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Filtration


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#1 gamblet1987

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Posted 24 February 2003 - 03:38 PM

I have a 3', 150L, 39 US gal tank. Right now it's filtered by an Atman 500lph internal filter. Is that enough to do the job, or do I have to upgrade? If I do need something more powerful, what's a good choice? Brands like Eheim are totally out of my price range, BTW :p



#2 shaperau

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Posted 24 February 2003 - 04:21 PM

If maintained correctly that filter will probably be ok. however i have purchased a bunch of internal power filters and i would never do so again. they are the biggest pain to clean, soon as you take them out all the crap ends up back in the tank anyway. I would use either a cannister or a hang on the back filter. cannisters can be pretty expensive, so i personally go with the aquaclear hang ons. an aquaclear 300 will be great on that tank. you can get them for under $110 at aquaria.com.au or go in and see some fish shops and see if they will come a bit closer to the price. if you have a shop you like to go to i reckon its best to support the shop, but also you dont wanna throw money away. if they can come within 20 odd dollars of that price give them your business as they would probably give you more than that in free advice anyway!



#3 mtchye

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Posted 24 February 2003 - 04:43 PM

Internal filters aren't too bad. If you maintain them right and have the right media in them they shouldnt be any more difficult to clean than others. I usually use media in this order, blue filter open cell foam is first to come into contact with the water, followed by standard white filter floss to 'polish' the water, followed by your biological media.

To upgrade your internal's filtration capacity considerably you can even hook it up to a homemade trickle filter. Basically you hook the output of the internal filter up to a box (this can be any plastic box eg from crazy clarks whatever) filled with bio media...

Bio media can be had cheap too. You can use varying stuff from the onion bags you get at supermarkets, to lava rock for BBQ from hardware stores, to ceramic rings that are on special atm from www.aquariumproducts.com.au

So really... If you dont mind the ugly box on top of your tank, filtration does not have to be expensive as it seems.. ;)

:cheers

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#4 gamblet1987

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Posted 25 February 2003 - 02:01 AM

What do you mean by biological filter media? All I have in mine is two sponges. The aquaclears look good, but I'd have to save up for a while to get the 300.



#5 gamblet1987

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Posted 25 February 2003 - 02:21 AM

I just saw the Eheim Liberty 200 at morleyaquariums.com.au They're selling it for $80, $40 less than the Aquaclear is there. The Aqua 300 is $100 at the Age of Aquariums online store. Which would be the best filter to go for?



#6 shaperau

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Posted 25 February 2003 - 03:43 AM

you questioned about biological media: your sponges are such a thing if they are properly maintained (gently washed in aquarium water every now and then to get the crap out but still maintain the bacteria colonies)
anyway, I havent heard good things about the liberty. i heard they are cheaply constructed and are probably going to be higher maintenance than the aquaclear. The other thing is i assume by the naming convention that the Aquaclear 300 filters an extra 100 gallons per hour. this is quite a lot. plus i think the aquaclears have more surface area. for the 20 bucks extra i would definitely get the aquaclear. i heard the libertys will be around for long anyway so it might be hard to get media after a while, but the aquaclears have been around forever and have a tried and true design
hope this helps



#7 me

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Posted 25 February 2003 - 05:08 AM

Atman filters are bloody awsoem for their price but there water turn over rate / filter media amount is veyr poor!
This means that too much water goes throguh the tiny amount of filter media and doesnt give a great bacteria colony build up!
they work great with an aquaclear coz it stirs the water up nicly and the aquaclear picks most of the stuff up!



#8 gamblet1987

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Posted 25 February 2003 - 05:42 AM

I've read some reviews of the Aquaclear filters, and there is very little bad stuff said about them. It looks like the right way to go ;)

I'd like to stop using the Atman altogether when I get new filtration, as it's rattling sound is very annoying. Sometimes it stops, but whenever you turn it on again after a water change the rattle starts. I can't go to sleep with it...

Would I be able to stick the Atman sponges in the Aquaclear so the tank wouldn't have to re-cycle? What else do you have to put in there? (The stuff I read didn't explain much on this).

Thanks for your help so far :)



#9 shaperau

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Posted 25 February 2003 - 06:51 AM

just run the atman for a time after you put your aquaclear in. there will be a small spike after you take the atman out but if you stick to some good regular water changes you should be back to normal within a month or so, and there shouldnt be too much stress on the fish.



#10 gamblet1987

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Posted 25 February 2003 - 02:54 PM

So I couldn't put the Atman sponges in the Aquaclear? That'd be much easier, because I'd be keeping the bacteria colonies and there'd be no spike..



#11 shaperau

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Posted 25 February 2003 - 03:22 PM

depending on their size i suppose you could but the aquaclears are designed to be used with their own sponges, so if the size of the sponge is a little off it could dramtically decrease the effectiveness of the filter. remember that water will take the path of least resistance, so if you got gaps because of the different sizings there will be a lot of water missing your sponge, which will cause a spike anyway



#12 mtchye

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Posted 25 February 2003 - 06:06 PM

Hi Gamblet,

The rattling sound in your atman is air trapped in the impeller chamber. You need to let the air out after every water change or the impeller will get damaged and either not work or make noise continously..

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#13 gamblet1987

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Posted 25 February 2003 - 11:43 PM

Thanks mtchye :) Should I leave the filter off for a few minutes after the water change so the air goes out by itself, or do I have to do something else myself?



#14 mtchye

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Posted 26 February 2003 - 01:35 AM

In better quality pumps such as eheims and aquaclears (in my experience anyway) the air is expelled when the pump is turned on. In the cheaper things like atmans, you would probably have to go in there once the tank is full of water again, and turn the pump upside down or sideways, whichever way lets out the air, then turn it on..

:cheers

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#15 gamblet1987

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Posted 26 February 2003 - 02:16 AM

Gotcha. Thanks for your help ;)



#16 oo fish styx oo

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Posted 26 February 2003 - 02:40 AM

Whenever I have to replace a filter or even a filter sponge in an internal, I always cut of a small piece of the old one, just to give the bacteria a boost in the new one. You still get a spike, but it doesn't usually go as high or last as long

Cheers
Colleen



#17 gamblet1987

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Posted 01 March 2003 - 04:24 PM

I went to Morley Aquariums on thursday night (that's the best shop I've been to - so many cichlids..) and had a look at their fish and Aquaclear filters. Unfortunately the 300 is priced at $146. I want to give them my business, but there's no way I'm going to pay that much. They said the 200 would be fine though, and I could keep my Atman in there. Or I could go to aquaria.com.au and get a 300 for the same price that Morley is selling the 200...



#18 mystic

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Posted 01 March 2003 - 07:10 PM

Hi Gamblet
If your looking for a good price on aquaclear filters bororia aquariums are haveing a sale on them think $65 for a aquaclear 300 and $10 dollar delivery charge so that be $75.

tools.addme.com/servlet/iStore?id=104126S&cat=Web+Only+Specials

Edited by: mystic at: 3/1/03 11:12:47 am


#19 gamblet1987

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Posted 03 March 2003 - 03:57 PM

Mtchye,

I turn the Atman around upside down and sideways like you said after water changes, but most of the time the rattling doesn't stop.

When it does stop, I eventually have to turn the filter off to feed the fish, and when I turn it on the rattling starts again. I didn't take the filter out, so how could air have got in there again? I guess it could be permanently damaged :x



#20 mtchye

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Posted 03 March 2003 - 07:07 PM

Yup you got it.. probably permanently damaged due to prolonged running with air in the impeller chamber...

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