thinking about buying an established tank questions

[dslwraith]

There is a 55 gallon tank for sale, has fish liverock cleaning crew etc.

it has coralife lights and 2 hot magnum HOB filters, heaters etc.

are marineland HOB filters good for a saltwater tank?

[dslwraith]

anyone know if the hot magnum canister filteres are ok?

i woudl liek to know before i buy everything

anyone at all?

[reefrash]

They're o.k. not the best, just a noisy mechanical/chemical filter. I'd invest in a skimmer as well.

[macphoto]

anyone know if the hot magnum canister filteres are ok?
I have one on my tank, but I only run it when needed (such as to clear up suspended particles from the water when I've stirred the sand moving stuff around).

I have a problem with mine blowing bubbles into the tank, but the source, I believe, is the swiveling joint on the outflow tube sucking air in as the water flows out through it. The designers intended for this joint to be underwater, but in my tank, it is not.

As reefrash mentioned, it's pretty much just a chemical & mechanical filter, and doesn't appear to be intended to do any biological filtration at all. There is, however, a Biowheel attachment you can buy for it, and I've also wondered if perhaps these filters could also provide some biological filtration by filling up the chemical media basket with ceramic noodles or other similar media.

But, keep in mind, as I've learned here, the best filtration by far consists of live rock, live sand, and a cleanup crew (plus a skimmer). If you were to have a biological filter like the above mentioned Biowheel on your tank, it would do a great job at converting ammonia to nitrite, and nitrite to nitrate, but that's where it ends. The nitrates would build up, with only water changes to bring the level down. Good live rock will be able to convert these nitrates to (if I remember correctly) nitrogen gas, which will just bubble off. Less work for you.

--Mike

[dslwraith]

ok that is what i wondered

there is plenty of live rock /sand etc in the tank

i will look into this some more...

any good suggestions for a skimmer?

[OrionGirl]

What fish does it have? You'll want to make sure that the tank is stocked to an appropriate level, or you'll inherit a lot of woe. Also, if it's currently at max occupancy, you won't be able to add anything--a limitation I personally wouldn't want!

[dslwraith]

here is a reply from the seller

There are a four-stripe damsel, a kopan damsel, a yellow-tail damsel, a tomato clown, and a lawnmower blenny. There's also a cleaner shirimp, a few little crabs, snails, and two sand-cleaning starfish.

[mysis]

I run a cannister on my filter and i am using crushed coral, which is supposed to be able to work as a biological filter, however i still find myself cleaning the cannister atleast every 1 - 2 weeks due to the build up of debris. if you dont mind regular (weekly) cleaning of the canisters then it should be ok, but if not then nitrates will rise (not slowly either).

[OrionGirl]

Research those fish--that many damsels and the clown will really limit what you might want to add to the tank. They are territorial buggers, and can kill shyer fish.