Additional Filtration on Marineland Eclipse 3?

[Twoapennything]

Hi all,

I have built in filtration on my Marineland Eclipse 3 40 gallon tanks. The filtration is built into the hood and has both charcoal/floss filtration as well as a biowheel. Is there some way to incorporate additional filtration to this kind of set up? I've included a picture of the set up at the end of the post. As you can see, an HOB is impossible because of the design of the hood. I could remove the hood and change it out with another, regular hood, but I do like the aesthetics of the Eclipse hood. Would it be possible to rig a canister filter for this kind of set up, to provide additional filtration? Despite liking the look of this set up, I'm not happy with its functionality, as it causes water to back up and overflow down the backside of the tank. I've tripped our breakers three times because of this -- it occurs whenever I open the back lid in order to feed the fish. It will not be useful to tell me that I should not have purchased this set up, because I already have and it's what I have to work with right now. I may be able to eventually change tanks, but that's not financially an option at this particular time. Thanks in advance for any replies, though.

Julie

Picture:

 

[DragonFish71]

What about an in-tank filter? You would only need enough room for the cord to come out of the tank.


Fluval "U" Internal Filters | Filters | PetSolutions

 

[maddub1979]

i would surly go with an external canister filter you dont need much room in tank at all plus you can increase the amount of fish in there

 

[Mark Hewitt]

A canister filter is going to be your best bet, but, you'll need holes at the back in order to put the pipes through to the tank for the outtake strainer and return. You'll probably need just under an inch of clearance at the back in order to slot them in.

If you haven't got space, don't rule out cutting it to fit! I have an aluminium hood with no space at the back but I got some snips and cut it! It looks untidy as **** but it doesn't matter one bit as it's around the back where nobody can see it! Although I suspect cutting plastic won't be quite as easy.

If routing a canister in isn't an option, then pretty much your only other alternative is an internal filter. Fluval U series are the ones that everyone recommends, in fact I just bought a U3 yesterday, but I haven't set it up yet. The problem of course is that you'll have an ugly (and the U series are probably the ugliest things I've ever seen!) black box in the corner of your tank.

 

[Twoapennything]

Thanks everyone for the advice re: extra filtration.

I actually do have room in the back of the hood to thread tubing through, so a canister filter is definitely not out of the question. I will definitely investigate that option.

I think I have a bacteria bloom. I changed the filter (floss/charcoal), did a 70% water change, and vacuumed thoroughly, dosed the tank with AccuClear, and the water is still slightly hazy. I have also had a loss of six fish, with a seventh about to kick it. So there was clearly something wrong with the water. I can also see remnants of the sand I had in the tank before switching back to gravel (the sand ruined three filters within six weeks) -- man, that stuff is a b**** to get out fully. Even though I cleaned the tank super thoroughly when I changed substrates, the sand continues to occasionally float around in the tank.

Anyhow, canister filters take up a lot of room, don't they? I'm trying to see if I could fit a canister filter next to the aquarium. There's about 12 inches leeway, so not much. It may be possible to actually hide the canister in the aquarium stand, and just find another place to stash my other equipment that I don't use very frequently.

What brand of canister filter would you all recommend and why?

 

[bamdesign2002]

A great solution

I read your question and I have a great solution for you.
I have the eclipse 3 hood for my aquarium and wanted additional filtration as well. I bought a 2236 eheim cannister filter that I have been using for the past two years without any problems. You will be able to fit both the intake and output tubes in the top left of your aquarium through the opening already on your eclipse hood.

Remove the filter that came with the eclipse hood. You won't need it if you have the cannister filter. What you can do is take the intake tube and have the water pouring onto the blue filter pad of the eclipse 3 hood. The water will pour onto it and then go onto the biowheel and be released back into the tank on the right side of the tank. Setting the intake tube so that it pours onto the blue filter pad can be difficult. I would recommend buying additional suction cups and to keep the intake tubing long so you can set it up this way. The tubing needs to go up over and down. (I would need to show you a photo rather than describing it.)

It will take some adjusting but it can be done. The great thing about setting it up like this is that you won't be using as much elecricity but will still have both filters running. I hope this makes sense to you from my explanation.
Give it a try and I think you will be very happy with the results.

 

[maddub1979]

Thanks everyone for the advice re: extra filtration.

I actually do have room in the back of the hood to thread tubing through, so a canister filter is definitely not out of the question. I will definitely investigate that option.

I think I have a bacteria bloom. I changed the filter (floss/charcoal), did a 70% water change, and vacuumed thoroughly, dosed the tank with AccuClear, and the water is still slightly hazy. I have also had a loss of six fish, with a seventh about to kick it. So there was clearly something wrong with the water. I can also see remnants of the sand I had in the tank before switching back to gravel (the sand ruined three filters within six weeks) -- man, that stuff is a b**** to get out fully. Even though I cleaned the tank super thoroughly when I changed substrates, the sand continues to occasionally float around in the tank.

Anyhow, canister filters take up a lot of room, don't they? I'm trying to see if I could fit a canister filter next to the aquarium. There's about 12 inches leeway, so not much. It may be possible to actually hide the canister in the aquarium stand, and just find another place to stash my other equipment that I don't use very frequently.

What brand of canister filter would you all recommend and why?

i would try fluval as for space the size you would need is only as big as a 2 liter bottle and cost around 100$

 

[Pick]

I have the same aquarium with a Eheim ecco. As you know, there are two openings on the back of the hood, one on the left and one on the right. I have my intake on the right with the return on the left opening. It works like a champ. No mods are necessary.

 

[HUKIT]

How about a simple sponge filter run off an air line. Not great for mechanical filtration but works well form biological and they're cheap.