First, I have been running my AquaClear 110 with a simple media arrangement comprised of the sponge/foam block on the bottom and just two smaller bags of BioMax on top of it -- that's it. Normally, I'd run two sacks of the 100ml packages of Purigen after the sponge and before the BioMax, but I haven't gotten around to buying new ones...my question is, can I run the AquaClear 110 with just the foam block and the BioMax and nothing else? For a frame of reference: I do have another filter on this 60-gallon goldfish tank, an Aqueon QuietFlow 55, and I do perform rigorous water change maintenance on it, with the tank getting a weekly 50% change and a 15-gallon "mid week" change for extra cleanliness...so the water change schedule is aggressive and the water ALWAYS smells and looks clean. Given this, do I HAVE to get Purigen to run in the 110 or can I get away with just the sponge and BioMax? The tank isn't overstocked, with three small-to-medium fancies in a 60-gallon...
Should I get another sponge to stick in the 110's basket, or maybe more BioMax? The stuff I'm running right now is Hagen's "replacement" media (sold separately from the "in the box" stuff that comes with the filters) when owners need "new" media (which I did because of an infection that broke out in my previous tank -- a story for another time) but I have noticed that the sponge block is getting kinda crappy and "brittle," even coming off in crummy pieces when I dunk it in removed tank water for maintenance...I have read Hagen's "new" line of media is crappy junk like this, but should I replace this sponge or just add to it?
Now -- my second question is about these "python" style water changers, which I am thinking of switching to because the way I do the changes now have been leading to severe arm pain and trouble, as I use the bucket method...I would like to begin getting into using the sink faucet pythons but don't know much about them at all. My goal would be to, of course, suck the old tank water out with the hose, let it drain into the bathtub and then reverse the process so the fresh tap water could flow back into the tank (dechlorinized, of course, with Prime)...do these "pythons" do this? Further, I am in need of an EXTREMELY long run for the syphon tubing because of where my bathroom is in relation to the tank -- I'm talking MANY many feet...do they make python tubing this long, or would I need to join smaller lengths together? Ideally, I'd like to get an EXTREMELY long one-piece run going...
Thank you in advance for any help.
Should I get another sponge to stick in the 110's basket, or maybe more BioMax? The stuff I'm running right now is Hagen's "replacement" media (sold separately from the "in the box" stuff that comes with the filters) when owners need "new" media (which I did because of an infection that broke out in my previous tank -- a story for another time) but I have noticed that the sponge block is getting kinda crappy and "brittle," even coming off in crummy pieces when I dunk it in removed tank water for maintenance...I have read Hagen's "new" line of media is crappy junk like this, but should I replace this sponge or just add to it?
Now -- my second question is about these "python" style water changers, which I am thinking of switching to because the way I do the changes now have been leading to severe arm pain and trouble, as I use the bucket method...I would like to begin getting into using the sink faucet pythons but don't know much about them at all. My goal would be to, of course, suck the old tank water out with the hose, let it drain into the bathtub and then reverse the process so the fresh tap water could flow back into the tank (dechlorinized, of course, with Prime)...do these "pythons" do this? Further, I am in need of an EXTREMELY long run for the syphon tubing because of where my bathroom is in relation to the tank -- I'm talking MANY many feet...do they make python tubing this long, or would I need to join smaller lengths together? Ideally, I'd like to get an EXTREMELY long one-piece run going...
Thank you in advance for any help.