I have a 55 gallon aquarium that I have had up for years. It has a Fluval 305 on it, and it's OK. It's not spotless. But I keep up on my water changes and the fish are healthly. But there's a lot of mulm and debris on the bottom that I never quite vacuum up. And the DIY spray bar I built really isn't moving as much water as I would like.
So, I was going to hang a Whisper 30 power filter on it to add some more mechanical filtration and move some more water.
The problem is, it's an old Oceanic 55g gallon aquarium from the 80s. Back then Oceanics were the same size as AGA tanks, but the glass was a LOT thicker. And because of this, the trim is also a lot thicker. So, the Whisper 30 would not fit. Even a Fluval 300(70) would not fit.
I rummaged through my box of stuff and pulled out a Hikari sponge filter and a Aquaclear 402 powerhead. I put the two together and dropped them in the corner of the tank. I turned it on, and it BLASTED the java fern next to it. Kicked up a ton of debris. Water went a little cloudy and pieces of debris were floating everywhere.
At that point, I learned that I had swordtail fry in the tank! So, I turned the powerhead to it's lowest setting, and ran out to buy a sponge to put over the intake of the 305. Came back about 45 minutes later and the water was CRYSTAL CLEAR and the fish were digging the new current. The swordtails especially were really loving it.
I think I need to drop a sponge+powerhead in my other 55 gallon. The 402 moves a LOT of water.
So, I was going to hang a Whisper 30 power filter on it to add some more mechanical filtration and move some more water.
The problem is, it's an old Oceanic 55g gallon aquarium from the 80s. Back then Oceanics were the same size as AGA tanks, but the glass was a LOT thicker. And because of this, the trim is also a lot thicker. So, the Whisper 30 would not fit. Even a Fluval 300(70) would not fit.
I rummaged through my box of stuff and pulled out a Hikari sponge filter and a Aquaclear 402 powerhead. I put the two together and dropped them in the corner of the tank. I turned it on, and it BLASTED the java fern next to it. Kicked up a ton of debris. Water went a little cloudy and pieces of debris were floating everywhere.
At that point, I learned that I had swordtail fry in the tank! So, I turned the powerhead to it's lowest setting, and ran out to buy a sponge to put over the intake of the 305. Came back about 45 minutes later and the water was CRYSTAL CLEAR and the fish were digging the new current. The swordtails especially were really loving it.
I think I need to drop a sponge+powerhead in my other 55 gallon. The 402 moves a LOT of water.
