Is it possible to have too much in a aquaclear filter

[yankeeslover]

i have a AC70 on a 29 gallon tank..love the filter.... right now i have it setup this way, foam, filter floss, bio max,bio max... so i have four things in there currently... i removed the carbon two weeks ago, but now my tank is getting real yellow color from the tannis from my driftwood... i must have boiled that sucker 100 times when i first got it..... must be the carbon kept the water clear..needless to say i want to put more carbon in again as i like the tank clear... i believe the carbon will fit w/this setup but am i stuffing too much in the filter? i would have it, foam,floss,carbon,bio max,bio max...will this all fit? and how long will the carbon remove tannins for? one month?

 

[Reygan2]

i have a AC70 on a 29 gallon tank..love the filter.... right now i have it setup this way, foam, filter floss, bio max,bio max... so i have four things in there currently... i removed the carbon two weeks ago, but now my tank is getting real yellow color from the tannis from my driftwood... i must have boiled that sucker 100 times when i first got it..... must be the carbon kept the water clear..needless to say i want to put more carbon in again as i like the tank clear... i believe the carbon will fit w/this setup but am i stuffing too much in the filter? i would have it, foam,floss,carbon,bio max,bio max...will this all fit? and how long will the carbon remove tannins for? one month?

Why 2 bio max bags? I have the exact set up, and as far as I know, if it fits, it's fine. But IMHO I don't think carbon will help with the tannin situation, only pwc's and time.

 

[Nomadu571]

+1 agree on that. I can say from experience carbon does help but at such a slow rate it's barely worth it, time and pwc's and it will take time.

 

[meegosh]

Fresh activated carbon will remove your tannins pretty quickly actually. I would recommend changing it at LEAST every two weeks to be most effective. After two weeks it really stops absorbing and just turns into a beneficial bacteria bed.

Cramming too much media can slow the flow of the filter, cause overflows, etc. It is not recommended, IME. I ran all my AC's with Foam at the bottom, biomax in the middle and filter floss on top. PWC's took care of the rest. Why the 2 layers of biomax? IMO that is unnecessary unless you are seeding them for another tank/filter.

 

[Pton46]

Fresh activated carbon will remove your tannins pretty quickly actually. I would recommend changing it at LEAST every two weeks to be most effective. After two weeks it really stops absorbing and just turns into a beneficial bacteria bed.

Cramming too much media can slow the flow of the filter, cause overflows, etc. It is not recommended, IME. I ran all my AC's with Foam at the bottom, biomax in the middle and filter floss on top. PWC's took care of the rest. Why the 2 layers of biomax? IMO that is unnecessary unless you are seeding them for another tank/filter.

Not to highjack the thread but Biomax in the Middle? H'mm AquaClear has it on top...but I am having issues with Filter flow.

 

[paytertot]

It doesn't really matter they tell you to put it at the top so the cleanest water possible reaches the biomax but as long as it has foam below it, I don't think its that big of a deal. Imo.

 

[Reygan2]

Not to highjack the thread but Biomax in the Middle? H'mm AquaClear has it on top...but I am having issues with Filter flow.

My biomax sits on top of everything. Personally I wouldn't want to overstuff filter pads/floss either. I only have the original pad on the bottom, 2 cut to fit pads, and the biomax on top. My tanks are crystal clear all of the time.
What is in yours?

 

[meegosh]

I always put my biomax on top just for ease of setting up new tanks and the QT if I need it. I hated digging up my filter floss just to get to the biomax. I have it in a new mesh sock (you all realize AC's bag will rot with time, right?- ask me how I know ) for easy removal.

 

[cale]

I have read that the carbon is the best for removing tannins, never read anything about the tannins dissolving over time naturally.
As for over-stocking your filter, you could try removing one of your bags of bioMax and just put slightly more bioMax into one of the bags. I think I have the same idea for my bioMax, use two bags and just change one at a time and toss as need be.