Eheim flow rate does not add up ?!?!?

[Cooter007]

I’m really hesitant about asking this question since I had the post pulled up just last week! I’ve searched and searched but I can not find it again. It was concerning the flow rates of the Eheim filters. I’m moving all of the residents of my smaller aquariums to my new 75 gallon. I’m going to use a Eheim 2213 that I all ready own but I need to add another canister because the 2213 is only rated for a 66 gallons. I keep reading the “turnover” rate should be somewhere between 8 and 11. If that is true, the recommended tank sizes on Eheim’s website are way off. I was going to add a Eheim 2217 but that would only bring my turnover rate to 4.16 times per hour.

I have also been checking out the Aquatic Gardening website and the majority of those tanks are no where near 8-11 times an hour! As a matter of fact a few Aquascaping Contest winners where only using 1 Ehiem 2026 to filter a 90 gallon tank. That’s only 3.8 times per hour.

If I have a mildly planted tank with a small fish load, will a Ehiem 2213 and a 2217 be enough to filter a 75 gallon?

[JSchmidt]

Turnover rate is a pretty meaningless figure. Think about it... if a given volume of water passes thru a variety of media, including mechanical and bio-media with a vast surface area (e.g., Ehfisubstrat), do you think that would be equivalent to passing thru a 3" foam block? A turnover rate of 8-10 times is arbitrary anyway, but it's pretty much meaningless when comparing across radically different types of filters.

I think a 2213 and a 2217 would be fine for 75, unless it's heavily stocked with heavily polluting fish.

HTH,
Jim

[RTR]

Agree w/Jim.

[Cooter007]

Thanks a million!! I'm on a roll........once I get my lighting figured out, I will have a fish in 6 - 7 months! :joke: