High Tech Planted Questions

[Austin.b]

Would a swiveling powerhead be of any use in a planted tank setup. I know they are for marine appliction but i was thinking it might help with CO2 & fert distribution around the tank. Then again i can see some problems it could pose as well.

Thought and ideas?

I think that's a great idea! I don't really see any cons though? It being too powerful?

 

[skywhitney]

Well i dont think the cons i was picturing would really be cons after all. I was thinking overpowered but if i can get one rated for a smaller tank i can avoid that since i don't need it to create a huge current, just enough to push some water around....i think i might pick one up and see how it goes.

 

[aqua_chem]

You can run a powerhead into a spray bar to distribute the flow more.

 

[CorallineAlgae]

It's an interesting idea. Gotta say, I'd love to try it if I didn't already have great flow from the 2 outputs of the canister filter.

 

[skywhitney]

I've been thinking of upgrading my filter for a while but the more research i've done the more a sump system seems to make more sense to me for a few reasons. I can build it to suite my needs/wants, maintenance seems to be quite a bit easier on them, i can combine a lot of stuff into one unit (filter, heater, reactor, Sterilizer (if i get one in the future)). I dont see a lot of drawbacks to it but i would love to hear other opinions.

 

[aqua_chem]

What do you have now?

 

[skywhitney]

Fluval 406

 

[CorallineAlgae]

Lots of people including me use an inline heater and co2 reactor with their canister filter. It works well

 

[skywhitney]

Lots of people including me use an inline heater and co2 reactor with their canister filter. It works well

I have those as well and it does work well I just noticed that my filtration is only about a 5x turnover every hour without anything inline, add in the reactor and its down to about 3x. I tried the dual outlets and that didn't make much of a difference either. My goal is a 10x turnover. I'm open to other suggestions if you can think of anything else.

 

[CorallineAlgae]

I have those as well and it does work well I just noticed that my filtration is only about a 5x turnover every hour without anything inline, add in the reactor and its down to about 3x. I tried the dual outlets and that didn't make much of a difference either. My goal is a 10x turnover. I'm open to other suggestions if you can think of anything else.

You can always run a second canister filter. One for your reactor and heater and another for added flow and filtration. The benefit with two canisters is you can service one at a time and always have one undisturbed, plus sparkly clean water! Using a sump has one glaring drawback, co2 loss (outgassing). It can be overcome but it's rarely as ideal as canisters.

 

[aqua_chem]

Don't you also have the Koralia 425 in there?

 

[skywhitney]

I do, i might add another 225 actually for the bottom half of the tank.

Even with the 425 the plants will show barely any sway at all.

 

[CorallineAlgae]

I do, i might add another 225 actually for the bottom half of the tank.

Even with the 425 the plants will show barely any sway at all.

Isn't that the way it needs to be? I try to have just enough flow to barely see most of the plants swaying. I am using a filter that pumps out 250gph in a 20h. It's reduced a bit from the reactor and heater which has a "T" for 2 different outputs. I figure I'm getting about 150-200gph now. High flow isn't always necessary, although everybody has their own opinions about it. Unless you keep bamboo shrimp or certain needy fish you're probably set.

 

[aqua_chem]

Different strokes for different... tanks. Circulation is a concern if nutrients aren't being delivered evenly. This can vary heavily between tanks for reasons such as source location or decorations.

 

[skywhitney]

I have noticed what i think are fert and CO2 distribution issues throughout the tank. Fast growing plants that shouldn't have any algae growing on them are becoming covered where other similar areas are not, I've noticed that there is stunted growth and melting in areas where there shouldn't be, and I've also noticed that there is a lot of detritus on the bottom of the tank that should be suspended until it get filtered but it will just sit there for days until i manually remove it.

I have tried adjusting the dosing on the ferts to no avail, I've also tried adjusting the CO2 with no luck. I've moved the powerhead around the tank numerous times trying to get the desired flow, i can get the desired flow in one area only to find the same issues forming in other areas.

I might just be picky but there are a number of factors that are leading me to feel that something is off and not working properly in my system. Other than that everything is great! lol

 

[CorallineAlgae]

I see. Then adding another filter could help you with both issues: increased flow and detritus removal. Does your filter get mucked up pretty quickly or does it take a while?

 

[aqua_chem]

Does this look familiar to you?

 

[skywhitney]

Does this look familiar to you?

The first kinda sorta looks like the emersed growth of my glandulosa but there are differences.

The second i have no idea

 

[aqua_chem]

I was actually talking about the type of algae growing on them... Seeing if it's similar to what you've got going

Altenanthera Reineckii and hyptis lorentziana, fyi

 

[skywhitney]

I was actually talking about the type of algae growing on them... Seeing if it's similar to what you've got going

Altenanthera Reineckii and hyptis lorentziana, fyi

Lol wow i was way off...

It looks similar to what i was getting on the Glandulosa. It might be on some of the java fern leaves. That GSA?