Help please

AC is considered one of the best HOB filters. you could run 2 70's on there or just pick up one 50-70 and keep the topfin..
also pick up an extra ac sponge .. cut an X in the top and slip it over the intake.. it will work as a pre filter and will also work as bio media. it will also help slow down accumulation of detritus that is clogging the top fin.
check out dr fosters.. they have bio filter inserts that fit several brands where you can change out the filter and just run sponges.
 
I have a whisper 30 and while it is too small for you it works well. The bigger problem is getting your nitrites down. 5 weeks is about where your nitrite would be expected to spike. It can get scary high. It is really bad for fish as it bonds to hemoglobin and makes the blood unable to transport oxygen.

If it were my tank I would to twice daily 50% changes till the nitrites were below .5. It will take a few days. If you follow the advice of your pet store it will harm your fish and perhaps kill a few but will cycle the tank more quickly and you will be less likely to have mini cycles in the future. I think it is an unfair burden to sacrafice the quality of life of an animal for a tank. The pet store is more than happy to sell you more fish when yours die.
 
69steveo69 said:
I can't afford a canister filter so is there a brand that anyone recommends that is not as expensive as the Emperor 400 but is very good?
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What kind of budget are you working with, if you don't mind me asking? You'll save a lot of money over buying supplies at Petsmart by ordering them online. If you can, order a test kit at the same time to save on shipping- the kit is also much cheaper online.
Try www.bigalsonline.com , www.petsolutions.com , www.drsfostersmith.com to name a few.

If you don't feel like you can wait that long, check the prices of the items on Petsmart.com vs. the store prices. If you take a printout that shows the item and price from petsmart.com into the store, they will price match their online price. The online price is typically much cheaper.

Craigslist is another great place to check for filters and other equipment, although it probably won't help you find a test kit.
 
severum mama said:
You won't be able to get any accurate idea of what is really going on with your water until you purchase a liquid reagent test kit. I use the API kit, as do many others here. The filter that came with your tank is not really adequate for a 55 gallon IMO. Adding another filter would help, but make sure that you keep the TopFin filter running along with the new filter for at least a couple weeks to avoid throwing away whatever beneficial bacteria you already have in there. A canister filter is great if you have the funds for it, but not necessary. If you want to keep the filter you already have, I'd recommend adding an Aquaclear 70 on the other side of the tank. The Emperor 400 is a good filter, but uses proprietary cartridges and is loud in comparison to other brands IMO (and no, I don't mean from the splashing, I mean the filter itself).

The advice you hear from Petsmart is rarely worth listening to. If your tank is in fact still cycling (which you won't know for sure until you purchase a liquid test kit), you will need to change enough water to keep ammonia and nitrite levels under 0.25 ppm. Sometimes this means every couple of days, sometimes it means multiple times a day. The test kit will let you know how much water to change; for example, if you get a result of 0.25 for nitrite, then changing half the water will cut that level in half. Hope that makes sense, but if not, try browsing some of the articles on the site.

And welcome to AC! :)
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Thank you!!!!!!
 
Hi Steve and welcome to AC.

An EMERGENCY action I would do immediately is go, run, to Petsmart or whatever to get some SEACHEM PRIME.

It is a water conditioner that removes chlorine, chloramines, and, most importantly for you right now, it detoxifies the ammonia and nitrites in your tank and will save your fishies lives.

It detoxifies for appx 24 hours, giving you time to do the big water changes you need to do. It does not remove the ammonia and nitrite, water changes have to do that, but it does detoxify it for the short term to give you time to do a water change.

I've been reading posts on this forum since September of this year and the consensus is that everyone loves Prime. It will really keep your fishies safe when you have a spike.

Do water changes to keep the ammonia and nitrite levels down, but get PRIME.

It is available at the petstores, but I've not seen it at WalMart. It's not expensive. It lasts a long time. Get it ASAP.
 
Melody Doucet said:
Hi Steve and welcome to AC.

An EMERGENCY action I would do immediately is go, run, to Petsmart or whatever to get some SEACHEM PRIME.

It is a water conditioner that removes chlorine, chloramines, and, most importantly for you right now, it detoxifies the ammonia and nitrites in your tank and will save your fishies lives.

It detoxifies for appx 24 hours, giving you time to do the big water changes you need to do. It does not remove the ammonia and nitrite, water changes have to do that, but it does detoxify it for the short term to give you time to do a water change.

I've been reading posts on this forum since September of this year and the consensus is that everyone loves Prime. It will really keep your fishies safe when you have a spike.

Do water changes to keep the ammonia and nitrite levels down, but get PRIME.

It is available at the petstores, but I've not seen it at WalMart. It's not expensive. It lasts a long time. Get it ASAP.
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I agree 100%. After joining this site I stopped using a different Seachem product and started using Prime, it's great stuff. - And reasonably priced, and easy to use!
 
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colinsk said:
I think this forum should get a commision on Prime and API Master Test Kits.

:mwave:

I have switched to both since starting here.
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I agree -- I have too!
 
i have top fins and the clamshell type of filter media clogs kinda quick because where they bind the charcoal doesn't flow water thru it just where the charcoal sits
i use the same shell just use the petsmatr sells filter matting and i just cut it to fit the shell and its fine,.. they really take the debris out very well thats why they clog faster, are the pad darker than before ?
 
OK so here is the update. I went to petsmart and purchased the API master kit, and the Marineland Power filter. I came home and tested the water and got the following

PH 8.2 normal water for our area
Ammonia was between 0 & 0.25
Nitrite 5.0
Nitrate 5.0

I did a 40% water change.

I did change the filter of my old power filter but left the sponge. I am running both filters now for awile.
I havent checked the water parameters yet.
 
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