Side by side tanks - advice?

[jaypath]

Hi all,

Anyone have input on this idea...

I have two 20 gallon tanks side by side (see pic). Originally I had a 55 gallon tank that cracked. In considering a replacement, I wanted both marine and fresh tanks and bought 2 20-gallon tanks for side by side use (thus the same width as the 55 gallon). Needless to say, maintaining those 2 tanks was a royal pain in the @ss so I converted both to fresh.

Now I have a tank full of goldfish (on the right) - loaded with nitrate - and a planted tank on the left with nearly no nitrate. The planted tank is injected with CO2.

The question... how do I move water/nitrate from the goldfish tank to the planted tank safely? I don't think temp is an issue (both tanks are 75, and everyone seems happy), but the pH in the planted tank is between 7-8 (probably due to the reef sand). I could probably lower that with more CO2, if necessary.

Would this simple concept work/not put water all over my floor?
-u tube for gravity siphon between the two tanks
-put the filter input in one tank, output in the other tank

I figure this would minimize water turbulence and CO2 loss, while also keeping parts/costs minimum. Also, assuming the pH remains in the 7.8 range, would the goldfish be ok with that?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Mr. Limpet]

Hi all,

Anyone have input on this idea...

I have two 20 gallon tanks side by side (see pic). Originally I had a 55 gallon tank that cracked. In considering a replacement, I wanted both marine and fresh tanks and bought 2 20-gallon tanks for side by side use (thus the same width as the 55 gallon). Needless to say, maintaining those 2 tanks was a royal pain in the @ss so I converted both to fresh.

Now I have a tank full of goldfish (on the right) - loaded with nitrate - and a planted tank on the left with nearly no nitrate. The planted tank is injected with CO2.

The question... how do I move water/nitrate from the goldfish tank to the planted tank safely? I don't think temp is an issue (both tanks are 75, and everyone seems happy), but the pH in the planted tank is between 7-8 (probably due to the reef sand). I could probably lower that with more CO2, if necessary.

Would this simple concept work/not put water all over my floor?
-u tube for gravity siphon between the two tanks
-put the filter input in one tank, output in the other tank

I figure this would minimize water turbulence and CO2 loss, while also keeping parts/costs minimum. Also, assuming the pH remains in the 7.8 range, would the goldfish be ok with that?

Thanks in advance!

Welcome Aboard!

I was thinking a pair of power heads moving water each way would do it, controlled flow PH's would limit co2 off-gassing IMO..

On another note, it looks like you have 3 goldies (more?) in the 20g, correct? That's way overstocked even of you're filtering for triple the water volume. Each goldfish needs 20g for the first and 10g for each additional goldie. Even if they "seem happy", stunting will affect their quality of life and shorten their life span considerably.

 

[jaypath]

Thanks for the advice!

>>I was thinking a pair of power heads moving water each way would do it
I had thought about that, but what if one fails or gets a bit clogged... wouldn't that be too risky for a nice overflow?

>>it looks like you have 3 goldies (more?) in the 20g, correct?
you got it... didn't realize they'd grow so fast
I'll be moving this year, when I plan to replace the 55g and have the two 20 gallons on each side along a semicircle. Then the even harder question... what's the easiest way to move water between tanks of different heights...

 

[jaypath]

Also, stupid question... what's a PH (as in controlled flow PH)?

 

[Mr. Limpet]

Thanks for the advice!

>>I was thinking a pair of power heads moving water each way would do it
I had thought about that, but what if one fails or gets a bit clogged... wouldn't that be too risky for a nice overflow?

Good point, perhaps a shutoff switch(es)? Other option to think about is when doing a PWC, remove water from planted tank normally, then scoop water from goldfish tank (don't vac) and add it to the planted tank. no3 aside, there's tons of nutrients on the fish side that would help your plants too.

>>it looks like you have 3 goldies (more?) in the 20g, correct?
you got it... didn't realize they'd grow so fast
I'll be moving this year, when I plan to replace the 55g and have the two 20 gallons on each side along a semicircle. Then the even harder question... what's the easiest way to move water between tanks of different heights...

Woo Hoo! Even more fun for you lol. Set the level of the 2x20g top rim at the same level as the 55g?

 

[Mr. Limpet]

Also, stupid question... what's a PH (as in controlled flow PH)?

PH=Power Head.

 

[twoodrough]

Ques: Why was doing a 20 fresh and a 20 salt a PITA? I have a 20 fresh and am cycling a 10 salt and am a bit concerned about doing both. Would like to hear your experience and why it didn't work for you.

 

[jaypath]

Twoodrough... don't let me dissuade you. Part of the problem was that it was my first marine tank, so it was a learning process all around. Just mixing salt water involved lots of spills and pain. However, the visual effect of a salt and fresh tank side by side was great. And if you have a 10g and a 20g you might avoid some of these annoyances...

-salt creep kept getting into the fresh tank
-small tanks require lots of maintenance (mostly water changes), and two small tanks was actually more than double the maintenance (not sure why... but I wound up spending several hours each week on one tank or the other...)
-the bulbs over the marine half caused weird algae on adjacent wall of the fresh water tank and vice-versa
-running a small marine tank was less cheap than expected. You'll go through a lot of salt water.
-I HATE mixing salt water.
-temperature issues. The warm marine tank caused excessive heating of the freshwater tank. I have goldfish though, and this wouldn't be an issue otherwise.
-different worlds of feeding requirements... blanched veggies for the goldfish, chopped shrimp for the marine guys... I don't cook that well for myself!
-triple the algae problems... probably boosted by the lighting issues I mentioned. and I don't understand why people LIKE corraline algae... Ummm... you know it's hot pink and impossible to remove, right?!
-small tank = very unstable. even a tiny snail death, if not removed immediately, could cause a big nitrogen spike. I lost a peppermint shrimp that way. Forget going on vacation, a small marine tank means religious water changes and eternal vigilance...

Ultimately though, I probably could have tolerated all of the above. But despite the beauty of marine fish, they eventually got kind of boring to me in a way that panted tanks never did. That's obviously personal preference, but you'll have to consider. Good luck!


PS Mr. Limpet, I'm going with the power head combo and a siphon U-tube. Hoping that the overflow tube will keep water levels equal... I'll post if that fails (once I clean the floors...)

 

[Mr. Limpet]

The other thing to consider, is a tank "bridge" that can connect the 2 tanks (search here for info). It's not really what you want to do, but it might give you additional ideas.

 

[jaypath]

Bridge? The "here" is missing... Please repost - I'm definitely intrigued... or do you mean here on this forum?

 

[jaypath]

Found it on this forum... not what I had in mind, but NOW IT IS!

Thanks, that's awesome... just have to figure out how to weld PVC now...

 

[twoodrough]

Thanks for the info. Just want to know what I am getting myself in to with two tanks. I am going to try to keep them both low maintenance. My goal is one water change a week on each tank. I am just about there with the 20 fresh, but the marine is still an unknown. I will be adding a clown in about 3 weeks and will see what happens.

 

[Mr. Limpet]

Found it on this forum... not what I had in mind, but NOW IT IS!

Thanks, that's awesome... just have to figure out how to weld PVC now...

Welding PVC or acrylic plastic is pretty easy really. Google it and I'd suggest a couple test welds on scrapes to get a feel for it. Done right, the weld becomes as strong as the material.

Oh, one last thing I forgot to mention.... Pics! Pics are most welcome and even a build thread is great so others can follow along (like me ), or if you run into an issue helping you out is easier too.

 

[jimenezlee]

The bridge is basically the inverted "U" siphon tube.

It looks like you have a canister. As long as the top of the tanks is at the same level, and your inverted "U" tube is large enough, just take the input from the canister in one tank and the output in the other; all water will circulate through both tanks. When you get more tanks, you can continue daisy-chaining them even, the water level will always be the same for all tanks connected this way. Dealing with blockages is a different matter though which I won't comment on how to manage them. That's why you want your U tubes to be of large diameter.

 

[jimenezlee]

Oh, I missed the last 3 posts, but yea, you got the idea. By the way, this concept can even be taken to extremes... check out this thread.

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f23/one-of-the-coolest-aquariums-ive-seen-151174.html