Running a new filter

[apr28]

I want to run a bigger and better power filter on my 29g tank. I currently have a Aquaeon Quiet Flow 30 and my tank has been fully cycled for almost 3 weeks and now fully stocked. The fish are doing great and colorful. I feed them Omega One pellets once a day and give them frozen brine shrimp and frozen blood worms as treats twice per week. I do not feed them pellets on the treat days.

7-White Clouds
1- dwarf gourami
2-bolivian rams
6-serpae tetra
2-peacock gudgeons
6-panda cories

My tank has had a reading of 0-0-10 with a steady 7.4 ph with all fish except for 2 cories for almost 2 weeks. I added the last 2 cories saturday and all of a sudden got a .5ppm nitrite reading this morning with a 40ppm nitrate reading.

I had to go to work but did a 50% pwc with Prime and Stress Zyme and the reading is lower but not much lower. I will do another pwc tonight.

I think my current stocking at 100% is too much for the filter I have and wondering if a new better and larger filter would help. I am going to run both filters at the same time so the new one can build up a a bacteria load. It's probably going to be a Fluval C3 for up to 50g.

How long should I run the filters in tandem to ensure the new one has enough of a bio load to handle the duties alone?

**Im not totally set on the Fluval and willing to consider another brand such as a Marinelannd Emperor 400

 

[Old Scales]

Go with the Fluval hands down IMO. Why not run both filters on the tank all the time? I have a 29g and I run a Fluval 206 canister and an Aqua Clear 50 HOB together and it works great. Your thinking is correct. With that bioload the Quiet flow 30 is not enough by itself. OS.

 

[Pleco1415]

On my 29 gallon I use an ehiem 2213 canister filter and a tetra whisper power filter 30.

 

[Pleco1415]

I would say the best hob filter for a 29 gallon is the marineland emperor 400. Best internal filter for a 29 gallon is the fluval u4. Best canister filter for a 29 gallon is the ehiem 2215.

 

[apr28]

I bought a Fluval C3 and C2. I would rather run those 2 instead of my current quietflow 30.

How long should I run the C3 with quietflow 30 before the C3 has all the beneficial bacteria it needs?

 

[Masha]

The recommended time I've seen is anywhere between 2-4 weeks.

My new filter took a month to cycle properly.

 

[flitabout]

You have a couple of options you could just take the media out of the 30 and put it in one of the canister trays and basically just transfer the bb from one to the other, or you could just run the new filters in tandem with the old one for a few weeks and hopefully that should be enough to get the new filters well colonized. When taking the old filter off I would still put the old media in the new filter just to be on the safe side.

 

[cowfish7]

I have read (but not verified) that it takes 15 hours for the nitrifying bacteria to double population size. (temp dependent)

 

[Masha]

I have read (but not verified) that it takes 15 hours for the nitrifying bacteria to double population size. (temp dependent)

I've read something similar, but remember that there are two kinds. The nitrosomona takes about 12 hours, I believe, and the nitrospora 36 hours.

But that doesn't help much if you don't know how much you are starting with, and how much you need.

 

[gilpi]

You have a couple of options you could just take the media out of the 30 and put it in one of the canister trays and basically just transfer the bb from one to the other, or you could just run the new filters in tandem with the old one for a few weeks and hopefully that should be enough to get the new filters well colonized. When taking the old filter off I would still put the old media in the new filter just to be on the safe side.

+1
A bit of media or ever "dirt" from the established filter will jump start the new filter.