This is my first canister filter. Its a Penn and Plax cascade 1200. It has 3 media trays, and is going to filter a 50 gallon oceanic. It looks like it gets pumped down and comes up through the three trays, correct? Ive searched google and some of the threads the filter media sticky is a little much to try to read through. So my main question, is whats the best set up for this filter? I have a biopad cut to two layers in the bottom tray, carbon in a filter bag in the middle tray, and the top try filled with Biomax. I know the carbon is ok in the middle, should the biomax be on the top or bottom? Or is there a better way to go about it?
Setting up a cascade 1200
- Thread starter UltimateRayz
- Start date
Yes, the filter should push down and the pressure coming back up pushes the water into the aquarium, most people use a mechanical filtration in the first tray to catch debris (you dont want your bio filtration getting clogged with junk). Then you can put the biological filtration in the other trays, I never use carbon, some people do, others don't, either way mechanical first, then bio and others. This tends to be the preference and works for many.
Is there a difference in how the Fluvals and the Cascades work? The Biomax from fluval shows it being put in the top trays of all of the fluval systems. If the waters gets pumped in and goes down the pipe like part of the trays, and then is forced up; through the 3 trays, were it is sucked up at the top and redistributed to the tank, wouldnt it be better to have the pad at the bottom to collect debris, and the second is carbon to reduce odor etc , and then the biomax on top to get the bacteria going and eat the amonia?
Unless the filter tube goes down to the bottom of the canister the first thing the flow will go through should be the mechanical filtration so youd want that on top
Water is pumped to the BOTTOM first on Cascades. Put the mech in the bottom tray. You'll really like that filter. Weaker in flow than other canisters, but they are very well built. I have a 500 on my cichlid tank as a second filter. I really like it.
Yea i have a few pads in the bottom tray, some carbon in the middle tray, and a tray full of biomax ontop. So far so good, but my PH dropped down real low.