Filtration

[dethjam316]

on my 50g, i use an emperor 400. now that alone is 8gph. above the usual recommended minimum of 5gph. i accent this with a eheim aquaball on the other side of the tank (partly to add a nice little current), which probably bumps this up to over 10gph or more. i think that's plenty. i think 2 400s might be overkill.

 

[JSchmidt]

Originally posted by bennylax3
two questions for ya jschmidt

1 do you get the carbon inesrt two.
2 How do the foam and carbon inserts last

Thank you for your help Gulp amd Jschmidt

I generally don't use carbon; it's not necessary 98% of the time. The foams last years and years and years. I suppose it will break down eventually, but not for a long time.

Is 2 Emp 400s overkill? Assuming these fish get large, and given how messy cichlids are, I don't know. If the fish are sensitive to current, you might have a problem, but I don't think 2 Emp 400s produce a lot more current than an Emp 400 and a powerhead...

You could probably start with one Emp and add another if needed.

dethjam316, why do you recommend using the Emp cartridges over foam or some other solution? The foam is far superior as a mechanical filter to the bonded blue pads that Marineland sells, it last virtually forever and it costs about the same as just a few sets of the cartridges. Why do you recommend the cartridges?

Jim

 

[dethjam316]

i don't. read my post again. i recommend using the cartridges that come with it at first...then using filter floss or sponges instead of continuing to buy them. i agree, the marineland things are overpriced and not all that great anyway.

 

[ewok]

Originally posted by dethjam316
on my 50g, i use an emperor 400. now that alone is 8gph. above the usual recommended minimum of 5gph.

i "usually" recommend 10 or *better* turnovers an hour. so do most other people i've seen.

it's not too much current, especially not for those fish. ditto for the filtration, the jd isn't small and the gt is larger i think.

i'd say emp 400 and fluval 404 first choice

2 emps 2nd choice

2 aq 500's 3rd choice

none of them are expensive to maintain. the emps you just keep washing the cartridges with the sink sprayer or something, you can do this several times. don't worry about the carbon, after a few days it's just extra biological media anyway. the fluval 404, fill the two top trays with the biological media that comes with them and fill the 2 bottom trays with the loose floss that looks like pillow stuffing. same thing, occasional rinse. it takes a long time til you actually have to replace anything. the aq 500's, put 2 foam blocks in it instead of just the one provided. put the carbon away for when you need it. just keep rinsing the sponges, and the extra one only costs a couple dollars around here.

my opinion...... the emps have a superior biological setup. the fluvals have superior surface area for longevity. the aq's move alot of water, but i am finding my 300's easy to cause mini spikes if you clean them too well.

good luck