BigFish Posted July 1, 2002 Report Share Posted July 1, 2002 Anybody seen aquaclear filters available for sale in christchurch, lookin for a new filter and heard these were good Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted July 1, 2002 Report Share Posted July 1, 2002 I am sure any outlet could get Aquaclears as they are still available as far as I know. I have two of them lying around somewhere in two different sizes. They have worked well for years and were easy to clean. They work well but not with bigger fish, like goldfish, because the sponges clog up really fast (every couple of days). They can be awkward depending on your lid and the position of the tank. If you have fish that jump, they have a tendency to leap out the gap you have to leave for the filter to hang in, and the water to flow through. If I remember correctly, I got one of my Aquaclears from the pet shop in New Brighton (it was on special at a price we could not resist). Don't know if the shop is still there though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFish Posted July 2, 2002 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2002 thanks caryl i'll go have alook around and see what i can find, but while im at it are thier any non cannister filters recommendations for a 20-25 gallon tank? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted July 2, 2002 Report Share Posted July 2, 2002 I personally have never had trouble with under gravel filters. Especially if you have a good thickness of gravel on top ie. 5cm at least. Again, not so good with the bigger fishes. There is always the thought that if you plant well, stock lightly, and do regular water changes, you could get away with no filtration at all Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted July 2, 2002 Report Share Posted July 2, 2002 Just a thought while on the topic of filters. It is a good idea to have a small canister filter tucked away in your main tank somewhere then, if you have to set up another tank in a hurry, (for whatever reason) you have a filter already up and running and full of beneficial bacteria ready to put in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted July 22, 2002 Report Share Posted July 22, 2002 Hi Big Fish The Aquaclear filters work beautifully. I'm not sure if Caryl means the same, but my filter cannot be cleaned. It is a throwaway. At least the filter proper, not the holder. Hagen #A-575. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted July 22, 2002 Report Share Posted July 22, 2002 Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear I think my age is showing. After John's comment about the Hagen A575, I looked it up on their site. When I went to look at AquaClears, there weren't any looking like the ones I was talking about! I now wonder if the ones Ira meant are different too. I had in mind the old brown (or grey) canisters with a sponge that were hung on the outside of the tank with the water flowing over a small spillway back into the tank. Are these no longer available? I couldn't find them on the Hagen site. All the stuff with the AquaClear name looked totally different to what I had in mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted July 22, 2002 Report Share Posted July 22, 2002 Hi BigFish Why don't you try a Hagen Powerhead. It can be used with an Aquaclear filter attached to the bottom. Or, better still, it can be attached to the outlet of your u/gravel filter. Makes a very efficient u/filter. Mine is the 204, which is reversable. It supposed to 'blow' water into the u/gravel filter. It apparently puts biological goodies underneath by doing so. The flow is adjustable and you can attach the airhose, which comes with the powerhead, to the small orifice of the outlet and you've got a tremendous supply of fresh air without an airpump. The flow of mine is that great that I have, or will attach a spraybar to reduce the water movement. For some reason a few of my fish, especially my guppies, sailfin mollies and my silver sharks love to enter the output streamand frolick in it. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fee Posted July 22, 2002 Report Share Posted July 22, 2002 The AquaClears to which you are refering are still available from Hagen, I havn't looked on their web site, but I can still buy them and I stock five different sizes. The AquaClear series does also include powerheads and the 575 is a quick filter or water polisher. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Posted July 22, 2002 Report Share Posted July 22, 2002 There are (at least) two general types of Aquaclear filters available (I'm going by what's in stock at the LFS - some of this is old stock though). The first is the hang on the back type, that have a reusable sponge and water is returned to the tank via a spill way as Caryl as said). The second type are the Aquaclear Quick Filters. These are basically a power head with a tubular filter attachment. When bought these are equipped with a filter sleeve that slides over a plastic slotted support tube. I've found both types to work well. I've given up on using the filter sleeves for the quick filters. I wanted to reuse them but they are hard to rinse out thoroughly - I now just wrap a layer of filter floss around the support stem, the filter cage keeps it all in place. I find the filter floss is easier to rinse out and I can buy it in bulk rather than have to fork out for the 'official' filter sleeves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert Posted September 14, 2002 Report Share Posted September 14, 2002 dont no if you are still looking,but if you are bob at redwood aquitics in chch has them.i also remember some one looking for emperer tetras on this site,well bob had 6 left when i was there to day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted September 14, 2002 Report Share Posted September 14, 2002 Hi Rob I tried the quickfilter too. Works well. But I don't like the re-fill price. How thick do you apply the wool around the inside of the filter cartridge. Wet or dry application? Thanks John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Posted September 14, 2002 Report Share Posted September 14, 2002 The thickness of filter wool that I use with the QuickFilters is enough that when the wool is dry and uncompacted (ie not tightly wrapped around the inner stem) it just touches the outer cage. Hope this was the info you were after John. The only annoying thing I found for the QuickFilters is that when I bought a replacement filter cage it didn't come with the internal stem, so I had to jury-rig something instead. Rob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted September 14, 2002 Report Share Posted September 14, 2002 Thanks Rob The filtercage I bought came WITH filter media AND stem John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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