Trying to figure out filter setup for my Aimara. He's solitary in a 180g. I had 3 ac110s running which was working well but one cracked so I'm down to two. This guy will be in the 180 for another 1-2 years. When I upgrade I'll be going to either a sump or closed loop with ultima which means what I buy now is a two year solution max. For this reason I want to minimize cost.
My concern is that if he starts getting to ~20in before I upgrade the ac110s won't support his bioload.
My choices are the following:
1) Just get another ac110. Cleanings will continue to be a breeze.
2) There is a Black Friday deal on fx6 to pick up sub $200. I had a fx5 and it was a massive pain to clean. This guy clogs my ac110 sponges quick so I don't want to see what he does to a fx5.
3) Splurge for eheim 2262. I'd keep the 2 ac110s but use for mechanical and to house lots of pothos. Without media baskets this will be much easier to clean than fx6.
4) Get eheim 2217. This will give more bio than ac110 and maybe I can convert 1 ac110 to pothos.
My media right now is just biomax so I can always upgrade my media for the 3 ac110s if that would make a difference.
I really just want to minimize cost and try to keep cleaning time minimize. I do 50% water changes every 5 days and it's a breeze to clean my sponges in the ac110s. Btw, I have cut my sponges in half so my 3 ac110s actually hold more media than my fx5 did.
My concern is that if he starts getting to ~20in before I upgrade the ac110s won't support his bioload.
My choices are the following:
1) Just get another ac110. Cleanings will continue to be a breeze.
2) There is a Black Friday deal on fx6 to pick up sub $200. I had a fx5 and it was a massive pain to clean. This guy clogs my ac110 sponges quick so I don't want to see what he does to a fx5.
3) Splurge for eheim 2262. I'd keep the 2 ac110s but use for mechanical and to house lots of pothos. Without media baskets this will be much easier to clean than fx6.
4) Get eheim 2217. This will give more bio than ac110 and maybe I can convert 1 ac110 to pothos.
My media right now is just biomax so I can always upgrade my media for the 3 ac110s if that would make a difference.
I really just want to minimize cost and try to keep cleaning time minimize. I do 50% water changes every 5 days and it's a breeze to clean my sponges in the ac110s. Btw, I have cut my sponges in half so my 3 ac110s actually hold more media than my fx5 did.
