Fluval fx5 to big for tank?

[walsh877]

I just bought a fx5 wondering if there is such a thing as to much filtration I was planning on puting it in my 55gal tank for now any thoughts on this


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[Rare]

Filtration is not the problem here as too much flow may be.

 

[jasonfishaddict]

Agreed; as long as the fish aren't being blown around, you're ok. The filter will only hold enough bacteria to carry out the nitrogen cycle so there's no such thing as too much filtration.


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[BBradbury]

Tank Filtrtration

I just bought a fx5 wondering if there is such a thing as to much filtration I was planning on puting it in my 55gal tank for now any thoughts on this


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Hello walsh...

If you're used to changing out a lot of the tank water and doing it every week or so, then I'd say yes, there's such a thing as too much filtration. A filter running in pure water is just filtering water that's already clean.

Whatever kind of filter you use needs a gallon per hour rating (gph) of roughly 4 times the size of the tank. Your 55 G needs a filter or combination of filters with a combined gph of a bit more than 200. This will filter the tank efficiently and mix the proper amount of oxygen into the water. If you have this and change out a lot of tank water weekly, then more filtration isn't doing much for the tank and drains your wallet.

B

 

[mikem691]

Hello walsh...

If you're used to changing out a lot of the tank water and doing it every week or so, then I'd say yes, there's such a thing as too much filtration. A filter running in pure water is just filtering water that's already clean.

Whatever kind of filter you use needs a gallon per hour rating (gph) of roughly 4 times the size of the tank. Your 55 G needs a filter or combination of filters with a combined gph of a bit more than 200. This will filter the tank efficiently and mix the proper amount of oxygen into the water. If you have this and change out a lot of tank water weekly, then more filtration isn't doing much for the tank and drains your wallet.

B

I 100% disagree with this Too general of a statement most cichlids are dirty and need more filtration I would do more like 7 to 10 x the tank capacity. All my tanks are filtered over 10 x per hour. There are members on here with 1 Oscar in larger tanks and do multiple 50 to 70% water changes a week just to keep nitrates in check. It really depends on your stock and tank size.

 

[Linwood]

Google some of the threads that talk about people making their own spray bars. You'll have a LOT of flow, and you will likely need something a bit non-standard to spread it out well and keep it from being too strong. A single jet (if that's the default on that one) is going to seem a bit like a fire hose, but if you put it on a long piece of PVC with a bunch of holes, you can get a nice tank-wide flow.

Or you can buy them. But PVC is pretty cheap.

 

[LostInFish]

Google some of the threads that talk about people making their own spray bars. You'll have a LOT of flow, and you will likely need something a bit non-standard to spread it out well and keep it from being too strong. A single jet (if that's the default on that one) is going to seem a bit like a fire hose, but if you put it on a long piece of PVC with a bunch of holes, you can get a nice tank-wide flow.

Or you can buy them. But PVC is pretty cheap.

That's a good idea a spray bar would work great or u could adjust the output flow so it's not blowing stuff around but then your not using the pumps full potential. I like the spray bar idea myself