Monster Canister on a Nano Tank - can it be done?

[Redearsunfish]

Well maybe not monster, but still can it be done? Like a Fluval 105 on a 2-5 gallon?

I'm thinking that the flow can be moderated be using some sort of baffling system, perhaps with a series of hard S-curves in the return line? like a radiator?

Any ideas?

 

[bob965]

Throttle the outlet valve of the canister to achieve the desired flowrate.

 

[Just Toby]

If you "throttle back" / restrict the flow back to the tank you will find that the motor life will be short and may become noisey.

A better route would be low power lifter pump lifting to a tank ABOVE the nano and then let gravity feed back (i.e. pund filter on shelf above)

I have seen this done where a guy had a small power head pumping water to a tank on the window sill and he grew plants as a refugium then gravity fed back to nano.

I am surprised that commercially there is not a nano sump solution but I am sure I ready in Practical Fish Keeping that someone like tunze had made a cannister for nanos

 

[Toby_H]

If you "throttle back" / restrict the flow back to the tank you will find that the motor life will be short and may become noisey.

This is not true...

Aquarium pumps and filters use a "magnetic drive" impeller assembly. The motor turns at it's given rate and turns the impeller via a magnetic connection. If/When the impeller is slowed down, the motor continues to turn at it's given rate, the impeller just skips a revolution.

So do not hesitate to use a ball valve or similar to slow down the flow of your canister filter...

On "Straight Drive" pumps, such as most pool pumps, slowing the flow rate with backpressure will put excessive wear on the pump resulting in any number of problems...

 

[stewnew]

maybe build a series of gentle overflows, that can taper into a waterfall into the tank

 

[Redearsunfish]

This is not true...

Aquarium pumps and filters use a "magnetic drive" impeller assembly. The motor turns at it's given rate and turns the impeller via a magnetic connection. If/When the impeller is slowed down, the motor continues to turn at it's given rate, the impeller just skips a revolution.

So do not hesitate to use a ball valve or similar to slow down the flow of your canister filter...


Won't this cause the motor to heat?

what about a series of curves, a bunch of plastic elbow 90 degrees in the return line in series, will this slow the flow?

 

[knifegill]

Perhaps instead of a high-powered canister you could achieve similar results with a large sump or something similar? Anything that needs be restricted in flow will also be giving up some filtration potential, so making the increased ability of the canister a moot point. By adding head, we've slowed the total flow through the canister and reduced the filtration. With excessive baffles, the best we can hope for is an even push which would still be too much for most inhabitants. Speaking of which, what sort of critters are boxing up here anyway? River fish like sculpins or chaeostoma plecos might be fine with it at full blast as it comes.

You could feed the return into a PVC pipe drilled full of holes or through something similar to a showerhead but wider. Still, you'd have mad swirls in there.

Edited!

what about a series of curves, a bunch of plastic elbow 90 degrees in the return line in series, will this slow the flow?

No, adding turns will not significantly alter the pressure at the exit point unless you widen the pipe diameter or plumb uphill.

 

[Toby_H]

Won't this cause the motor to heat?

Nope...

Aquarium pumps and filters use a "magnetic drive" impeller assembly. The motor turns at it's given rate and turns the impeller via a magnetic connection. If/When the impeller is slowed down, the motor continues to turn at it's given rate, the impeller just skips a revolution.

So when the flow is slowed down by a ball valve, head pressure, resistance from media, etc, etc... the impeller does not move at full speed, but the motor does move at full speed.

 

[Redearsunfish]

i want to do a small 9 gallon tank. small lava rock. java fern and a single bichardi and 2 cory cats.

So, if I use a ball valve on the output end of the canister, it wont affect the motor life?

The reason I want to use a canister is to increase water volume and surface for beneficial bacteria. I dont want to use a sump. I want it to stay really clean, and i like canisters.

 

[Toby_H]

So, if I use a ball valve on the output end of the canister, it wont affect the motor life?

Nope, not in any way...

with or without restriction, the motor turns the exact same without any additional stress...

This is why we use magnetic driven pumps on aquariums instead of straight drive pumps...