I have a 46 gallon bowfront freshwater going. it's been going now for about 3 weeks. I 've added 4 african cichlids, figure eight puffer, albino dwarf frog, 3 zebra danios (from the cycling stage) 2 tetras and a filthy gourami....
My question is, I've had a tetra whisper ex70 running on it since start up. I'm happy with the flow rate and it's done a pretty good job so far. I've just been reading terrible reviews on it. I bought a marineland biofilter 350b yesterday and i wanna put that in it. I don't want to mess up the bacteria in the tank by taking out the tetra. Can I have both filters running simultaneously? the flow rate of both is 350 GPH...that would total 700 GPH.
would that be too much filtration? would that kill any of the fish....
(I'll post some pics soon....sorry im a newbie)
New Member...New Tank, little help?
8 posts
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Snowboss4492 - Posts: 2098
- Joined: Sun Jan 27, 2008 11:24 pm
WELCOME Jonnyc............im a salt guy but can answer your question......over filtering won't kill fish, if you suck one up in a intake then thats a different story...............if you have room, set the new filter up and let it run for a couple weeks and then discontinue the old one, you should be fine
again.........welcome to the site there are some awsome fresh water people in here
Snowboss
again.........welcome to the site there are some awsome fresh water people in here
Snowboss
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Tmercier834747 - Posts: 887
- Joined: Wed Feb 13, 2008 8:33 pm
First off I'll agree with boss. As long as fish aren't being sucked to your intake (which can happen in any size aquarium but usually only to weak fish, or fry), and there are dead spots where fish can rest at night (places where the water isn't moving or is barely moving), you're not overfiltering. Generally HOB's cause most water movement at the top of the water line so I'm assuming even with 700gph you'd have some dead spots.
Secondly the whisper is probably getting bad reviews from experienced aquarists who used the old line of whispers. For someone new to the hobby such as yourself they're very convenient. Changing filter media is a snap, there's even a meter to indicate how much life your carbon has in it, though it usually seems to run out a fair bit before the carbon should actually lose its purifying power....
Frankly though they're louder than the old line of whispers (ironic that a "whisper" would be loud), you're limited on options media-wise, and not everyone (particularly in planted tanks) likes to use carbon.
I have an ex-20 on my gf's 10gal tank and am pleased with its performance..and despite the fact that its in the bedroom neither of us have a problem dealing with the tiny bit of noise it makes (hard to compete with silence from the old models).
Your stocking is very unconventional though and could lead to problems. Figure Eight puffers aren't very friendly with a lot of things, and if memory serves me start out as a brackish water fish and eventually may need close to saltwater conditions for full longevity. You're probably already aware that your africans will probably make short work of those danios, tetras, and gourami as well..
Secondly the whisper is probably getting bad reviews from experienced aquarists who used the old line of whispers. For someone new to the hobby such as yourself they're very convenient. Changing filter media is a snap, there's even a meter to indicate how much life your carbon has in it, though it usually seems to run out a fair bit before the carbon should actually lose its purifying power....
Frankly though they're louder than the old line of whispers (ironic that a "whisper" would be loud), you're limited on options media-wise, and not everyone (particularly in planted tanks) likes to use carbon.
I have an ex-20 on my gf's 10gal tank and am pleased with its performance..and despite the fact that its in the bedroom neither of us have a problem dealing with the tiny bit of noise it makes (hard to compete with silence from the old models).
Your stocking is very unconventional though and could lead to problems. Figure Eight puffers aren't very friendly with a lot of things, and if memory serves me start out as a brackish water fish and eventually may need close to saltwater conditions for full longevity. You're probably already aware that your africans will probably make short work of those danios, tetras, and gourami as well..
Last edited by Tmercier834747 on Mon Dec 29, 2008 12:21 am, edited 2 times in total.
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dizzcat - Posts: 648
- Joined: Tue Jun 24, 2008 2:30 am
Welcome! No, you cannot over filter the tank. If you want to use one filter, take the filter media out of the old one and put it in the new one. That is where you good bacteria lives. I have 2 filters on my tank and each one is made for a tank twice the size as mine.
That said, you need to make some changes with your fish ASAP! Either get rid of the African Cichlids or everything but them. They cannot live with the other fish you have. They are EXTREMELY aggressive, need a high pH and a totally vegetarian diet.
They may be getting along now, but as soon as they hit maturity, all other fish in your tank will die. They will kill them. African's also need a 1 male to 2-4 female ratio or the male will kill a lone female or another male. Africans need rocks, caves. The pH in the tank should be above 8.0 and they should be fed nothing but a vegetable diet.
Please read up on their care and what they need.
Also, a puffer should be in a brackish water setup. From what I have read they can be aggressive too.
So what you have in the tank is a mix of three very different requirements. A Lake Malawi set up, a brackish setup and a regular freshwater set up. If these fish do not get their requirements met they will not thrive at all. And your Africans will kill all the other fish and start on each other.
Here is a couple links about Africans:
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/l ... _setup.php
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/compatibility.php
http://www.badmanstropicalfish.com/arti ... cle27.html
That said, you need to make some changes with your fish ASAP! Either get rid of the African Cichlids or everything but them. They cannot live with the other fish you have. They are EXTREMELY aggressive, need a high pH and a totally vegetarian diet.
They may be getting along now, but as soon as they hit maturity, all other fish in your tank will die. They will kill them. African's also need a 1 male to 2-4 female ratio or the male will kill a lone female or another male. Africans need rocks, caves. The pH in the tank should be above 8.0 and they should be fed nothing but a vegetable diet.
Please read up on their care and what they need.
Also, a puffer should be in a brackish water setup. From what I have read they can be aggressive too.
So what you have in the tank is a mix of three very different requirements. A Lake Malawi set up, a brackish setup and a regular freshwater set up. If these fish do not get their requirements met they will not thrive at all. And your Africans will kill all the other fish and start on each other.
Here is a couple links about Africans:
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/l ... _setup.php
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/compatibility.php
http://www.badmanstropicalfish.com/arti ... cle27.html
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jonnyc1207 - Posts: 2
- Joined: Sun Dec 28, 2008 9:40 pm
yeah, i have a 16 gallon that i had the puffer, gourami, albino frog and tetras in....but the water was so bad in it. the ammonia and nitrates/nitrites were off the charts. The PH was around 6 and the water was ridiculously cloudy in it. I moved all those fish in the 46 gallon temporarily while I emptied all the water and started over....well the filter is still going, i just need to re-cycle it. The figure 8 puffer is really the only one I care about tho. that 46 gallon is gonna be an all cichlid tank once the 16 is back up.
P.S. In the 16 gallon, should I by some small danios to restart the cycle, or should I buy some of that bio-spiro bacteria?
P.S. In the 16 gallon, should I by some small danios to restart the cycle, or should I buy some of that bio-spiro bacteria?
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burgerking - Posts: 29
- Joined: Tue Nov 25, 2008 4:16 pm
So is the 46g for your african cichlids?? And then the 16 for community fish?? What will you be doing with the fish you care most about, the puffer?? It is brackish, so it'll need to be in a brackish tank with fish of it's behaviour.
I've seen some nice tanks dedicated to just puffers, most were wild caught. Dont thave the link for you, it was on my old pc, it got a virus and is pretty much fried.
I've seen some nice tanks dedicated to just puffers, most were wild caught. Dont thave the link for you, it was on my old pc, it got a virus and is pretty much fried.
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Tmercier834747 - Posts: 887
- Joined: Wed Feb 13, 2008 8:33 pm
Well your 16 gallon wouldn't have shown signs of ammonia or nitr(I)te, if it were cycled completely before you took the fish out. Nitrate is the result of bacteria that take in ammos and nitrite and convert it. The cycle is basically the result of having enough established bacteria in the tank to do that...so if you saw any ammos or nitrite in the tank the last time you checked then it wasn't cycled.
In any case...I would start running a small second filter (one large enough for your 16gal) on your 46 NOW, and once your 46 is cycled (and you're sure there's no ammo or nitrite in it) then run the smaller filter on the 16gal adding -back- whatever fish you decide you want in it which will jumpstart the cycle making sure to keep ammo and nitrite in check with water changes every day on the 16gal until it is fully cycled which should be fast.
The puffer isn't going to be happy wherever you decide to put him. You can't go brackish in your 46 now...and a 16gal is way too small for a figure eight. They're also very messy eaters as you seem to have found out..Honestly I think you should consider taking him back unless you can find a way to support him properly in a suitable environment. I'm not trying to bust your brass, just giving my recommendation..
In any case...I would start running a small second filter (one large enough for your 16gal) on your 46 NOW, and once your 46 is cycled (and you're sure there's no ammo or nitrite in it) then run the smaller filter on the 16gal adding -back- whatever fish you decide you want in it which will jumpstart the cycle making sure to keep ammo and nitrite in check with water changes every day on the 16gal until it is fully cycled which should be fast.
The puffer isn't going to be happy wherever you decide to put him. You can't go brackish in your 46 now...and a 16gal is way too small for a figure eight. They're also very messy eaters as you seem to have found out..Honestly I think you should consider taking him back unless you can find a way to support him properly in a suitable environment. I'm not trying to bust your brass, just giving my recommendation..