required filtration?

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LukeOscar

Polypterus
MFK Member
Mar 23, 2013
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ontario
hey everyone, i have an 80 gallon tank housing a peacock bass (was 2 lost 1 last night)
a figure 8 puffer
a jaguar cichlid
and a flowerhorn in quarantine ( his tank is cycling at the moment)

a member on here on one of my other threads mentioned upping my filtration. can i get some more feed back on this please.

i already run a Fluval 404 and a Maxijet 1200 powerhead attached to a decoration type filter inside the tank and i had thought this was overkill. as the rated GPH is something around 650 combined.

i dont know if it matters but i have all live plants too.
 
if your water parameters are fine, and your water is clear enough for your taste, then you're fine.

did I read that right, you are quarantining your flowerhorn with your other fish? that isn't quarantining, that's just tossing them in...
and you really should have a brackish setup for the puffer.
 
Gill Blue said:
if your water parameters are fine, and your water is clear enough for your taste, then you're fine.
Click to expand...

Agreed. Biological bacteria needs food too (ammonia), so you're not necessarily going to double or triple your biological filtration just by doubling or tripling the bio media or filter size. As your fish grow, they will supply more food (ammo) for the BB, and the BB colony will grow. You may find that your current bio media setup is sufficient... But maybe not for the long run. Just be prepared to use better media or a larger filter if your ammo/nitrite levels move beyond 0 for an extended period of time.

Another aspect of bio filtration to consider is flow rate. For the BB to flourish, there needs to be a balance of dwell time, so GPH is not king. I'm not sure what "decoration type filter" you're using, or how big it is, but a MaxiJet 1200 is rated at 295 GPH and may not be doing as much good as you think. Imagine trying to grow a colony of bacteria on a pot scrubby by spraying it with a garden hose.

What is in the 404?
 
Its a rock/sponge that has an opening for the powerhead. Its only mechanical filtration. The 404 has 2 levels of mechanical 1 fine 1 more open. And a tray of bioballs. Should i add more bioballs. Theres still 2 more trays.


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LukeOscar said:
Its a rock/sponge that has an opening for the powerhead. Its only mechanical filtration. The 404 has 2 levels of mechanical 1 fine 1 more open. And a tray of bioballs. Should i add more bioballs. Theres still 2 more trays.
Click to expand...

Sponge filters generally are developed-for/best-used with air stones, like this. This utilizes a slow flow rate and dwell time like I was talking about earlier. Unless I’m confused about the rock/sponge you’re using.

I’ve never used a 404, but based on their operation, if it was me, I would definitely ditch the bioballs (but not all at once!***). I would use Seachem Matrix – or some other highly porous bio media – to the top 2 trays, and fill the bottom tray with filter floss (pillow stuffing). Sounds like you’re using sponges in the tall space at left, I might use sponges here too until supply runs out, at which point I would ask around here about putting filter floss in this area of the 404.

You may very well be good with the equipment you have, if you use them to their maximum capability.

***If you remove the bio balls all at once you'll lose all of the BB that is on them. So, to get the Matrix in there I would have a tray of bio balls and a tray of Matrix. About a month later I would replace the bio balls with Matrix.
 
Wait, you have one tray in a 404 of bio balls? This might be the cause of the lost fish.

How big are those fish? And what are your ammo/nitrite levels currently??

If you do not have a test, get one. And be sure you get some Prime too in order to detoxify the ammo/nitrite/nitrate that is in the tank.
 
Fish are babys. Max in tank is 3" i took a bottle to the local fish shop and they said the water was good. The entire setup was given to me and was ran just the way i have it as an african cichlid tank. The tank was running for years before it was taken down and replaced with a bigger tank.


Sent from my iPhone using MonsterAquariaNetwork app
 
hey everyone, i have an 80 gallon tank housing a peacock bass (was 2 lost 1 last night)
a figure 8 puffer
a jaguar cichlid
and a flowerhorn in quarantine ( his tank is cycling at the moment)

you have way to many incompaitable fish.... puffer needs brackish water, jag needs a 75 alone, same with the flower horn and peacock bass needs a 180 min.....
 
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