filter configuration

[RHJ]

Hi, I am not a newbie at fishkeeping, but this question seemed to belong here. I will be setting up a new 38 gallon (36"x12"20") community tank. I want to use aquaclears as they have worked flawlessly for me in the past. I would like to have some opinions as to which of the following combinations I should use:
1 ac200 or
1 ac300 or
2 ac150 or
2 ac200
I am concerned about the amount of current produced, especially with the ac300. Will it be too much for smaller fish? I know about the flow control adjustment and would prefer to keep it on full. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

[JSchmidt]

I always prefer two filters over one; the redundancy is a safety factor. I'd go with two AC200s.

Jim

[Harry Tolen]

Two AC300's on that tank would not be too much. I have had a 29g with an AC500 and an AC300, and I raised several spawns of Neolamprologus brichardi, and several spawns of N. signatus (not at the same time; the two species occupied the tank in succession not together) in it with no trouble.

However, if you are really concerned, why not just go with one AC300 and one AC200.

[ewok]

harry :bowing: :D

i finally found someone that uses more filtration than me! :)

i still got ya beat with the ac300 on the 10g's i think tho. ;) (mine actually has a whole bunch of convict fry in it, only 1 is setup atm.)

i like overfiltration, the more the better. i agree with the 2x300's but i sort of think the cichlids can handle it a bit more than some other community type fish. the good things about having 2 include, being able to stagger cleanings to minimize impact on the biological action. being able to set one to draw high and putting the others inlet near the bottom.... and having 2 larger ones means a cleaner tank somewhat, and more time between maintenance.

i had a whisper mini on one of my 10g's like was recommended. ugh! the stuff that used to stay *in* that tank. alot of the junk would settle to the bottom long before the little filter had any chance to suck it up.

[Slappy*McFish]

I have had a 29g with an AC500 and an AC300,


LOL! Hell yeah!

[RandyD]

I am pretty new to this. What is AC200, AC150, etc.?

[Slappy*McFish]

http://www.hagen.com/usa/aquatic/sub_category_psubtype.cfm?CAT=1&SUBCAT=107&PSUBCAT=10701

[vaheelsfan]

In Aquaclears, I believe that the AC stands for Aquaclear, and the number following is the number of gallons the filter moves per hour. So a an AC300 would move twice as much water as an AC150, theoretically resulting in twice the filtration. I agree it's best to use as much filtration as possible. If you only have one filter on a larger tank, especially if it's long, then it isn't going to do a great job, even if it is rated for a tank that size. I learned this when I got my first aquarium (55 gallons) and one half of it had hardly no debris on the bottom when I cleaned it, and the other half was loaded with stuff. So now I have a filter on each end.