New tank set up at last!

[Beano]

I recently got a hold of a bargain 4 foot tank for AU$55 - after
hauling it home, cleaning it out, hauling it into my cramped little
house, then filling it up and transferring my baby oscar, it's finally
finished! Looks good too, water a little cloudy from when I moved the
rocks over (impossible to get them clean, even with a siphon vac).
Also could use a better light and filter. I'm working on the filter as
we speak.

So the fish has been in there 2 hours, is swimming and eating
(HOORAY!). He does look kind of strange in there all by himself
though, given that he's only 2.5 inches! I hope he grows up to be nice
and big.

[Beano]

Excuse my ignorance about filters, but I've never had a tank this big
before. Can I get away with a 1600L/h filter, or will I need more
filtration than this?

Thanks for your help in advance!

[NetMax]

"Beano" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> Excuse my ignorance about filters, but I've never had a tank this big
> before. Can I get away with a 1600L/h filter, or will I need more
> filtration than this?
>
> Thanks for your help in advance!


How big is the tank (in litres or gallons) and what kind of filter is it?
--
www.NetMax.tk

[Beano]

The tank is 243L and I think the 1600L/h filter was a power filter with
1.6m head or something (meaning?) and it had a single sponge in it.

I have since bought something else - 2400L/h with sponge and bioballs
in it. The plastic it's made of is designed so that it looks like a
rock column. Hope it works.

[NetMax]

"Beano" > wrote in message
ups.com...
> The tank is 243L and I think the 1600L/h filter was a power filter with
> 1.6m head or something (meaning?) and it had a single sponge in it.
>
> I have since bought something else - 2400L/h with sponge and bioballs
> in it. The plastic it's made of is designed so that it looks like a
> rock column. Hope it works.


Ahh, 66g tank, 48x18x18 ? I got one of those. Nice size. Not so big
you can't put it anywhere on the floor and not too small for serious
decorating. That last filter is almost x10 tank volumes. At 1600L/h you
were already in the ballpark, but with an Oscar, too much filtration can
sometimes be just right ;~). The extra pickup power picks up and they
usually have a relative size (big) biological filter. Watch that the
little guy has a place shielded from the turbulence to sleep ;~)
--
www.NetMax.tk

[Beano]

Thanks for info, NetMax. I bought the 2400L/h one because it was
cheaper than most. Hopefully the pump thing on it won't break in 6
months, because I've had that experience before with buying those
aerator pumps from K-mart!! The pump still makes noise, but there aint
no air coming out!

I really hope this one is a good one. I spent AU$35.50 on it including
shipping. I think that's quite expensive, I've only ever had corner
filters and my old 60L tank filter had just a sponge filter that cost
$15 from the petstore, so it was already overpriced!! I'll have to
have a serious look at my fish addiction if I one day find myself
buying one of those $150 Eheim external canister filters - OMG, so out
of my price range.

My tank is 48 long, 16 wide, 18 high I think. Hopefully my oscar won't
have too much trouble turning around if he gets to be at the larger end
of the scale.

[NetMax]

"Beano" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> Thanks for info, NetMax. I bought the 2400L/h one because it was
> cheaper than most. Hopefully the pump thing on it won't break in 6
> months, because I've had that experience before with buying those
> aerator pumps from K-mart!! The pump still makes noise, but there aint
> no air coming out!
>
> I really hope this one is a good one. I spent AU$35.50 on it including
> shipping. I think that's quite expensive, I've only ever had corner
> filters and my old 60L tank filter had just a sponge filter that cost
> $15 from the petstore, so it was already overpriced!! I'll have to
> have a serious look at my fish addiction if I one day find myself
> buying one of those $150 Eheim external canister filters - OMG, so out
> of my price range.
>
> My tank is 48 long, 16 wide, 18 high I think. Hopefully my oscar won't
> have too much trouble turning around if he gets to be at the larger end
> of the scale.


It's better to have some redundancy in your filtration system, by having
more than one filter running, so anything else you could connect will become
your insurance policy.

Aquarium filters are generally a good investment. While expensive, they can
last a long time and they do perform a vital function. I only buy filters
on sale, either at auctions or during sales events at stores. I currently
have a Pro 60 and an Emperor 400 still in a box from two different store
liquidations. I'm sure I'll have a tank ready for them in a few years ;~).
--
www.NetMax.tk