Monster 822 gallon (ext) aquarium build thread

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Looks like the fishkeeping community is finally seeing the light. Here's a fishkeeping vendor that now sells RTLs, but the filters come with some kind of funky media. It appears you have to buy the 100 micron cartridge separately.

http://all-aquatics.com/store/item/...RTL_100_Dynamic_Series_Commercial_Filter.html


This is the vendor I ended buying six RTL-100s from (there was another vendor with cheaper pricing, but they kept flaking out on me.) I just purchased bases for my filters. The bases do not come with the unit (looks like they do with All Aquatics). The parts list makes it look the filters break down a lot...nothing has broken on ours in the last 6 1/2 years. Since the 100 micron cartridge has to be purchased separately from All Aquatics, a pool/spa vendor will have the better pricing.

http://www.spapartsshop.com/PentairRainbowRTLSeriesTopLoadInlineFilter.aspx


Since other fishkeepers apparently are now using RTL filters, I am no longer a maverick :)
 
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Here's a thread where an Ultima user wanted more mechanical filtration. Another poster prefilters with filter socks before running through his Ultima
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/f...Adding-more-mechanical-to-my-Ultima-II-filter

I don't remember, but are you using filter socks in your sump filtration? I don't think you want an Ultima to ramp up your mechanical filtration. While the Ultima filter media does trap debris which can be easily purged out, the media is touted for its superior biological filtration capacities. I would hate to see you go the Ultima route and be disappointed, especially since you have ample biological filtration with two sumps.

http://www.underwaterwarehouse.com/...rs/Aqua-Ultraviolet-Ultima-II-4000-p-229.html

Ok that clears up that idea. Since the Ultima is better for biological filtration, no I won't be getting one of them. I am not currently using socks on my two wet/dry, just the blue foam padding that catches some dirt here and there, but I am considering using them socks. I will post a thread to see if anyone ever used socks in a wet/dry application. I would probably need to lay them in the wet/dry tray to catch the water.
 
This is interesting! I'm a NuClear fan but they are not enough lately. I see the RTL-25 is a 50 square foot cartridge with 1.5" intake and returns. What pump are you using?

Yes, I need to find out more about these RTL-100 style filtration. I think they may be to tall to go under my stand which is only 32'', but I really need to get more inforamtion about these as far as housing, pumps etc..
 
i'm closely observing and following your lead doviiman, i think jcardona1 initially designed his wet dry thru filtersocks overflowing thru a drip tray and bio media but he eventually went submerged with ceramic rings.

thanks for being the maverick pacu mom :D
 
i'm closely observing and following your lead doviiman, i think jcardona1 initially designed his wet dry thru filtersocks overflowing thru a drip tray and bio media but he eventually went submerged with ceramic rings.

thanks for being the maverick pacu mom :D

So what was the advantage of using the submerged ceramic rings? I'll assume better bio load handling, but what about the mechnical aspect, did he remove the sock?
 
So what was the advantage of using the submerged ceramic rings? I'll assume better bio load handling, but what about the mechnical aspect, did he remove the sock?

i asked him too, this was his response:

it's not going to work with your sump as is because of the drip tray. That's why I prefer to run submerged ceramic media on my setups, as it gets rid of the need for drip trays and dividers. Have you seen the sump on my discus tank? Link is in my sig. The only thing I can think of somehow figuring out a way to remove the drip tray, attach a sock to the pipes, and reinstall the drip tray below the sock, so it spreads the water out evenly over your media. That, or you can redo the entire sump using submerged media :)

here is a pic of his sump:
View attachment 728233
 
that pic inspired my setup^^lol

very simple but effective design. I have both, standard wet dry and submerged with socks and I prefer the submerged setup. They are both functional, but my sock setup tends to stay a little cleaner and isn't subject to large changes in the water level since there are no dividers. And, it is completely silent.....
 
i asked him too, this was his response:



here is a pic of his sump:
View attachment 728233

I do have submersible media in my wet/dry as well, I have 8 liter of pond matrix in each sump along with the bioball and drip tray. My question is what would happen if I put a sock in the drip tray to catch the extermely small particles, or whould that effect the oxyen/drip aspect of the wet/dry? Or is there anything better to use in those drip tray to help out with mechnical fitration betten than those cheese little blue filter pads?
 
how would you route the filter sock over the drip tray ?
I guess in my mind, I was thinking that you could either cut it open to make it lay out like the filter pad in the tray becasue i guess it catches more fine particles than those blue filter pads, or i could just lay it under the tubes that the water runs out under. By the way where do you get those socks from and do they come in differnt sizes for smaller particles?
 
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