Secondary Filter?

Hi I have a dumb question.

I have a Whisper 10i filter (as junky as it is) in my 20L (20 gallon I think)Terrarim/Aquariumm.

I'd say there is about 4 gallons of actual water in the tank and it is only about 3.5 inches high. It seemed like the only powered filter I could find that would work decent in a setup with such a low water level was the whisper.

I have been reading this forum and articles all week and I have come to wonder a few things.

1) If I change the filter media that contains the live bacteria that keep the tank clean wont this be create spikes in the water quality? How do I avoid this when changing Disposabel Media?

2) should I get a secondary filter to avoid this issue and rotate changes on them? If soo.....

3) I plan to get some plants for the tank, but need to keep the curent nice and slow and flowing at a low non agressive level as it is now from my whisper 10i flowing down a piece of rock. What kind of secondary filter should I use? RUGF? What components would be recomended? I need Specific Brand's Modles etc would I need to set this up, or is there another specific good quality filter I should use?

I have sceen some cheap Caniser filters, whould this be a good choice?

I'm looking into getting a Wet/Dry Caniser Eheim for my tank but everyone keeps saying it is too much for a 20 gallon, let alone for a 20 gallon with only 4-5 gallons of water in it.

I'm looking for a secondary filter and the only other thing I can think of is a RFUG filter.

What will happen if I use teh eheim wet/dry in a tank with only 4 gallons of water? Is it a loud filter? I really don't want the extra filter to take up any space inside the tank which is why it sounded good. My Whisper has died on me before and I don't want to run a whole second one just for backup, they take up valuable space.

TKOS said:

Well I have a whisper and I just got rid of the filter media that came with it and have replaced it with sponges. I bought a pack of fluval replacement sponges and cut them to fit in the whisper. Works great. that way I just need to rinse them out. You can easily add a piece of sponge to the setup now and let it build up some bacteria for a week before getting rid of the cartridge in there now.

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Does it have to be a special kind of sponge?

Also Can I add my own charcoal and things to this filter it comes with a very stingy amount IMO.

What about having a RFUG filter for backup?

Also what would be a good filter for a 10 gallon plant tank?

TKOS said:

It should be a sponge from a fish store. They aren't too expensive and will last for years (mine are going on 4 years old now). Ones from other stores may contain chemicals like anti-mildew and what not. I bought the Fluval replacement sponges as they are large and easy to cut to shape. The Aquaclear sponges are nice as well. (same company different sponges).

I don't use carbon in my tanks but do keep some on hand for emergencies. Carbon wears out really fast (probably no more than a week) so it is a big money drain if you want to keep the carbon active. When i do put it in I use some panty hose. Cut the foot off, make a bag, put some carbon in it, tie it off, dump in filter.

A RUGF is a great filter. I don't knwo much about them though as I haven't kept one.

A 10 gallon planted tank? Well mine just uses an Aquaclear Mini. It is pretty similar to a Whisper 5-15 (the names amy have changed). I don't add CO2 to my tank so that filter works fine and my tank is absolutly overrun with java fern right now.

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Will that filter create too much surface agitation for a planted tank though? I was going to try the DIY CO2 thing, Probably try it in the terrarium first as the frogs and newts typicaly surface for air anyways. My Whisper 10i is fine with that much water it can work in as little as a couple inches. it is running down a rock to reduce surface agitation (I would guess the rock might work as a bio filter as well in this case)...There is still some agitation though right next to the filter on the back side of the rock, but not much on the front side...

I already had one stop working on me though, which is why I was thinking to get a secondary.

I Know a canister is overkill but what would happen if I dropped $100 on a wet dry eheim canister filter? Would it create too much surface agitation? Is too much filter bad? Too mcuh Current?

I would like to look into a Reverse Undergravel filter, but most powerheads seem to attch to the top of the tank, and mine is only filled with water 3-4 inches high. So how would I go about doing this?

Thanks and I will look for sponges tonight at Petsmart, they mostly seem to have canister filters there, and a few Bio Wheel HOB filters. What does HOB stand for?

I think the frogs and newts are dirtier than fish of there size, they eat alot and produce alot of waste, while the 10i is only being used for about 4 gallons and is ment to serve 10 I don't think it is THAT much overkill. Now a filter made for 50 gallons woudl probably be a bit better. I put in some Mystery Snails to help but the newts seem to pick on them so I don't know how long they will last. They seem to think their feelers are black worms lol, I got gold ones this time and it seems to help but if it looks like a worm the newts are on it!

TKOS said:

The HOB will create surface agitation and isn't as good as a canister when doing DIY CO2, though still isn't a horrible choice. By keeping the water level as high as possible the return water doesn't create more than a ripple.

I can't say how big the current would be with a canister filter in a 10 gallon. I am sure there are ways to minimize the current, say by making the return water hit the tank wall and bounce back into the tank.

Another choice for such a small tank is Flourish Excell, a liquid carbon source that doesn't off gas. It has worked well for me.

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Interesting, thanks I will keep it in mind, not sure what the best thign to do yet it is but thanks for all your help. KNowing I will have to cycle the tank anyways makes me in no rush or hurry to find what is most suitable. I do plan to get some plant fertalizer.

I take it a canister for the Terrarium would pump so hard my newts would come out of the water?

TKOS said:

Probably will. But most plants in a terrarium are out of the water so adding CO2 isn't needed. They get it from the air.

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Not im my Terrarium, it is mostly water area Might add some Air plants or something to the land portion since it is pretty humid in there!