Two Niner Gallon underway.

[Mad Professor]

Well as you see, I have started work on my 29Gal Tank.
But I got some quick questions to run by you guys..

I was thinking of a sand bottom for my 29gal. I have read that pool filter sand was the best you can use.

1: Will it make the water mucky like regular/fine sand?
2: I'm looking for a tan type color sand, what should I ask for??
*Going for a Florida river sand bottom look*

Now my filter problem...
I was thinking of going canister instead of a power HOB filter.
I own a magnum 350 for my 44 gallon, which was a big difference from my old penguin 170. But then again it was falling apart and not doing good performance as if it were new or used into 6 months from being purchase.

3: Is there any difference between the Power HOB and canister?
4: If I were to go canister whats a good brand/model for my 29Gal?
5: Is it ok to buy filters that are new off from ebay?? *I'm a veteran ebayer, and I'm working on a budget*
6: Do canister filters come with handles? *
This is for maintenance purpose. I'm going to reach behind the stands' *44Gal, 29gal next to each other* and pick up my canister filter and lift it upwards until I can maneuver it over 10gal/29gal tanks.

This is about it. I'm going to keep this thread going until I'm finish with 29gallon.
I'll keep updating it with progress/questions..

[RoK]

1. Only if you don't rinse it good enough before putting it into the tank.
2. PFS has that look.
3. Canisters are more efficient filters. They also provide a lot more room for media.
4. Rena Filstar XP1.
5. I don't see why not.
6. The Rena's do. I would guess the others do as well but not sure.

[sir_dudeguy]

1. as said before, but regular play sand is fine too...i use it in all my freshwater tanks since its so cheap, but pool filter sand is better since its heavier so you dont have to wash it as much....thus resulting in losing a lot of sand (w/the playsand)

2. ya you'd be able to ask them for it...they should have it.
3. i agree w/the above...again lol. you have more options for media, as you can stack it. most HOB's just have a cartridge.

4. i've heard good things bout the renas, but i dont have any experience w/it...i've got an eheim ecco 2233 on a 40 gal, but i'd say that it would be perfect on a 29. I think its rated to 60, but eheims dont push out much flow, so i'd say it would be perfect for your 29. i've had it running flawless on my 40 for 4 years now. I think you can get them off ebay for like, 60 maybe?...cant remember, but they're not too much.

5. yep! sure is. I dont buy filters, since i havent had to change any filters..they've never run down...but i buy other stuff, and its much cheaper...just look for the new in box stuff, or NIB. I'd recomend

and yes, the eheim ecco has the handle on the front.

HTH

oh and what fish are you lookin to get? and are you gonna do live plants? if you do live plants, i've heard that eheims are great w/them, because they dont have a super srtong flow (ya..lol i like eheims...what of it lol)

[Stretch]

As for the sand, you've seen what mine looks like. It didn't require much rinsing. The water was very cloudy for 2 days, but it cleared up nicely. I've stirred it up a few times while rearranging things in the tank, it doesn't produce any cloudyness now.

[SkullJug]

Originally Posted by sir_dudeguy

oh and what fish are you lookin to get? and are you gonna do live plants? if you do live plants, i've heard that eheims are great w/them, because they dont have a super srtong flow (ya..lol i like eheims...what of it lol)

I agree - Eheim is the best filter I've ever owned, the flow rate is not great but They more than make up for this with perfect reliability and the media that comes with them is the best by far.

[Fishyfanatic]

Not all canister filters come with a handle. Good brands include Fluval, Filster, Cascade, and Eheim. The media doesn't have annything to do with the filter. You can buy anything you want and put in any brand you want. Ie: I'm running several Cascade filters with Fluval ceramic rings.

[Mad Professor]

Well thats great because I was looking at a new fluval 205 but it was going to be 94$ I was like "Ouch."
But I check the rena xp1 system and it was 59$ But then I suspect something wrong.

7:What comes with the Xp1 filters? *intake/water return/media*

I found the xp1 system from here... http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Produc...2&N=2004+22777

Now heres something I should know but I don't.
8: What filter media should I use?
9: If its charcoal what does it do? *I'm guessing it holds good bacteria*
10: Please explain to me what types of media are out there?

And about the fish I don't know. I was going to place images of fishes in my head to see what fits and what doesn't. I'm aiming for small fish only. I want lots of it!!!
Yes I already have about dozen guppies in my 44 gallon. My sister's 10gal holds 4 tiger barbs, 2 black skirt tetras, and 1 cory cat. *We had 2 cories in the 10 gallon but I killed one with the gravel vac. Sorry.*

So I like something else. I've had angel fish, neons, cardinals, bleeding heart tetras, clown loaches, Red eye tetras, pinstripe tetras, Tiger Barbs, Green barbs, Black skirts, comets, goldfish, guppies, bettas, platys, mollies, Redtail sharks, Bala Sharks, cories, pleacos, scissortails, glass cats, and yes the dreaded paint injected glass fish. I didn't know I was young! Please don't kill me!!!!

Theres probably a few more, I forgot.
But Heres a story about the goldfish. When I had my 44 gallon in the first year. I had tropical fishes in the tank. I was young and I didn't know alot about aquariums yet. This was like 2 years into the hobby. *8 years now* I managed to mix 2 gold fish with tropical fish. I had 3 bleeding hearts, 1 tiger barb, 2 Bala Sharks, 3 Black Skirts, acouple of neons or cardinals I can't remember, a pleaco, 3 cories, and 2 Red eyes tetras, Added 1 redtail shark.

One of the goldfish look was pure orange and the other was a mix color of orange and white. They lived and grew about up to 6". Then the white one died from OTS. * I rarely did PWC because the water had stuff in it, so I only bought bottled water to top off the tank.* Orange one stopped growing but kept eating. Some of the other fish died eventually, leaving me with 1 bleeding heart, 1 black skirt, redeye, a redtail, and the 6" goldfish.

I decided to redo the tank. The redtail jumped out of his bucket and died. The goldfish went to a LFS, and the others to friends and stuff. All I know is that the goldfish was sold to someone for their koi pond. The red eye and black skirt came back to me, and they died last year. So its been about 5 years for that setup. Most of the fish were the originals for that setup..

Now I found this forum and got my facts and BS from petstores straight I know whats right and wrong.

[Mad Professor]

Well since no one wanted to answer 7-10.
But scratch number 7. I went out to petsmart and saw what comes with the filstar, and was pleased with the kit.

Now I'm ordering it from Doctors Foster & Smith for 59$
I'm doing it now because I don't know when the price cut is going to end. So anyways I need some recommendations on filter media for my canister..
What I need, what I don't need. You know the drill, please tell me.

Thanks
~Mp

[Stretch]

If Petsmart has it in stock, just print out the page from Drs F&S, then take the printout to the store. They will pricematch anything. Also check Petsmart's own website, I found that it was at least 40% cheaper than in-store prices on everything I purchased. Of course, they'll match their own prices, too.

[Mad Professor]

Originally Posted by Stretch

If Petsmart has it in stock, just print out the page from Drs F&S, then take the printout to the store. They will pricematch anything. Also check Petsmart's own website, I found that it was at least 40% cheaper than in-store prices on everything I purchased. Of course, they'll match their own prices, too.

Did that but they refused their own price too... It was $61.99 on their stores website, but when I went there it was $109. I asked if they would sell it for their listed price online but to no avail. ****ING BASTURDS!
At least they are getting better on their tanks..

LOL
~Mp