filtration

[Craziiininja]

i have a 125 gallon tank with 13 yellow tail acei that are all about 2 inches. I have 4 sponge filters and 2 aquaclear 110s. the aquaclears are so loud and i've taken them apart and cleaned them so many times and they are still loud. I also have pothos plants. I'm thinking about just taking them off and just running the tank with four sponge filters. Is this doable? Atleast while the fish are still on the smaller side. I want to get a cannister filter in the future before they get full grown. Will running a big tank with four sponge filters work for a while? any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. 

[Fish Folk]

If the sponges are very big, I think so. Bear in mind that Africans can produce a fair bit of waste.

I filter this heavily stocked 55 gal Amazon tank on just two sponge filters. I do need to squeeze them out monthly. I separate the squeezing on each by a week so bio doesn’t ever crash.

[Craziiininja]

i have four medium sized aquarium co op sponge filters. my fish are also still pretty small and i would get a fx6 before they are full grown.

[Ken Burke]

@Craziiininja from everything I’ve heard, aquaclear filters are prone to vibration/noise.  Have you thought about replacing them with a small canister or a different HOB?  (I’m partial to the Tidal 75.  Very quiet as long as the tank is full, lots of room for media). 
 

Your acei are a long way from full grown.  The biological filter is sufficient, but not so sure about the mechanical.  Especially when the fish start re-scaping your tank.

[Craziiininja]

yes but i just want to wait til i can afford a fx6 cause they seem the be the best bang for your buck. I dont want to run out and spend money on a cheaper one then later get a fx6.

[Ken Burke]

That’s a really nice filter for sure.  Are u looking at upgrading to a larger tank as well?  The fx6 is rated for tanks up to 400g, or more than 3x your current tank.  That means you’ll be pushing just south of 1k gallons/hour.  That’s a pretty high turn over rate.  Once get to a certain point, bigger filters with faster flow won’t improve your water quality, and may cause added stress on your fish because of the faster water movement.  
 

$200 could get you an aqueon 400, rated for 150g.  It may not be as good as the fx, but you’ll never see the difference in a tank that size.

 

 

[nabokovfan87]

On 6/5/2022 at 1:47 PM, Craziiininja said:

the aquaclears are so loud and i've taken them apart and cleaned them so many times and they are still loud4

 

 

On 6/5/2022 at 1:47 PM, Craziiininja said:

Will running a big tank with four sponge filters work for a while? any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. 

Should work absolutely fine. If you have issues you can just up the flow on the air and they should filter the tank well.

[Craziiininja]

well i ran into a problem. i moved the 125 gallon from my bedroom cause i'm going to paint my room in a couple weeks. When i drained it i found that the seals with lifting up and not staying all the way sealed to the corners and parts of the seal were coming off. So i put my fish in a spare 75 gallon that i wasnt using. I bought the 125 gallon on craigslist from a man that said he had it for over ten years and it had sat dry most of that time. I took a chance on it not leaking but now seeing this i cant risk the damage that a leak on a big tank like that would cause. So i'm gonna have to keep my acei in the 75 gallon til i can get a new 125 gallon which will be a while. I know i could reseal the tank but i'm not handy at all and would not trust myself to reseal it. i love fish keeping but man its frustrating. what cannister filter would ya'll recommend for a 75 gallon?

[MrWestCoast]

Consider resealing the 125 yourself. It seems like a big job but it really isn't. The hardest part is cleaning up the old silicone. It's all about the prep work. Laying down a new seal is the easy part. Maybe try searching for someone local who can do the job for you? It'll be a lot cheaper than a new tank.

[nabokovfan87]

Canister for the 75.  Id run your AC110
 

 

Edited June 6, 2022 by nabokovfan87
removed a video, wasn't helpful

[Bev C]

@Craziiininja I do not do my own fix uppers ,,  but check with your local  Fish stores to see if they will reseal it  if not they might know someone  My   fish store  does reseals it allot cheaper then buying  a new one,,   they did my old 29 gallon around less then 30-50$ 

When i used aquaclear i could fix  the motor area my self  I have a disability with my hand  it was easy to fix the noise …    You could Fix & replacevthe shaft as the videos above   showed, or   replace  the motor impeller   or grease the shift like  this  some people uses vaseline,instead of oil..  amazon sells the parts for the aquaclear all you put-in amazon search is aquaclear 110 parts  

 

or i even use plastic aquarium  air line tube trick in the shift area  I once did this too  like  this video  link below

Facebook video Aquaclear fix

if the lid rattles use a rubber band  or a little piece of foam / sponge or thin cloth I used  rubber band it’s works pretty good & I  I think Irene showed the rubber band  trick in one of her videos 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 6, 2022 by Bev C

[Ken Burke]

On 6/5/2022 at 9:25 PM, Craziiininja said:

well i ran into a problem. i moved the 125 gallon from my bedroom cause i'm going to paint my room in a couple weeks. When i drained it i found that the seals with lifting up and not staying all the way sealed to the corners and parts of the seal were coming off. So i put my fish in a spare 75 gallon that i wasnt using. I bought the 125 gallon on craigslist from a man that said he had it for over ten years and it had sat dry most of that time. I took a chance on it not leaking but now seeing this i cant risk the damage that a leak on a big tank like that would cause. So i'm gonna have to keep my acei in the 75 gallon til i can get a new 125 gallon which will be a while. I know i could reseal the tank but i'm not handy at all and would not trust myself to reseal it. i love fish keeping but man its frustrating. what cannister filter would ya'll recommend for a 75 gallon?

I’m guessing most people would say fluval 407.  I just installed an aqueon 300 in my new 75.  It’s not the easiest to prime, but I think it will be manageable .  The aqueon comes with a polishing filter.  More than enough gal/hour.  

[AndEEss]

On 6/5/2022 at 7:43 PM, Ken Burke said:

That’s a really nice filter for sure.  Are u looking at upgrading to a larger tank as well?  The fx6 is rated for tanks up to 400g, or more than 3x your current tank.  That means you’ll be pushing just south of 1k gallons/hour.  That’s a pretty high turn over rate.  Once get to a certain point, bigger filters with faster flow won’t improve your water quality, and may cause added stress on your fish because of the faster water movement.  
 

$200 could get you an aqueon 400, rated for 150g.  It may not be as good as the fx, but you’ll never see the difference in a tank that size.

 

 

Well, the stated filter circulation on an FX6 is 563gph. So, right at 4.5x turnover on a 125.
 

If that’s still too high, he can use a manifold to recirculate some of the water without it ever going to the tank. Just need a three ball valves, some PVC pipe, hose barbs and a couple of tees. Maybe add a check valve. 

Edited June 7, 2022 by AndEEss

[Ken Burke]

I’ve seen that on line too.  But fluval says the fx6 is 925 gph, unless I’m missing something.  Even the fx4 is 700 gph. 
 

https://fluvalaquatics.com/us/fx-series/
 

The manifold is an interesting idea.  Two tees, a ball valve and an optional check valve would work, but still not sure the performance would be better than say an x07 or the aqueon 400.  Amazon has the 400 at $147, compared to $300 for the fx6.  The fx is the better filter, but $150 goes a long way to a new tank, or something.
 

 

[AndEEss]

Look further down on the link you posted. Filter circulation row. The actual performance of the filter, with media. 
 

Whereas the PUMP performance, which they list at 925, is just that: the pump alone. Big difference. 

On 6/6/2022 at 10:25 PM, Ken Burke said:

I’ve seen that on line too.  But fluval says the fx6 is 925 gph, unless I’m missing something.  Even the fx4 is 700 gph. 
 

https://fluvalaquatics.com/us/fx-series/
 

The manifold is an interesting idea.  Two tees, a ball valve and an optional check valve would work, but still not sure the performance would be better than say an x07 or the aqueon 400.  Amazon has the 400 at $147, compared to $300 for the fx6.  The fx is the better filter, but $150 goes a long way to a new tank, or something.