120 Gallon Tank, Filters?? Cost??

[paradigmcubed]

Anyone know how much energy bills go up for having a 120 gallon tank? How about one Penguin 330 (60 gallons) and one Aqua Clear 500 (for over 100 gallons)? They said this would work at the pet store? Thanks

[brianfl]

I have two and didn't really notice much change in the electric bill. I use two emperor 400's in each. It depends on your stocking, but I think that would be the minimum. I also use a power head on one tank. My tanks do stay clean anc clear.

[Rocketman]

Why not go with a canister?

[paradigmcubed]

Canister? I've never encountered those, are they much better than the one I've listed.

[Rocketman]

Well.

I used to use (and still do use) HOB's like Whispers and Emperors. However, in a larger tank, I would recommend a canister. They are much quieter, and cause less surface agitation -good if you have a planted tank, as it reduces the amount of oxygen introduced into the water to replace Co2, which live plants need.

Also, they are much lower maintence, in my experience. They are more expensive however.

[paradigmcubed]

I'm slightly confused, why would you say those two filters at least if one if recommended foe 100 gallons and the other for 60 gallons?

Thanks!

Oh yeah these are the fish going in it:

1 GT
1 JD
1 Oscar
1 Salvini
1 Texas Cichlid

Tank dimensions are 4x3x2 feet.

[Rocketman]

I'm not sure about the fish mix, meaning am not sure whether it's good or bad.

Generally, the filters are overrated. Plus, it makes sense to have 2 intakes.

That's only if you dont go with the canister idea. They are obviously better filters, as indicated by their higher price, espicially with a tank the size of your 100 Gallon. Will it be planted? You will loose a lot of Co2 if you choose a HOB.

[paradigmcubed]

It won't be planeted because they would tear all the plants up and I checked with the guys in the Cichlid forum and this list is what we finally came upon.

Thanks

[Rocketman]

If you don't mind the maintance and noise of a HOB such as the Penguin and Aquaclear, (something that will only be compounded because you will need parts for two different filters,) or the unsightly, well, sight of them hanging off the back and throwing intakes into your tank, then by all means go with them.

If you are willing to go with a larger (one-time) cost for the canister, and can live with the silence and it's good-looks, as well as only one intake and a larger bio-filter with less maintance...well then, a canister is the way to go.

[brianfl]

Not to get into a debate, but generally canisters require much more maintenance than hobs. My emperors are not noisy at all.
Some of my tanks are planted as well with no additional co2.

[mkpeters6]

I would have to agree, the price of the canister filters outweighs their perdormance. I run two AC 500s on my 125, and they only costed me 70 bucks. I have large fish (oscar, bala sharks, severum, silver dollars, and African knifefish) so I have a heavy waste load. I perfer having as much filtration as possible. The filters only rate at the maximum size it can handle. I had only one 500 for about two months until I was feed up with trying to keep my tanbk clean. My advice is that the more filtration the better.

[e210benz]

how do you have a oscar and bala together?

[Gunnie]

I have to disagree with canisters being more maintenance. I have an XP2 & an XP3 on a 100 gal. tank with 2 oscars, 2 jack dempseys & 1 large pleco. My experience with HOB filters has been I have to fool with them at least once a week. Sometimes I don't have to clean a canister filter for a month! Also, if the power fluctuates, I don't lose my prime on the canisters, and they go back to normal when the power comes back on. I have come home several times to find all my HOB filters whining because they are no longer pumping water. Since I started fishkeeping, I now have a 100 gal., a 55 gal., a 29 gal., and a 20 gal. all running, and have noticed no noticeable difference in my electric bill. Just my 2 cents.

[JSchmidt]

I would consider the two types of filtration you'll want: mechanical, to remove solid wastes, and biological, to remove ammonia/nitrites from the water. I like using separate filters that are specially suited for one of those types of filtration.

For mech filtration, I like something with high turnover that allows good water circulation in the tank. I'm a big fan of HOT Magnums for this. I prefilter the intake with sponge. The filter can be packed with floss to trap crud. Works great and is relatively quiet (much quiter, IMO, than a traditional HOB).

For biofiltration, I like using a prefiltered canister packed only with a low maintenance biofiltration medium (e.g., ceramic noodles, bioballs). These filters require very little maintenance (outside of regular rinsing of the sponge prefilter) and do a great job of biofiltration. If prefilters are cleaned regularly, these canisters only need to be broken down every 3-6 months, sometimes less frequently. (This isn't my idea; see this great article by RTR describing his retasking of canister filters: http://www.tomgriffin.com/aquamag/cannister.html )

Good luck!

Jim

[NJ Devils Fan]

For those messy fish, I would go with an Emperor 400 and an AC 500. Both top of the line mechanical filters and with the emp, you would be getting good biofiltration with the bio-wheel.

[125gJoe]

Originally posted by wesellguns
I have to disagree with canisters being more maintenance. I have an XP2 & an XP3 on a 100 gal. tank with 2 oscars, 2 jack dempseys & 1 large pleco. ....... I'll agree with you on that! Also, for planted tanks, there's very little surface agitation from canister filters.Which helps keep CO2 in the tank -- plants love it.. If you use 2 canisters on a tank you can alternate cleanings to make sure you biological filtration is not disrupted too much. All that's needed on cleaning canisters for the most part is to change out the filter floss... Simple.. :)

[Rocketman]

I dunno if anyone noticed but this thread is 4 months old...

So what did you decide?

[NJ Devils Fan]

haha, I haden't noticed it either. e210benz revived it. I bet something happened and that person like doesn't have the tank anymore.;)