Deno Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 suggestions please for a filter system for a 450L tank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 external canisters or sump system... What are you having in the tank? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deno Posted June 26, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 probably africans Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 Definately canisters or sump system... the more filtration with an african set up.. the better by the way 8) Malawi species or Tanganyikans? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deno Posted June 26, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 I think I like malawis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deno Posted June 26, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 I dont want to do a sump system, I was hoping someone would suggest a particular model canister filter suitable for this size tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 Welcome to Africans btw If you want to know anything re African keeping, then hit the cichlid section, and many will help you out there 8) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deno Posted June 26, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 does the water need to be circulated? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 Ok, well there are a range of different filters.... we keep alot of Africans, we run Aqua One very big canisters on some of our tanks, and Eheim also... Depends on how much you want to pay for filtration? I would definately run two canisters tho, more filtration and the bonus with that is.. if one needs something doing to it, you will always have the other one as backup... we have two huge canisters running on our big African set up in lounge, and they get rostered cleans. There are cheaper range filters out there, Jebo etc, (of which we have owned and have parted with most)... Aqua One, have found they do a great job. Fluval, I don't think much of their filtration powerwise personally... and Eheim, ours crank it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 Malawi like to have a good water flow... especially your mbuna species. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deno Posted June 26, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 and the best way to do that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 Well you can have good powerful filtration for your tank (not so much so that your fish are having difficulty swimming or going around like a whirlpool or hitting side of tank)... Some people have used a powerhead in the tank to bump up water flow a bit... we have put a powerhead in our mbuna setups and they just love the flow.. darting in and out of rock work... they thrive. What species of Malawi are you thinking of having, might pay to do some searching and see what you really like in the way of fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spoon Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 how about cannister filter with the output running a fluidised bed filter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 FX5 or aqua one 2400.. Or 2 x jebo 819's or aqua one cf1200's. I used one fluval 404 on a 540L tank reasonably stocked and it did the job but that was underfiltered and I did descent weekly water changes, I went to an FX5 and haven't looked back, I only clean it out every 2-3months and it filters so well If your lucky you can pick one up quite cheaply too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 Yeap we run the Aquis 2400's and they run wickedly.... huge flow too.. 8) I still reckon the more filtration the better... Let us know what you decide in the way of Africans, always neat hearing about others starting a new tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 Yeah for sure the more the better.. However I reckon one FX5 or aquarius 2400 would be sufficient at least to start with More filtration can be added at a later date if needed.. Obviously if money is no object then 2 large filters would be wicked, africans don't really mind too much flow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 Oh definately 1 of either of a filter those sizes on a tank that size... we have our 2 Aquis on our 8fter which is 900 litres :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ant N Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 I have a mixed Malawi/Tang tank of 500lt and run a 404 Fluval and a CristiProfi500 no problems, lots of water flow.. Where in the country are you? I have some Malawi fish you can have Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David R Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 I dont want to do a sump system Can I ask why you don't want to go for the cheapest and most efficient filtration? :-? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpidersWeb Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 Can I ask why you don't want to go for the cheapest and most efficient filtration? :-? There are lots of downsides to sumps, which is why people don't use them for every tank setup. For some of us, the downsides aren't really an issue, and it's an awesome solution. I wont list my downsides here, so Deno can post up what he thinks first, but IMO I don't think they're the golden solution for most people on freshwater aquariums. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David R Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 Other than noise [which can be reduced to almost nothing with a good design] I can't really see any downsides. For an over-stocked fresh water tank [like africans] I can't see why you'd want to go for anything else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpidersWeb Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 Other than noise [which can be reduced to almost nothing with a good design] I can't really see any downsides. For an over-stocked fresh water tank [like africans] I can't see why you'd want to go for anything else. - Setup for somebody unexerienced isn't easy - Extra plumbing - Cuts to tank to do it properly - Noise, which requires a lot of trickery with downpipe design to be as low as cannister filters Yes you can sort them out but for most people it's too much trouble when a cannister will do a fine job. Also requires somewhere for the other tank, the other tank should really be divided up so needs to be custom built or modified. or just get a couple of externals, load them up, and install them....... Running a sump is great if you've got the time to set it up, and the know how to do it right, but for your average person it's probably a bit too much stuffing around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpidersWeb Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 (Oh and the sump suggestion was a good one, don't get me wrong, just wanted to point out that he's not completely crazy for not doing it ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted June 26, 2008 Report Share Posted June 26, 2008 For an over-stocked fresh water tank [like africans] I can't see why you'd want to go for anything else. Why not... good sized canister or canisters with good water turn over cranks on a fully stocked african tank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David R Posted June 27, 2008 Report Share Posted June 27, 2008 Why not... good sized canister or canisters with good water turn over cranks on a fully stocked african tank Sure, but for the cost of one FX5 I could make a sump that would have the same volume of media as three of them. The flow won't decrease as the filter clogs up, and cleaning it is as simple as replacing a sheet of filter wool. Plus they're a lot easier to clean out, and have the advantage of getting the heaters out of the tank. SpiderWeb I disagree about the complexity. The plumbing is hardly complicated (one pipe from the tank to the sump, and another going back to it), and silencing them can be as easy as a correctly sized drain and a piece of sponge in the overflow along with an enclosed stand with doors. The cuts to the tank only adds about $10 to the cost if you're getting it made new. For a malawi tank which is likely to be heavily stocked, large quantities of food and good aeration needed a sump is an ideal solution IMO. I certainly wouldn't use anything else on a tank over 250L, and I detest cleaning the two canisters I have on smaller tanks. However, I do admit they're not for everyone, but IMO on a tank like this you'd be foolish not to go for one without a very good reason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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