is hypothetical and will vary from one unit / set up to the next.

Yes and there are more factors than that. Guess what, from OEM ribbed tubing, basket design and dual output nozzel used, which I had a measure 600 GPH, to vinyl tubing, large single output and no baskets, the filter still only pushes 600 GPH.

You will should not see a huge variance in flow from the "filter flow" specs. On the other hand when you buy a filter because it says it flows 925 GPH when it really flows 325 GPH LESS!!!!!! Filter flow may vary from 0-100 GPH. Which do you think is more accurate?

So they use the scientific number (pump's max flow) as opposed to a hypothetical number that varies (filter flow)...

Who knows if this is even the correct flow. I mean, come on, 925 GPH down to 600 GPH? They screwed up some where.

Obviously you believe in scamming people in to buying a product that you say can do "this" when it ACTUALLY does "this".

When they measure the Horse Power of a vehicle... they measure the torque of the engine not the pulling power of the car...

That's going a bit off right there. Way more variables take place. Tires, suspension, trans gears, diff ratio, flywheel weight, auto weight, persons weight, just to name a few.

600 gph is 1 gallon every 6 seconds... I'll give you that a 2" pipe is a pretty big pipe... but a siphon between two surfaces that are only and inch or two apart is SOOO slow...

And what is the difference when there is a 10" gap vs 2"? So 10" gap from the water's surface to the pipe vs 2" gap? Even if the water was not below the end of the pipe, the more area there is for the water to move through an opening, the more water that can move through it at one time.

Will you argue that a 6" pipe will be to small too?

 

[Toby_H]

Obviously you believe in scamming people in to buying a product that you say can do "this" when it ACTUALLY does "this".

No need to make rude assumptions there bud...

I have explained time and time again... and you refuse to acknowledge it...

The max flow of the pump is a literal measurement... the actual flow rate of the filter varies considerably and is therefore hypothetical...

The car example is a good comparison, and yes there are many factors, just like on the filter... think it through there bud... that was my point...

As for the the pipe/siphon discussion... when two surfaces are at the same elevation, there is no siphon, they balance... as the difference in elevation increases, the strength/speed of the siphon increases... a connecting pipe functions under the same principals...

No need to pretend I'm making assuptions or arguments that I'm not... I said what I meant and I meant what I said... I don't need you to make up arguments on my behlf...


PS - the conversation with you has stopped being education or amusing... enjoy your reply...

 

[fish_master2000]

man just get another filter, when i had my fish room i had all my tanks running to one sump and them filtered, so for a idea

 

[tcarswell]

The better the filter the more it costs...

Aqua Clear 110s are by far my preferred HOB filter. They are the only one's I would buy anymore and I have over a dozen of them

If you shop on Ebay you can find them for under $60 shipping included. I do not know of a particular seller to recommend/trust though... nor do I know of any to steer you away from...

(Not getting involved in the debate )

But I highly recommend the AC110 I got three currently and they are true work horses.