which filter is best?

[Ben M]

hi, i am soon getting a small tank of about 35l (still not totally decided on which tank i'm getting though), and i have been looking at some filters. in my local lfs, they have the Aqua One 302f-lv (£10), the Eheim Aquaball 60 (£15), and the Rena filstar iv3 (£25). but i'm not sure which one would be best. they are all on offer. has anyone had any experience with these filters and what are your views on them?

obviously, i'd prefer to get the Aqua One 302f-lv, as it is the cheapest, but there is no point if it isn't suitable. i've read that it comes with a spray bar and aeration nozzle, is that with it, or do you have to buy it separately? and has anybody got any pics of the spray bar and aeration nozzle so i know what they look like?

cheers

 

[Dolly Sprint 16v]

Pesty

I have an Aqua ball in 25 litre - very easy to clean etc, the only issue is that it can become an eye sore, but with careful planting you can hide it.

Regards
Paul.

 

[Ben M]

thanks, does the spray bar come with it? and can you put the filter on the right, and have the spray bar on the left?

cheers

 

[Ben M]

hi, it has been suggested that i get an algarde air powered sponge filter as it is better for the shrimp. do you agree that it is best?

cheers

 

[Dolly Sprint 16v]

thanks, does the spray bar come with it? and can you put the filter on the right, and have the spray bar on the left?

cheers

Pesty

The filter unit swivels within the holder - so yes it can be placed on the right hand side and no the spray bar did not come with it - it was one of my mods

Regards
paul.

 

[bigmatt]

Hi there,
If you're planting your tank go for the highest turnover you can afford - maybe even look at a second hand external - they're worth the investment in the long run (try Aquarist Classifieds - you can get plenty for £25!). Sponge filters are great, but won't give a high enough turnover in a planted tank. You can avoid getting things sucked up into any filter by stretching an old pair of (well washed!) tights over the filter inlet.
Hope this helps,
matt

 

[Ben M]

thanks, i won't go for a sponge one then. i'll see if i can get an external, which ones would you recommend? i think if i end up getting an internal i'll go for the Eheim, as it seems a good choice.

cheers

 

[OllieNZ]

The smallest ehiem ecco external I picked one up for £20 a couple of months ago

Ollie

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,
I've got both Rena Filstar 3 and an Eheim aquaball, and they are both good internals. The Rena didn't come with a spray bar, but has a good venturi system. Eheim comes with a spray bar and venturi.

On my shrimp tanks I have a "Powerhead, - coarse PPI 10 sponge" filter. I use the sponges from TA aquaculture or Kettering Koi <http://www.ketteringkoi.com/acatalog/Filter_Foam_Blocks.html> and either a Maxijet or Aquaball powerhead. The advantage of the exposed sponge is that the shrimps use it as an additional feeding surface.

A Maxijet 600 and sponge is a really cheap option, you can use the scaffold attachment for the sponge (or drill a bit of waste water piping), you can get them even cheaper than this off Ebay <http://www.warehouse-aquatics.co.uk...powerheads/maxi-jet-powerhead-600-p-4180.html> .This is the sort of sponge - FS1604 sponge from TA aquaculture <http://www.ta-aquaculture.co.uk/Filtration-Air.htm>. You want a coarse sponge (PPI10 or PPI20) as the finer sponges clog more easily.

FS1604 sponge from TA aquaculture

These sponges come with a range of central hole diameters <http://www.ta-aquaculture.co.uk/Filter_sponges.htm>.

I've also used Hamburg Matten Filters in the past, and they work really well as well.

cheers Darrel

 

[Ben M]

hi, thanks for the replies, but i'm a bit confused now about the sponge filters. would they be ok for a planted tank, possibly with co2 injection? and when i put it together would i need a powerhead + some sponge with a hole down the middle + some tubing to stick down the middle of the sponge and attach to the powerhead at the top? and how does the water filter through the sponge and into the tube?

cheers

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,
I use the sponge filters in all the tanks, even if they are only on the inlet tube for an external or trickle filters. If you use the sponge from TA aquaculture the picture it fits straight on to the stepped size attachment (in the image below).

.

For the Koi sponge you need a drilled pipe in the sponge, connecting to the powerhead. A low tech. option is to cable tie the sponge to the "scaffold" in the image (the scaffold is a mesh cylinder). These sponges are drilled 2/3 of the way down, but you can always silicon a plain glazed tile to the bottom of the sponge, for a neater job.

Have a look here, this uses a Maxijet:
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/diy/94386-diy-sponge-filter-w-powerhead.html

They won't cause your CO2 to out-gas any quicker (a trickle filter potentially would). Have a look here.
http://www.sponge-filter.com/

cheers Darrel

 

[Ben M]

thanks i think i get it now. so would the turnover be good enough for a planted tank using a sponge filter? and could i attach a sponge with scaffold to another filter such as the Aquaball, or would that be pointless? i reckon i could make my own scaffold if my dad can get some plastic tubing from work, so i'd only need the sponge and the powerhead. which powerhead would be best for my tank?

cheers

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,
I usually use a Maxi-jet, this is because they are relatively cheap and reliable. I've used their pumps for hydroponics, so they were my first choice, but any powerhead will do. If you think about any filter (sponge, internal, external) they are all doing the same job - a pump (in this case a spinning impeller) pulls water through a media matrix where the biological filtration occurs. The balance is between the oxygen demand of the bacteria and the amount of substrate (nitrogen, carbon etc) they consume. In our cases we can pretty well ignore the oxygen demand, we have lightly stocked tanks, plants and we massively over-filter.

Even If you look at a "good" internal filter (Eheim or Rena) the amount if biological media in the filter is fairly pathetic, you can add 10x as many filtration sites with a relatively small sponge. The other advantage is the sponge has a large surface area exposed to the highly oxygenated tank water. This "big" sponge could potentially treat a large fish load, but if you only have a light fish load it will produce high quality water even if it is only cleaned occasionally. One perceived disadvantage is that in a properly designed internal you can remove it from the tank without spilling mulm and debris in the tank, whilst with a sponge you can't. I don't see this as a problem, I put a 1000ml beaker over the sponge while it is still in the tank and the lift the the beaker out, problem solved. (a clean plastic jug would be just as good).

If you want a lot of flow you could use a higher rated pump, Maxijets come in 400 - 1200l lph, a big powerhead will need a bigger sponge, or the water will be pulled through the sponge so rapidly that the bacteria will be continually flushed out, or even if still in situ there won't be enough time for the chemical reactions of biological filtration to occur.

A coarse black ppi10 6" x 4" x 4" sponge (this is the size of sponge in the picture, with a drilled pipe like the one in the link) could go on a Maxijet 600, and would offer both excellent water movement and biological filtration for about £20. This is the exact set up I have in my shrimp tank. I screened the filter with a piece of planted bog-wood, it doesn't need to cover the whole sponge, just break up the out-line. You can even tie some java fern/moss onto the sponge if you wish. I clean the sponge about once a month (left for 2 or 3 months) sometimes if the flow stays high.
To clean I wash it under the cold tap, and just give it a light squeeze to get some of the mulm out (but not all of it).

cheers Darrel

 

[Ben M]

thanks, so how would i go about making a scaffold, and where is the cheapest place to buy the powerhead and sponge (my parents won't let me buy from ebay.

cheers