turn over rate.

[texascichlidlover]

All, I have been looking for a definative answer on the flow rate of a filter and the size of a tank. After many hours of searching i have something that might put some newbies at ease (FW ONLY). Most manufacturers recommend 4-5 times the gallons of your tank per hour so 50 gallon tank is 200-250 gph. I personally will always use more than this in my personnal tanks although i dont think it is nessecary. Remember bigger is better when it comes to filters and paychecks.

PS. If you have messy eaters or just overall filthy fish go with a bigger filter its just the right thing to do.

 

[BigJim]

I prefer 5x-10x turnover. Keeps the tank cleaner and I don't have to clean the filters as often.

 

[fishguy1]

I prefer 5x-10x turnover. Keeps the tank cleaner and I don't have to clean the filters as often.

Yup. Even my canister tanks are at least 8x.

 

[texascichlidlover]

I stick to those numbers as well for the most part. I have found that larger media area helps me more than more flow. I also try to use 2 or more independent filter systems around the 4 times flow rate I am looking for to achieve more filter volume gph and overall media and if a failure occures all is well. Even if un likely. even though I do it it is not needed.....

 

[xxwolfpackof1xx]

i have two 100gph on my 15g so i have 12x turnover a hour

 

[Tim Wheatley]

I always went for as big as I could afford and however many of those could fit in the tank. Recently started using canisters instead of HOBs though and for a while even had a Fluval FX5 400 gal filter on a 29 gallon before I moved that 29 stock into a new (for them) 55. The bigger you can go, the better, if you're worried about flow upsetting the fish, then make some kind of modification... In the 29 gallon I turned the output nozzle of the FX5 against the glass so it hit the glass and went outwards, killing the flow by a huge amount, but now they're in a bigger tank I just point it straight out.

 

[fishguy1]

It's not that the higher GPH is the benefit to a higher turnover rate, except for keeping the tank clean. It's the extra media that it holds that's the benefit. Higher GPH generally means a larger filter.

 

[doogle]

turnover is related to gph, canisters have more media space, so turnover or gph is not as beneficial, as it is with h.o.t filters. hang on tank filters have less media space so having more turnover or gph is more important than with canisters.