How Many Filters are Too Many Filters

Well I currently have a fluval 204 and a penguin biowheel 200 on my 29 gallon. The fish seem to like the additional current it produces. As for the ammonia removing media; I just see it as a waste of money. The bacteria on the biowheel do the same thing and best of all they are free and more efficient. On one of my tank I have just a sponge to trap dirt and another with an old cartidge (hasn't been changed for over 6 months). Both those tanks show healthy active colorful fish and spotless water.

I have a system of undergravel filtration with two canister filters in my 29 gallon. It cant really hurt to have more filtration, just dont go overboard (8 canister filters w/4 wet-dry filtration systems w/sump and a protein skimmer, 3 undergravel filters, 15 u.v. sterilizers, etc...)

Or in short, yes. I would certainly do what you're suggestion. In fact, I already did. Twice!

ChadNelson said:

I'm using an Emperor 280 Biowheel filtration system and it seems to be doing an allright job, but I'm disappointed that I can only put two filter medias in. I have an ammonia reducer filter and activated carbon.
At my LFS the other day I saw a sign on a fish tank that said "double your fish population with a fluval canister!" Well, I'm not about to double my fish population but I was wondering if I could put in the fluval canister(with all of its media compartments) in my 55 gallon with the Biowheel filter running.
For me, it seems that the more filtration, the better. Any advice?

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For most set-ups, I aim for an 8-10x turnover rate. I find this helps keep the water very clear, and deals with most normal bioloads. I go even higher with cichlids or goldfish, which are very high producers of waste. I also go with 2 or more filters on aquariums over 30 gallons. I like redundant filtration in case one filter ever stops working. For example, I will put 2 AquaClear 200s on a 40 gallon tank for a total turnover rate of about 400 gallons or thereabouts. I highly recommend you get extra filtration for your 55, and I think the Fluval is a good choice. Is it the Fluval 203, or 303?

"Double your fish population" is a very misleading proclamation, and it's even a little irresponsible of your LFS to say that.

If you go with the Fluval, it already comes with media to get you started. You get the sponges, the carbon, and the bio-media. I have the Fluval 403. I fill the chambers with a ceramic pre-filter on the bottom, bio-media and peat moss (Amazon biotope setup) in the middle chambers, and AquaClear sponges and filter floss in the top chamber. I also use an AquaClear sponge as a prefilter over the intake tube. I don't use the carbon packs...I just save them in case I need them.

I am running a 350gph canister a 300gph hang on filter and 2x 198gph powerheads in my 55 and I really like how that works! IMO the more your water is filtered the better.

well you can never have too much filters..just know that more filter equals more current...
this guy i know he has a 7inch cube tank and his filter system is overflow with a sump of 6X30x6.

I have a canister and hob filter on two different tanks. My water stays very clear and I alternate cleaning each filter so I don't go through a mini cycle. I have one tank with discus and one with fancy goldfish so it is good to have plenty of filtration.

lol. questions with so little detail. the 8-10 turns an hour is a pretty good answer. Back in the 60's and 70's everybody said 3x an hour was fine. With todays filters and pumps, however, it is so much easier to get to a higher turn rate.

Too much filter creating too much current is often times a problem. Many fish are from stiller waters and eveolved with an anatomical stucture suited to those conditions. Other species developed in faster moving waters and really demand a high filtration rate to achieve the current desired. Problem with that method is that it tends to tumble water and not really create a current. Rather the fish are living in swirling, rough, chaotic water conditions.

Always set your tank up to accomodate the species you keep. There is no "pat" answer to most fishkeeping questions. The reason for creating an environment to meet the fish needs (rather than the hobbyists desire) is that you will reduce stress (improving healthand longevity), you will permit proper fin and body shape development, and the fish will be able to feed in the manner for which it is designed.

It takes a little research (and the main site here is a good starting point) about the fish you keep and then implementing that in your tank.