tonhe
Aquarium Advice Apprentice
I have a few issues with my Cichlid tank that I'm trying to address here.. I should mention that this is my first sump setup.. The sump in question is a Pro Clear Premier Series 175 Wet Dry on my 125G corner round acrylic tank.
1. One of the biggest issues I have is feeding.. When feeding flake food, I have to have the outputs set fairly high, pushing water away from the corner overflow... (or else I end up with TONS of food in the filter / overflow).. My fish are a bit too agressive for a feeding ring, unless I could find a REALLY large one.. (like a 1-2 feet wide) -- anyway, the problem that results is the bits of dust or whatnot on the surface of the water never really make it, or at least rarely make it into the overflow and into the sump... so my water is kinda icky on top....
2. Filtering what does make it into the sump.. There isnt much room in the top of the sump i have, and i've tired a couple differnt things in there to get more mechanical filtration.. (my cichlids are very messy eaters and I need something better) I've yet to try filter floss, but I'm looking for something a lot better than the bonded filter pads i'm using now.. I'm so used to having more layers of mechanical filtration that I do now, and my water clarity sucks compared to my old 46 gallon with the XP3... HELP !
3. Not a hardware question, but.... Display tanks, as I understand are just tanks with no decorations in them, just possibly substrate, fish, and water.. right? Do Cichlids handle them well -- as in, are they less agressive in a display tank since there is no real area for them to claim?
4. Ahh, yes, I almost forgot.. I've got a durso standpipe draining my tank currently... and I've drilled probably 20 holes in that **** thing trying to get rid of the toilet flushing sound in my living room.. I'm almost used to it now... --- anyway.. The person who had the sump before me drilled slats along the holes of the drain lines.. Which I think is draining the lines faster than the standpipe sucks, but if it sucks more, the pump can't keep up.. Would replacing the drains over the drip tray with pvc that drilled less fix this ? Does that make sense? If not, I'll try to get a pic or two...
Anyway, thanks for the help.. I really appreciate it !!
-Tony
1. One of the biggest issues I have is feeding.. When feeding flake food, I have to have the outputs set fairly high, pushing water away from the corner overflow... (or else I end up with TONS of food in the filter / overflow).. My fish are a bit too agressive for a feeding ring, unless I could find a REALLY large one.. (like a 1-2 feet wide) -- anyway, the problem that results is the bits of dust or whatnot on the surface of the water never really make it, or at least rarely make it into the overflow and into the sump... so my water is kinda icky on top....
2. Filtering what does make it into the sump.. There isnt much room in the top of the sump i have, and i've tired a couple differnt things in there to get more mechanical filtration.. (my cichlids are very messy eaters and I need something better) I've yet to try filter floss, but I'm looking for something a lot better than the bonded filter pads i'm using now.. I'm so used to having more layers of mechanical filtration that I do now, and my water clarity sucks compared to my old 46 gallon with the XP3... HELP !
3. Not a hardware question, but.... Display tanks, as I understand are just tanks with no decorations in them, just possibly substrate, fish, and water.. right? Do Cichlids handle them well -- as in, are they less agressive in a display tank since there is no real area for them to claim?
4. Ahh, yes, I almost forgot.. I've got a durso standpipe draining my tank currently... and I've drilled probably 20 holes in that **** thing trying to get rid of the toilet flushing sound in my living room.. I'm almost used to it now... --- anyway.. The person who had the sump before me drilled slats along the holes of the drain lines.. Which I think is draining the lines faster than the standpipe sucks, but if it sucks more, the pump can't keep up.. Would replacing the drains over the drip tray with pvc that drilled less fix this ? Does that make sense? If not, I'll try to get a pic or two...
Anyway, thanks for the help.. I really appreciate it !!
-Tony