Buying a 55 gallon wahoo!

[skibum100]

i hear having sand breaks your filter eventually should i be worried? is there a prevention possibility? ...thanks SnailPowered! that looks amazing actually im really tempted right now! i was planning on just using my 30 gallon HOB filter and hope it would work but- with that id be in heaven more filtration always a plus! ps do you have any snail, shrimp, any algae eater suggestions hopefully could coexist with cichlids (i know people keep saying pretty much Nothing does but i keep hoping)

thanks!

 

[SnailPowered]

I know when I had sand I just made sure that the intake wasn't real close to the bottom. A small amount of sand at a time should be a problem but if you sucked up a teaspoon at once it would probably do some work on the impeller. I don't think that the cichlids will mess with a snail too much but I could be wrong too. I know I have always had a pleco even with my cichlids and they never bothered it, of course plecos have some pretty thick skin. If you order that I would really like to know how it goes. I plan on ordering the lights from them but I can't justify buying something right now that I'm not going to use for 6 months. I don't think that store is going anywhere.

 

[CA_BroncoFan]

You just have to make sure you wash your sand really good prior to putting it in the tank and when you do your tank maint. you have to turn off your filter and leave it off while doing your changes and stuff. Let the water settle and then turn it back on. Doing this and making sure there is enough space between the intake tip and the sand will ensure you dont ruin your filter.