filtering for 75 gal

[abomb]

I plan on keepings cichlids in a 75 gal. I have been reading up on filtration. People seem to live by the canister filters. HOwever i personaly think that i lkike HOB. I was thiking posibly 2 emporer 400s. However i would love to here peoples thoughts and posibly BEST BANG FOR your BUCK!!! Thanks a lot this forum has been so helpful in getting me started in this wonderful hobby

Adam

 

[grimlock3000]

Two Emperor 400s or Two AC 500s would be the best bang for the buck imo. Whatever you do, try to get two filters of one type or another so you have some redundancy in case of a failure.

You can read some good reviews here...

Emperors:

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/reviews/view_product_review.php?id=14&pg=all

ACs:

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/reviews/view_product_review.php?id=13&pg=all

The ACs and Emps really do things differently and have their own pros and cons. You could just get one of each and see how it goes

 

[TankGirl]

I am a canister filter type, so I must say that if you choose to cross over then a Rena Filstar XP3 would be nice. Maybe one of those and a single Emperor 400 would give you nice balance and excellent filtration for those high waste producing cichlids.

Okay, I am done with the plug for the canister....as you were.

 

[Menagerie]

For a tank that size, I would go for a canister. I like that my 80 gal is up against the wall, leaving little room for the hoses. This way the cats can't get behind the stand and canisters provide more of a challenge when it comes to the cats drinking from the tank...but maybe you don't have that problem

 

[abomb]

Okay ive been thinking and reading about all this noise them emps make....i have a pengiun mini on a 10 gal and all i ever hear is water trickling. Are canisters noise free??? if so how much am i looking at spending i always see them for like 200 bux thats kinda pricy. What would be the best setup 2 canisters 2 hob 1 of each ect.... """This is for a 75 gal cichlid"""" i kinda want to get a bunch of replys on what everyone else uses in their setup so i can research the products and come up with my setup .

 

[Menagerie]

I have a Via Aqua 750 (with all biological media) on my 80 African cichlid tank and it is noise free. I bought my filter on eBay and have had it over a year. I only use one canister on the 80 gal.
Fluvals are good canister filters (I have two). You would want a Fluval 404 and I just found one on eBay for $110 (with media) plus $17 for shipping. The gph is 340, which only gives you 4.5 turn over per hour and most people on this site would want at least 6x per hour. However, since there is no industry standard for gph (is the filter full of media? empty? full of established media?), I think the Fluval 404 is good for the money.

 

[Bearfan]

I admit, I do not follow normal practices. I have ONE Emporer 400 on my 72 gal, and I have had a successful tank for years. People will say it's not enough, but I have years of experience that tell me it is. Granted, I do vac the gravel every 2 weeks and remove the excess waste.

To each their own. That's why we have choices.

 

[TankGirl]

Amen to that, Bearfan. I tend to overfiltrate on the side of caution, and only recommend it because I have not tried anything else, except on very small tanks. The "if a little is good, more must be better" rule works sometimes, but certainly not always. I should experiment more..

 

[grimlock3000]

Cichlids are very messy. More filtration = more better

 

[SteveM]

I have an Emperor 400 on my 75G, and it is very noisy. So noisy that I just bought an AC500 - hooked it up last night and it is MUCH quieter than the Emp, but I would not call it silent. I think I'll get a canister as soon as I can convince the wife that its worth another $100 to get quieter.

I've not had either filter long enough to comment on effectiveness, but there seem to be plenty of people who love both, so I think either is a good choice as far as filtration.

Look at the following for good prices on filters:

www.bigalsonline.com
www.petsmart.com

 

[SteveM]

I have an Emperor 400 on my 75G, and it is very noisy. So noisy that I just bought an AC500 - hooked it up last night and it is MUCH quieter than the Emp, but I would not call it silent. I think I'll get a canister as soon as I can convince the wife that its worth another $100 to get quieter.

I've not had either filter long enough to comment on effectiveness, but there seem to be plenty of people who love both, so I think either is a good choice as far as filtration.

 

[TankGirl]

As far as quiet is concerned, my Eheim 2215 canister is so quiet I have to put my hand on the thing to be sure it is running.

 

[Orca]

For my 75gal tank I have a Fluval 404 and a Penguin 330. I'm quite happy with that combination. The Fluval cannister is great for its versatility as far as the media combinations you can put together, but also having a HOB like the Penguin makes it very convenient when I want to do a quick change of something, like Peat granules for instance. I like the Bio-Wheel feature of the Penguin as well.

I chose the Penguin over the Emperor because it's a little slimer, allowing me to get the tank a little closer to the wall.

 

[oscarbreeder]

I had a Fluval 404 and two penguin 330"s on a 55 gal Oscar tank and that combo kept it crystal clear.

You can get a Fluval 404 from pet solutions for $109.99