Aqualady40
Aquarium Advice Addict
Curious question, I bought a Marineland penguin 200 bio-wheel power filter for my 40 gallon tank. It says it pumps 200GPH, is that sufficient enough for a 40 gallon that will be housing African Cichlids??????
I would imagine that it depends on your stocking level, but 200gph is 5x tank size, which seems to be the most prevailing general recommendation, however:
With messier fish, it is commonly recommended to double the filtration capacity. While I've never kept them myself, it's my understanding that cichlids fall into that category.
Best!
Curious question, I bought a Marineland penguin 200 bio-wheel power filter for my 40 gallon tank. It says it pumps 200GPH, is that sufficient enough for a 40 gallon that will be housing African Cichlids??????
Howdy!
I generally recommend a flow rate of 8-10 times the volume of the tank for African cichlids for a coupla reasons. First, they are messy fish. Second, to minimize aggression, it is often necessary to overstock these fish significantly. Not so much with Lake Tanganyikan cichlids, but it is absolutely necessary with Lake Malawi and Lake Victorians. What kind of Africans are ya lookin' at?
So in yer case, you'd be lookin' at 320-400 gph. I have one 40 breeder; I have a Penguin 350 on it. Ya could easily add another 200 and be well-protected.
WYite
Geronica said:Hi as stated above I am going to add another filter...I am leaning to buy another of the same brand and size making that a total of 400 gph....I figured that would be sufficient enough.....please let me know if any of you think I should do something different......thank you for the input