fluval 405 in marine?

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
B

bromie88

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Feb 19, 2008
456
1
0
37
Liverpool, England
at the end of february i wil have access to a used, but in very good condition fluval 405. the owner wants £25 as ive helped them with her with any problems she had with her tank's.

all the media will be included, but i plan to get rid of all but the sponges, and fill the filter with live rock rubble, with some floss if the sponge doesnt catch all the small particles.

i understand that if left unmaintained canister filters can be come nitrite factories. will i be able to avoid this if i clean it every week when i do my WC?

im running an internal fluval 4+ at the moment, so the 405 would hopefully be a step up for filtration as i have no room for a sump. i'd also like to remove the internal 4+ eventually to give me more room in the tank. so even if it only gives me slightly more filtration, will it be worth the £25, considering that they are over £100 new?

the tank itself is a 100 L (36x12x15) with 10kg (22lb) of live rock and a pair of 250lph powerheads for extra flow. with the internal removed id be able to squeeze in another few Kg of live rock. live stock are a green spotted puffer, a common clown, and a few inverts that came with my rock. the 405 is rated for aquariums up to 400 L.

should i go for it?
 
Even if you filled it up with rocks it will still be a nitrate factory. The water will move too quickly for bacteria to properly do its job. The only thing I can say is you can run it with only a poly pad for catching any debris. But unless you are planning on cleaning it at every WC interval sometimes even more, it may be more trouble than what its worth.

So basically you are the only person that knows the answer to this. You did your reserach, and you know what will happen. You do the math now.
 
skene;2607722; said:
Even if you filled it up with rocks it will still be a nitrate factory. The water will move too quickly for bacteria to properly do its job. The only thing I can say is you can run it with only a poly pad for catching any debris. But unless you are planning on cleaning it at every WC interval sometimes even more, it may be more trouble than what its worth.

So basically you are the only person that knows the answer to this. You did your reserach, and you know what will happen. You do the math now.
Click to expand...

oh ok. i didnt know that was why canisters become nitrite factories. i always thought it was because they where left uncleaned. i thought the more flow over live rock, the better it works...

so you can have too much flow for the bacteria in LR to do its job properly? and thats why sumps work best, especially if they are above 1/3 the volume of the tank itself. in effect, causing the water to move slower around the rock, but keeping the flow rate in/out of the tank high?

i'll probably leave it then, unless it will work better than my internal fluval 4+ thats currently in the tank. but this is where info from google seems to end. it doesnt say what will work better in marine, a canister, or an internal?

and thats my biggest problem, there doesnt seem to be much info on running internal filters in marine tanks. no one seems to know if they work well, or if they become nitrite facories themselves. the only thing i could find is that they are basically used as powerheads in the marine aquarium. so i cant just write the canister filter off, as i cant say the internal is doing the job properly to begin with.

i would add a sump to my tank, as its best for my tank, but i just dont have the room to do so. even if there is only a marginal improvement in filtration with the cansiter, it would be better for my tank, and better for my fish. so it could be an improvement.

the trouble is, there is no data to compare. unless anyone wants to share? i still need help. :)
 
skene;2613610; said:
Maybe what might be more of an interest to you is a hang on back sump.
CPR Hang on fuge

This will allow you to have space for a sump, put live rock and macro algae or chaeto in.
Click to expand...

thanks skene. but im in the uk, so that make/model is out unfortunately... it seems like a good idea too... i'll deffo keep an eye out for anythin similar. i was actually thinkin of making something along the same lines, but just to put my filter, heater, and a skimmer in to give me more room in the tank. id make it out of a stackerbox, but finding one that fits behind the tank is a pain. i have a space about 24"x6" to work with... and i have an 11w clip on light from another unused tank, so i could easilly turn it into a fuge with some LR...
 
had a check around... cheapest ive found is £30 plus postage. i think i'll try an make one... doesnt look complicated at all. a box a piece of plastic and two pieces of tubing...
thanks for the help...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
MonsterFishKeepers.com
Top Bottom