can I turn off my filtration 3hrs/day??

C

cornetet

Registered Member
Aug 18, 2004
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My 40gal aquarium sits in my family room where my TV is. I own the Penguin BIO-
Wheel 330 filtration system with dual Bio-Wheels. When it runs I can hear the
water dripping.

QUESTION:
If I put a timer on the filtration system to automatically turn itself off at
8pm then back on at 11pm (while I'm watching PrimeTime TV) will the 3 hours
its off mess-up my water quality or mess-up the bacteria on the Bio-Wheels???
 
How heavily stocked is the tank?

And I personally wouldn't do it, but if your biowheel doesn't totally dry out and you don't have a heavily stocked tank, it could probably manage. You would lose some of your bacterial colony though, and if it was a daily occurance it could be enough to really hurt the filter. I'd personally put a submersible quiet filter down in the tank as a backup filtration for when you watch your show (or simply switch to a quieter filter).
 
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I had heard if you turn your filter off for too long, I forget the period of time, then there will be an ammonia spike and the bacteria will die. To stop the splashing, just raise the water level as high as you can. I have a penguin 125 and thats what I do.

~ MyShrimpDied
 
raise the water

Raise the water to soften that noise. I have a Penguin 330 near the TV and I can't hear it at all.
 
I'd just like to echo what's already been said - I have a Penguin and an Aquaclear on the 45g which is in our living room. I keep the water level as high as I can and barely hear the filters splashing. The little noise the filters and airstone do create is easily drowned out by the TV.
I REALLY don't recommend turning off the filter. It's your aquarium's life support system, and I wouldn't risk killing off the bacteria.
 
I don't use biowheels for exactly that reason - for me tanks are to be seen and not heard. But turning off biofilters is asking for problems. A better solution would be replacing the filter with a different format.
 
Another thing that may help a bit is to take the wheel itself, grab both ends, and twist in different directions just slightly. The "paddles" of the wheel will now not be completely even as the water hits them at one end first, then the other, and it cuts down on the splashing noise just a bit.

Anything is worth a shot.
 
Turning off your filter will dry out a good portion of your biowheel killing the bacteria that have grown on it. LIke others have mentioned above, you can raise your water level and try what chkltcow suggested above. If your tank is heavily stocked, however, this might reduce the amount of oxygen in your water. If necessary you may need to add a bubble net.
 
THANKS! for all the great responses.

I choose to raise the water level until the drainage guides/slides (or whatever their called) are about a 1/2 inch submerged under the water level.

This cut down on the noise level from a "8" to about a "2"

A "2" noise level I can deal with.

ANOTHER QUESTION:
Now that my water level is very high, I'm not getting any air bubbles churning into the water... my filtered water is silently slipping back into the tank (solving my noise problem).... is this missing air bubbles robbing needed oxygen for the fish?

I know there are airstones with an air pump I can buy... but the quietest one PetSmart has is like $60+ just for the pump. I'm really not over-joyed about spending another nearly $100 for a pump, airstone, tubing, etc.... but if its needed... I guess I'll do it.
 
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