best filter????????

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morgan24

Aquarium Advice Freak
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Mar 27, 2005
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Hello everyone.
i was just wondering, what would be the best filter for my tank when i get it. I'm going to buy a 75gl soon and i'm going to slowly get it together. But that all takes money,and i'm on a low budget so i'm buying a little at a time then when i get everything i'll set er up. was thinking of a canister filter would that be ok. what would be the best one?Any inputs on anything for it would be great. i'm still a newbee. thank u all in advance... :D
 
i like the tertatecs, they are good filters, canisters are ok, id go with an eheim they are the best, and i dont like sumps because they are a pain to maintain, they raise evaporation and they make lots of noise, protein skimming is a very good idea , really improves water quality.
 
If you are planning on setting up a reef tank, a natural form of filtration would be recommended..no mechanical filtration at all (leads to higher nitrates). Most people depend on live rock and a protein skimmer (Berlin method) for all of their filtration needs. Refugiums are also becoming more and more popular.
 
..no mechanical filtration at all (leads to higher nitrates).

thats so bogus, how can mechanical filtration lead to higher nitrates,, its the same thing as haveing liverock, its just a porous material that bacteria can grow on, if it stays submerged then its all anearobic bacteria, if it rises and falls like in the tetratecs then you get that aerobic, which is also beneficial to the tank and is a reason that wet-dry systems were created, and people have been using both these methods for years now with perfectly stable results, if they didnt work, people wouldnt still use them,
 
oh, and if its because stuff collects on the bags and such, it only takes a quick rinse or change of cartridge, to get rid of all that stuff, and then its being removed too
 
Here is a pic of my filter. I use a 30G tank resting on a piece of foam for cushion. The first chamber has my heaters, chiller pump, skimmer (sits on a PVC stand), and i drop my carbon bags in that chamber as well. The 2nd area is my fuge. I droped in about 30lbs of live sand and then a little bit of live rock. I use cheatomorpha for PO4 control and then grow ulva and red algae for my tang. The big trashcan in the back is fresh water for auto top off. You can see pics of my tank in the photo gallery, its coming along nicely. Anyhow, I just gotta toss in my support for the anti-canister, el natural method.

It looks a little complex but its not much more than a $400ish filter that needs no maintenance at all except dumping the skimmer cup and changing the carbon. (this all fits under a stand for a 75G tank) Oh, its also 100% silent because I keep the water level so high. There is a clear check valve on the return pump so I can see if its wearing, and in turn that valve doesn't let the sump overflow in a power out.
 

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Wet dry's are very good all around system.(even better than any when set up correctly) By the time you buy an eheim,(unless it is used) you could have a wet dry system. just a suggestion.
 
Wow, what a loaded question! You are going to get a million answers here... I would get what you can afford and maintain consistantly. Each filter has it's advantages and disadvantages. If money isn't an issue I would get a sump that you could put your heater, protein skimmer, and DSB into. You can also put lighting over it and grow beneficial algae to help lower nitrates.

But again sumps have disadvantages too. Easiest to maintain would probably be lots of LR and circulation (Berlin method).
 
I like a sump.... good place for skimmer, heaters. Get a drilled tank and set up a sump, adds extra water volume. If not set up correctly they can make noise, I have 2 tanks and run both with sumps with no major noise.
With that being said LR is the BEST filtration you can get. At least 1 lb per gallon to start. I would not set up a tank with out LR.
Take your time with what ever you decide and keep researching the hobby. Nothing good happens fast in this hobby so take it slow.
 
thats so bogus, how can mechanical filtration lead to higher nitrates
Actually, it is not bogus. Mechanical filtration can and does produce nitrates. While it may create an anaerobic environment for denitrafying bacteria (just like biological filtration) that is not it's primary fuction. Mechanical filtration catches detritus from the water on some type of pad. The collection of this feces, uneaten food etc... will begin to break down and eventually cause NO3 to climb. Mechanical filtration just needs regualr cleaning t prevent this problem.
 
Actually, it is not bogus. Mechanical filtration can and does produce nitrates. While it may create an anaerobic environment for denitrafying bacteria (just like biological filtration) that is not it's primary fuction. Mechanical filtration catches detritus from the water on some type of pad. The collection of this feces, uneaten food etc... will begin to break down and eventually cause NO3 to climb. Mechanical filtration just needs regualr cleaning t prevent this problem.[/quote]

So my question is if detritus from the water on ends up on some type of pad and create nitrates then what about the berlin system where the poop is just laying around on the rock and sand? explain why this would not create nitrates?

I am just asking because I tried the berlin system and it sucked for me. I followed everyones advice about it and even got a book and I didn't like it. Now it works for some, but not me.
 
I run mechanical filters on my tanks. Biowheels actually. Which are supposed to add tons of nitrates. Both my tanks have 0 nitrates.
 
So my question is if detritus from the water on ends up on some type of pad and create nitrates then what about the berlin system where the poop is just laying around on the rock and sand? explain why this would not create nitrates?
Several reasons. For one, the filter pad of a mechanical filter is is very concentrated. This gives you a large amount of detritus in a small area. Harder to break down. Also, most tanks that utilize biological/skimmer filtration are also using a good clean-up crew to help control detritus (aong with a regular maintanance schedule).
 
AR15 guy that is good, question how old are your tanks and how often do you do a WC. And seeing the tanks you have have a very low bioload 1 fish in one and 2 in the other tank I'm not shocked that your NO3 is 0.
Do you have more fish then that now? There are exceptions to everything.
 
Several reasons. For one, the filter pad of a mechanical filter is is very concentrated. This gives you a large amount of detritus in a small area. Harder to break down. Also, most tanks that utilize biological/skimmer filtration are also using a good clean-up crew to help control detritus (aong with a regular maintanance schedule).

doesen't these clean up crews produce waste and how much maintenance are we talking about here. When I tried the berlin way with plenty of clean up crews I found it was like a part time job monitoring and wc.

I am not saying that the berlin way is bad, but I had to do too much work to keep things good. I am just trying to understand why this way is better in everyones eyes?

(to me less work and maintenance is better to me) :D
 
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