Emergency Filter Question

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swampfox25

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Jul 31, 2003
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My girlfriend was trying to suprise me and installed a Magnum 350 canister filter on my tank. It is a freshwater 10 gallon LOL. I dont want to hurt her feelings but do you think that this will be to much filtration?? It has the flow regulators and I turnded them way down and she also put the bio wheel on there as well. Will my tank screw up?? I need help urgently. Thanks for any help..:(
 
If you have the flow turned all the way down, I don't see it would be an issue. It probably is a bit of overkill though :)

The issue I do see is if the old filter was completely removed. You may have taken away a good portion of the biofilter. Now you are only dealing with the bacteria this is in the gravel. I would probably run both filters for awhile so that the new biowheel has a chance to populate....
 
A bit overkill Matt? I use a Magnum & biowheel on my tank. My 55g tank. :D

Seriously thought swampfox... yah, it is overkill, but there is nothing wrong with it. If you have the flow turned down, it's just fine. Matt is right though... with the old filter removed, you've lost some of the biofilter... and should run both filters for a while.

Of course, you could always buy a larger tank to go with that spiffy new filtration system. ;)
 
What is the other filter? If the fish are showing obvious signs of distress, then you will need to shut one off. Maybe, you can alternater when you use them, like, on in the morning and one at night for a few weeks until the magnium gets seeded.
 
NJ, did I read that right? Turn a filter off for 1/2 a day? NOT a good idea. Bacteria in the filter need oxygen and if you turn the filter off (cutting off the water supply), you not only deprive them of food but O2 too!!!
Matt and Tony have it right (though I think NJ does too-just a blip in transferring info from brain to keyboard on his part or reading info from screen to brain on my part?!) you want to run both for a while. OR do serious water changes daily.
I'm also with Tony on getting another tank for the new filter;)
 
I just went to the pet shop and bought a 29 gallon with hood so when I get off work I am going to set it up and let it run for about a week. I am going to hook up the 350 Magnum to it (will that be over kill still??) I am going to leave the 10 gal running for a while while I slowly take a couple fish from it and put them into the 29 gal. DO you all think the canister is still too much for a 29 gal?? It is really as big as I can go right now. (I am going to suprise my girlfriend back!!) I will tell her well you bought the big filter so I had to get a bigger tank LOL. Thanks for your help.
 
That magnum could handle a larger tank, but it isn't going to hurt to have it on that 29 gallon.

I would recommend that you take a handful of gravel from your current tank and put it in the new tank (on the top of the other gravel you put in there). That will help the biofilter to get started.

Get yourself a master test kit and watch the levels in the new tank before you put any new fish into it. Do a search for 'fishless cycling' and follow the directions you see there....

Two tanks are always better than one :)
 
Originally posted by NJ Devils Fan
Well beviking, I was thinking that as long as the filter media stayed moist, then the bacteria would stay alive.
Click to expand...

Some yes, but w/o any flow, there is not enough O2 and "food" supplied to feed the colony you would be trying to build. Some would survive but the majority wouldn't. The media would do better sitting in the tank.
 
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