Enough filtration?

[Rick_May]

Jaydoc,
Wet drys are fine. I've got one but I was a little disapointed with the clarity of the water. It just didn't pickup it really small crap.

[ronrca]

Depending on how the wewt/dry is setup, it may not be recommended for planted tanks as some wet/drys will dissapate the C02 injection.

Are you planning on diy wet/dry? I have a filter for you then!

[JeffreyRichard]

I believe the answer to the question about how much filtration is ... it depends! Depends on the bio-load. If you have one or two fish in a 120 gallon tank with plants, all you probably need is water changes. If you have 2 dozen fish in the same tank, a filter rated for 120 to 200 gallons is probably needed. You usually can't overfilter ... but you can have too much water movement for the fish to be confortable.

Cannister filters are real good for display and/or planted tanks. It removes most of the hardware from the tank and isolates it out of sight.

Wet/Dry function primarily as bio-filters, which they are great for. In fact, they are often refered to as nitrate factories ... nitrate being the end product of the nitrogen cycle (ammonia - nitrite - nitrate). If you use one of these, you will have to remove nitrate either through lots of water changes (more than normal) or plants. However, you will lower the risk of ammonia or nitrite problems.

Wet/drys really aredesigned the be super-effective mechanical filters ... hence someone's comments about clarity of water with a WD ... if you want super clear water, I'd run a HOT Mangnum Filter with the Micron Cartridge inserted ... this will filter out most if not all your particles in your water column.

[lesley]

I have a 683 litre planted tank with two Aquaclears 300 - one each end.
Also have an air driven sponge at one end. I don't really think I need that sponge but it has been going for a while and it's there in case I need the "biologicals" urgently elsewhere.

My water is always crystal clear and I can see immediately if the filter media is getting too dirty or if the flow is reduced. I have them positioned so that the main water flow is along the front of the tank (keeps most of the food there and makes cleaning easier) and enough water movement at the back that plants and, most importantly, the discus are happy.

The last time I used a canister was on a 245 litre tank that I was starting up. Ended up having having massive "new tank" problems that cleared immediately I used an aquaclear type filter. I personally think that the canister media doesn't get enough oxygen to get up and running quickly although I put used filter material in it. I have started three tanks and put fish in immediately with aquaclear type filters and used filter material.

My canister is sitting in the shed gathering dust. My other tanks all have aqua clear type filtration.

HTH

[Very Fishy]

I have an AC300 on my 35 g tank and I agree it is a great filter to use on a discus tank. Low cost, straight forward design, easy to clean and the sponge filters last and last. I just rinse the sponges out every water change and put them back. I am setting up a new 110 g tank with an Eheim 2028 canister filter. Two things I have noticed with it so far, it is extremely quiet when running and the self priming pump is a great feature. As discussed, I will just have to be diligent in cleaning it on a regular basis.

[JeffreyRichard]

[quote author=Jeffrey Richard link=board=1;threadid=15603;start=15#msg161564 date=1074179931]

Wet/drys really are designed the be super-effective mechanical filters ... hence someone's comments about clarity of water with a WD ... if you want super clear water, I'd run a HOT Mangnum Filter with the Micron Cartridge inserted ... this will filter out most if not all your particles in your water column.
[/quote]

I MEANT to say are NOT designed to be mechanical filters ...

[David N]

I started keeping Discus about 1 1/2 years ago. I started with canisters but always had problems with ammonia. I have been using a wet/dry on a tank I started about 6 months ago. I have had no problems with ammonia. The biggest drawback I have with the wet/dry is that the water gets lightly cloudy after a few days (does not change the water parameters) when the filter pad on the disperser gets clogged. I believe this is particulate matter that gets back into the tank because the pad become too clogged to let water pass. Clean the pad and the water clears up until the pad gets clogged again. I use a Coralife PureFlo Filter Pad at 100 microns. This pad picks up a lot of material befor the water ever hits the bioballs but again you have to maintain it daily because it clogs up very quickly. I rinse the pad under hot water with the sprayer from the kitchen faucet daily. The pad lasts about a week before I have to replace it. I have used wet/dry filters in African cichlid tanks for years without a problem. I highly recommend them.

[jaydoc]

Very Helpful comments, David
Thanks for the input
Cary