Over filtration and too much water movement

[Boxraddict]

125 gallon:

6 discus 4”+
2 angelfish
30 black neon tetra
4 nerite snail
2 Siamese algae eater
1 bristlenose pleco

I’m running two Marineland c-360 canisters and two marineland penguin bio wheels.

The tank is lightly planted I’m going toward the more biotope route even though SAE’s and other odd men out that aren’t native to discus.

I wanted to make sure that for my stock I’m not overfiltering. I just notice the water seems to be moving pretty strong maybe it’s my imagination.

[Iminit]

I don’t think the discus will have a problem. You are overfiltering. What hobs are you using? Pics!!

[dornblaser]

I think that you can have too much flow, which should be adjustable, but can you have too filtration?

[Boxraddict]

https://imgur.com/a/6UhUBnf

Not sure how to post clips here but there’s a quick one in the above link

The HOBs are penguin biowheel 350 with sponges and peat granules in cartridges.

I was happy but I’m reading discus like less current than other fish .

[14Discus]

Imho, your tank looks fine.....your agitation seems to be at the surface where it belongs. I also think that it’s almost impossible to have too much filtration unless your filters are not properly maintained or the output truly causes strong water current within the main body of the tank water as opposed to focusing on the surface. I freely admit my tanks are way over filtered and I’m pleased w the results ( fish doing great and NO3 levels remaining low). Also, should one filter fail, others are there to pick up the slack. Others may disagree w me, but I thought I’d share my take on it.

[peewee1]

125 gallon:

6 discus 4”+
2 angelfish
30 black neon tetra
4 nerite snail
2 Siamese algae eater
1 bristlenose pleco

I’m running two Marineland c-360 canisters and two marineland penguin bio wheels.

The tank is lightly planted I’m going toward the more biotope route even though SAE’s and other odd men out that aren’t native to discus.

I wanted to make sure that for my stock I’m not overfiltering. I just notice the water seems to be moving pretty strong maybe it’s my imagination.

You know well that discus liver in rivers. Their bodies are biologically adapted for currents. I have a wave maker installed in one of my tanks for just that reason.

[Shan_Evolved]

Perfectly fine.

[Iminit]

Looks good. With what you have you could take out one of the bio-wheels or a canister and still be fine. How much water are you changing a week? Have you changed out the media in the penguins? Got rid of the cartridges for sponge?

[Boxraddict]

I use cartridges still but removed carbon and added fluvul peat granules . I was hoping might soften water?
I do 50% WC 3x a week. The fish really seem to love the time we spend together for that! :)

I was running two AC110’s where I had more room to play around with the media. One quit on me after 3 years and the other was getting noisier so I removed it. Now I added two penguin biowheel 350 they are cheaper.

[Iminit]

Yeah I use the bio-wheels too. Great filter super cheap. I’ve removed the cartridge and put a sponge in that slot than in front I put a bag of media (your peat). What’s your ph?

[Willie]

Is 'over filtration' even a thing?

I have a 40B tank stocked with 3 X 2 doublestacked Hydro V's and 2 X 2 Tetra (stick to the side) sponge filters. I use it as a sponge filter farm where cycled sponges are always available. The tank has a bristlenose breeding colony, an L-333 breeding colony and fancy guppies. I can say that every sponge I add to that tank makes the water slightly cleaner. So I don't think 'over filtration' has any negative effects.

[Boxraddict]

Nah I guess I thought maybe it was too fast moving, some reason thought they liked slow moving water. But this is good to know and learn.

https://imgur.com/a/1sKNxJv

^ the first half is the right side of the tank and then it cuts to the left.

As you can see I got a can and a hob on each end.

[peewee1]

Nah I guess I thought maybe it was too fast moving, some reason thought they liked slow moving water. But this is good to know and learn.

https://imgur.com/a/1sKNxJv

^ the first half is the right side of the tank and then it cuts to the left.

As you can see I got a can and a hob on each end.

When you get a chance Boxrabbit, check out a few youtube vids of wild discus in the Amazon and notice how fast,and how dirty, the water is as it goes flying by the discus. I wondered about this at times. Given that the water is fresh and constantly changing, hence the importance of your water changes, but water movement and water clarity may be only a human need as far as their fishies goes.

[Willie]

I think water movement is something overlooked in most aquariums, primarily because it's hard to replicate. I watched some underwater video of tetras in the Amazon and they also live in very high current conditions. Of course there are places for fish to dodge the current, but the amount of oxygenation is likely much higher than in aquaria. The same is true of larger fish, including discus.

I use powerheads, now wavemakers, to increase current in all tanks that have > 4" fish. Discus and angelfish all appear to be more lively and eat better with current. A fellow hobbyist, a strict African cichlid guy, came to the same conclusion independently. Larger fish will always do better with more current, which is virtually impossible to achieve in heavily planted tanks.

Of course, I have a solution to that...;)

[peewee1]

I run the wave maker during the day for current and then off at night so the fish can sleep without having to fight the current during that time.

[Willie]

A lot depends on the size of the fish and whether there are any ornaments in the tank that will block the current. In my case, the discus are 4.5 - 5.5" in diameter and it's a completely empty tank except for sponge filters on one end. I run a double wavemaker on one end of the 75 gal tank pointed slightly upward.

When the light comes on in the morning, the discus are usually at the end with the stronger current. During the day, the tend to congregate in the other half. Not sure what to make of that but these fish are definitely not fighting the current at night. I presume the current in their native habitat to be the same day or night, but have no idea if that's true.