How am I going to filter this tank?

[polerz]

ok here it is
http://members.iinet.com.au/~polerz/pics/

Now let me explain a few things.
This piece:
http://members.iinet.com.au/~polerz/pics/IMG_0202.JPG
its hollow and heavy.
it goes here:
http://members.iinet.com.au/~polerz/pics/IMG_0203.JPG

Theres about 20cm of clearance inside that green part ontop of the tank. That already contains 2 power points a flurescent tube and an air pump. No way you'd be able to fit a cannister in there.

I was speaking to a friend of mine and he said run two pipes straight from the tank into the roof (that gap is about a metre high), then left a metre (inside the roof), then down a metre in the room beside it.

I have drawn it here:
http://members.iinet.com.au/~polerz/pics/IMG_0203s.jpg
might be a bit hard to follow heh.

THe bottom line is, for a cannister, it'd have to sit in another room, the water flow owuld have to travel a metre up, a metre left then a metre down. Is that possible? I dont think a cannister will suck the water out of the aquarium, I think they rely on gravity for the water intake and a propellor which spits the water back out.

The other thing is, gravel vacumming. How the would I vacuum that gravel ? haha.

What about a sump tank? I've been reading up on them, but can only find examples for salwater based aquariums.

It'd just involve a pump gathering water from my aquarium, into some sort of smaller tank which would contain the same filtration media as whats in a cannister?

Another thing I was thinking of, is getting a pump to pump water into a smaller tank, which would have a separating wall in the middle of it. Putting a cannister to draw water from one side of the wall, and pumping it back into the other side. Then the pump would take that new clean water and pump it back into the aquarium.

Suggestions please!!

This tank is a nightmare. My stupid old man got me it

 

[BrianNY]

Yikes!!!!!! Difficult but not impossible. If it were mine, I'd opt for a large cannister filter. I'd keep it under the stand or along side it. I still don't know why you want something coming from the ceiling.

The only way to do gravel vacs is with a python. You're going to have make your own gravel cleaner attachment. I'm thinking rigid clear pvc tubing. The same diameter as the one python supplies.

A sump would be overkill IMO, and then where would you put it? What fish are you going to stock it with?

 

[polerz]

cold water fish... I cant put it under the stand, its solid concrete under that thing, and my mum doesnt want some cannister filter pipes dangling 6ft down below the tank

The reason I wanted to go into the ceiling, is because then I could have all the equipment in the adjacent room on the left. No one would see it.

 

[rlebeau]

Your concern about gravity is based on the water line. The instructions for the filter should tell you how far below the water line the filter should be. Once you siphon the water up and down the 1 meter, you should have no problem. You should also be able to extend your intake as deep as you want. I know it will work if the intake is between the water line and filter height.

I have a Filstar XP2 cansister that sits 5 feet below the water line. It has a very effective self priming feature that makes starting the thing a breeze. The plumbing for my tank runs through the wall. I had to go to the local hardware store to purchase additional tubing and cut it to size.

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=3602&N=2004+22777

 

[TomK2]

uhm, make a decorative box to hide the canister filter and place it directly on top of the existing wood canopy? Or better yet, enclose the hex space from the ceiling down to the top of the tank so you can put lots of stuff up there, and not bother going into the next room.

Use a HOB filter, and have it hang on a side that is the least obtrusive?

Use a hang on internal filter, but dang, thats an awful large tank for one of those. I don't think any would be big enough.

put a canister under the base, and use decorative tubing to cover the canister tubes as they go up one of the sides. Again, a side that it would be the least obtrusive.

use an UGF with powerheads inside the tank.

buy lots of extensions for all your equipment, it sure looks like a long way down to the bottom.

 

[Rondory]

This looks like a job for Aquaman!

 

[polerz]

after doing a heap of research and many nights thinking about it, I've finally purchased a cannister filter and managed to place it so it doesnt look _that_ bad around the tank.

My last concern is, should the intake be at the bottom of the tank, and the output at the top? or does it not matter where the input/output tubes return to into the tank? Atm I have them sitting pretty much side by side at the same level in the tank (coz I dont have anymore tubing to extend it further). I have drawn it here, along with my other filtration equipment currently in the tank (two fluval 4 internal power filters, and two air stones at the bottom of the tank).

Diagram below:
http://members.iinet.com.au/~polerz/pics/untitled.jpg
Thanks for all your help guys, I couldnt of done it without you!

 

[TomK2]

I would put the intakes down near the bottom, and the outflow near the top. This would help in the overall circulation and turnover of the tank water. You need to get some rigid plastic tubing or PVC that you can build an extention for the intake tube to do this. I don't think it would be that hard. It is very likely that old aquarium intake parts could be connected together too. But a length of PVC is probably the easiest way to get it done. You can use short sections of vinyl tubing and tube connecters if you can't get the pvc to connect the way you want them to. Heck, I have used pvc and vinyl tubing to connect a magdrive pump to my tank to pump water out for water changes, so you should be able to extend your intake tubes to the bottom after some thought and a trip to your hardware or home supply store.

http://home.comcast.net/~tomstank/tomstank_files/page0015.htm

 

[DeFeKt]

sorry to be a downer but your right, canisters are designed to work like a syphon. pressure from the syphon going into the filter helps relieve the pump of most of it's working duties.
You might find this system will burn through pumps rather quickly. You might be better with some internals. or...
.

Another thing I was thinking of, is getting a pump to pump water into a smaller tank, which would have a separating wall in the middle of it. Putting a cannister to draw water from one side of the wall, and pumping it back into the other side. Then the pump would take that new clean water and pump it back into the aquarium.

This sounds like a good idea, but why not just make it a sump.
Nice looking tank though, an aquarists dream.
btw, where in aus are you?
let me guess, iinet dslam2+ hehe I love it.

Matt[/quote]