Is it better to get 1 heater and filter or 2 smaller heaters and filters? I know that 2 units would be good in case one fails. I'm thinking redundancy for heaters might be more important than filters, but could be wrong. Right now, I have a 150-watt heater and am thinking about getting 2 75-watt heaters instead. Also, I started with a Penguin 170 filter, but changed to a Penguin 350 because I thought it would be better filtration. So far, I haven't figured out what to do with the extra media baskets in the 350. So is it better to have 2 heaters or 1? 2 filters or 1? Thanks for your help.
heater, filter -- use single units or double up?
- Thread starter pjfish
- Start date
In my experience, multiple heaters and filters on a tank is a good idea.
For heaters, splitting the load is good just in case either heater fails in either the "off" or "on" position. The size of the heaters you need depends in part on the temperature differential between the tank and your room on the coldest day of the year. If your house is centrally heated and you keep it at 72F, then two 50 watt heaters would probably be enough. If the tank is close to a window or in an unheated room then two 75's might be more appropriate.
For filters, the advantage of two units is similar, but also has the benefit of giving you a unit ready for use if you decide to set up a new tank. You can have both your Penguins running on your tank with no problem. I've had a 29g tank with a Penguin 330 and an Aquaclear 500 running in the past, and the fish did not object to the currents thus created. Then if you ever set up a new tank you can take biowheels and/or filter media and transfer them over for an almost immediate cycle.
By the way, I usually keep ceramic bio-rings in those little baskets. Or, if your water is soft and you need to add buffering capacity, a small media bag with a little crushed coral. The extra space for nitrifying bacteria may be overkill, but it can't hurt (and, as noted above, gives you additional media for transfer should you want to set up a new tank).
For heaters, splitting the load is good just in case either heater fails in either the "off" or "on" position. The size of the heaters you need depends in part on the temperature differential between the tank and your room on the coldest day of the year. If your house is centrally heated and you keep it at 72F, then two 50 watt heaters would probably be enough. If the tank is close to a window or in an unheated room then two 75's might be more appropriate.
For filters, the advantage of two units is similar, but also has the benefit of giving you a unit ready for use if you decide to set up a new tank. You can have both your Penguins running on your tank with no problem. I've had a 29g tank with a Penguin 330 and an Aquaclear 500 running in the past, and the fish did not object to the currents thus created. Then if you ever set up a new tank you can take biowheels and/or filter media and transfer them over for an almost immediate cycle.
By the way, I usually keep ceramic bio-rings in those little baskets. Or, if your water is soft and you need to add buffering capacity, a small media bag with a little crushed coral. The extra space for nitrifying bacteria may be overkill, but it can't hurt (and, as noted above, gives you additional media for transfer should you want to set up a new tank).
I agree with everything Harry said. If you follow the link in my sig you will see I use two Penguin 125s and 2 Ebo-Jager 50 watt heaters on my 29 gallon tank. It works well and I am a lot less concerned about any failures. When I get a new tank you can bet I will be moving media around.
Thanks for the help. I ordered two new heaters today. Also some Biomax ceramic things for my media baskets. I'm not sure if I want to put the Penguin 170 filter back on because the 350 filter takes up a lot of space now. Maybe I'll use both filters when I go on vacation for double coverage.
Now that I have the old filter and old heater available, maybe I should get another tank. This stuff is addictive!
Now that I have the old filter and old heater available, maybe I should get another tank. This stuff is addictive!
