I use test strips and always right where they are suppost to be, but I have just talked to LFS and thought it would be a good idea to start feeding just once a day instead of twice and to bump up temp from78 to 82 degrees
Water changes ?
- Thread starter beerad555
- Start date
I to am tossing my hat in for more filtration. Over the last 36 years in this hobby I've definitely gotten away from hob filtration. I think compared to sumps/wet dry/canisters and other complex filtration, hob filters lack completely and I've never been a big fan of the whole bio wheel.
For the size of tank and the stock load it really does need more filtration.
Stress and water conditions can cause the fin rot issues, most bacterial issues are normally attributed to something else inducing stress.
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For the size of tank and the stock load it really does need more filtration.
Stress and water conditions can cause the fin rot issues, most bacterial issues are normally attributed to something else inducing stress.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
Another vote for bumping the filtration.
As far as what to use, well thats up to you...
Sumps offer an awesome amount of filtration as well as additional total water volume, they can however be a bit intimidating and most of the time are not plug and play.
Canister's on the other hand are plug and play and are fairly easy to use. They do tend to be a little tougher to clean than a hob filter or even a sump but its not like you have to clean them once a week (I clean my FX5's every 3-4 months).
I will agree with some of the other comments about the tank being fairly heavily stocked but with the large volume water changes weekly, there is a good possibility that it will work for you.
BTW... nice looking setup, make sure and keep us updated on what you end up going with.
As far as what to use, well thats up to you...
Sumps offer an awesome amount of filtration as well as additional total water volume, they can however be a bit intimidating and most of the time are not plug and play.
Canister's on the other hand are plug and play and are fairly easy to use. They do tend to be a little tougher to clean than a hob filter or even a sump but its not like you have to clean them once a week (I clean my FX5's every 3-4 months).
I will agree with some of the other comments about the tank being fairly heavily stocked but with the large volume water changes weekly, there is a good possibility that it will work for you.
BTW... nice looking setup, make sure and keep us updated on what you end up going with.
Over stocked for that filtration. General rule of thumb is shoot for 10x the turn over rate an hour. If those are rated at 90gph a piece, and you have 2, you're filtering that tank 1 time an hour at most... Not enough my friend. If you're new to sumps (I am -- just set up my first sump over the weekend) i would say go cannister. You cant go wrong. Shoot for 1200gph total in the end. You cannot over filter your tank.
As far as your LFS saying 50% is too much thats absolute shenanigans. I do 60-70% with no issues. The reason being is that the good bacteria does NOT live in the water, it lives in the filters and substrate. By draining the tank out you are not removing nor hurting the good bacteria. If the LFS tells you otherwise they are uninformed and greatly mistaken. That being said these are the same type of guys who sell RTC to the general public for $19.99
Good luck!
As far as your LFS saying 50% is too much thats absolute shenanigans. I do 60-70% with no issues. The reason being is that the good bacteria does NOT live in the water, it lives in the filters and substrate. By draining the tank out you are not removing nor hurting the good bacteria. If the LFS tells you otherwise they are uninformed and greatly mistaken. That being said these are the same type of guys who sell RTC to the general public for $19.99
Good luck!
Over stocked for that filtration. General rule of thumb is shoot for 10x the turn over rate an hour. If those are rated at 90gph a piece, and you have 2, you're filtering that tank 1 time an hour at most... Not enough my friend. If you're new to sumps (I am -- just set up my first sump over the weekend) i would say go cannister. You cant go wrong. Shoot for 1200gph total in the end. You cannot over filter your tank.
As far as your LFS saying 50% is too much thats absolute shenanigans. I do 60-70% with no issues. The reason being is that the good bacteria does NOT live in the water, it lives in the filters and substrate. By draining the tank out you are not removing nor hurting the good bacteria. If the LFS tells you otherwise they are uninformed and greatly mistaken. That being said these are the same type of guys who sell RTC to the general public for $19.99
Good luck!
Emperor 400's have a flow rate of...wait for it...400gph, not 90 lol. 90 is the listed tank size maximum, which truthfully you can overwhelm one in a 55 with the right stock. So he's at right about 6.4x turnover an hour. More than enough turnover. Remember people run 125's on a single FX5 (560gph) without any issues. 10x turnover is more for catfish, koi, etc. You know water pigs. 5x is the most common.
The problem here is he doesn't have enough room for media in the hob's. That and carbon, once that stuff is used up (the afore mentioned 1-2 weeks is correct in my experience) it'll start leaching things back into the water. He's be better of removing the stock filter pads and using his own filter foam + bio media.
I'd recommend doing that as well as grabbing say an eheim 2213/2215 if an FX5 is out of budget. If not get the FX5, no such thing as over-filtration. lol
I thought the same thing about the water changes but I am glad I am getting you and others opinion as I am kinda newbie to all this, thanks for all and any advice.
Over stocked for that filtration. General rule of thumb is shoot for 10x the turn over rate an hour. If those are rated at 90gph a piece, and you have 2, you're filtering that tank 1 time an hour at most... Not enough my friend. If you're new to sumps (I am -- just set up my first sump over the weekend) i would say go cannister. You cant go wrong. Shoot for 1200gph total in the end. You cannot over filter your tank.
As far as your LFS saying 50% is too much thats absolute shenanigans. I do 60-70% with no issues. The reason being is that the good bacteria does NOT live in the water, it lives in the filters and substrate. By draining the tank out you are not removing nor hurting the good bacteria. If the LFS tells you otherwise they are uninformed and greatly mistaken. That being said these are the same type of guys who sell RTC to the general public for $19.99
Good luck!
If you want easy plug and play so to speak with larger filtration capabilities and ease of use I would say use a canister. My choice for that tank would be the Fluval FX5 canister filter. Then id recommend learning about sumps as they offer the most in filtration, customizing and function.
