ugf? powerfilter? both?

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i am going to be setting up a freshwater 75 or 90 gallon soon. my
questions are basically trying to clear up some indecision on my part
on some basics. there is just as much bad info out there as good i
think so here goes:

1. should i get the 75 or the 90? ive read on some postings that the
surface area will be the same which means the bio load will be the
same. is this true? or will the extra water provided by the 90 gallon
be that much more of a buffer for the fish. right now im leaning
towards the 90 just for the looks. but the 75 will be cheaper.

2. ugf or powerfilter? or both? i have used both in the past but gave
up the ugfs when i owned species which dug down to the plate. i own 1
penguin330, 1 penguin400, and 1 hotmagnum350. i can imagine using all
three on the tank but i continue to hear good things about ugfs.

3. what kind of substrate? ive read that some prefer a larger size
over smaller and vice versa. ive read alot of different theories on
ugf maintenance and the size question has come up more than a few
times, along with exactly how much water you want going through it,
ive read that the more gph the better, and ive also read that too much
can be detrimental.

4. what exactly is the best way to maintain a ugf?

5. one site i visited recommended cutting window screen to size(not
the metal kind) and dividing the substrate into two layers with half
the substrate below the mesh and half above to prevent fish from
digging all the way down and to ensure proper depth of
vacuuming.(?which is?) claims the screen was nontoxic and did not harm
fish physically, and allows for plants to be in tanks with a ugf and
species who will root them up. has anyone else heard of this? might
just be a bunch of bloated syntax.

would appreciate as much info as possible. thanks.

[Ben]

wrote:
> i am going to be setting up a freshwater 75 or 90 gallon soon. my
> questions are basically trying to clear up some indecision on my part
> on some basics. there is just as much bad info out there as good i
> think so here goes:
>
> 1. should i get the 75 or the 90? ive read on some postings that the
> surface area will be the same which means the bio load will be the
> same. is this true? or will the extra water provided by the 90 gallon
> be that much more of a buffer for the fish. right now im leaning
> towards the 90 just for the looks. but the 75 will be cheaper.

From what I've read, the 70 and the 90 have the same foot print, the 90
is just taller. I don't know if this helps you though.

> 2. ugf or powerfilter? or both? i have used both in the past but gave
> up the ugfs when i owned species which dug down to the plate. i own 1
> penguin330, 1 penguin400, and 1 hotmagnum350. i can imagine using all
> three on the tank but i continue to hear good things about ugfs.

I just set up a 55 and I'm using both. I have a Peng 330, aquaclear 300
and a UGF. (I'm thinking of putting in powerheads on them as the plates
are large and I don't want to have to deal with 4 bubble lifts.
(Actually don't want to have to deal with air pumps). I swear by UGFs
and will continue to use them. I'm trying to see how they work with
plants now although, all i've put in are dried plant bulbs I bought at
walmart.

> 3. what kind of substrate? ive read that some prefer a larger size
> over smaller and vice versa. ive read alot of different theories on
> ugf maintenance and the size question has come up more than a few
> times, along with exactly how much water you want going through it,
> ive read that the more gph the better, and ive also read that too much
> can be detrimental.

I've used both small gravel and medium gravel in my tanks with UGF with
out any problems. I think the gph is the real question. Personally
I've only ever used bubble lifts with them so I don't know what the gph
is with them. I think if you're using bigger plates, you want a
powerhead. Also, if you have too much water movement (which i'm not
sure what that gph is), the good bacterial colonies won't grow.

> 4. what exactly is the best way to maintain a ugf?

I maintain mine two ways. First I do the normal gravel vac'ing making
sure to get deep into the gravel. Secondly, every so often (about 1 a
month), I will open one of the extra lift holes or remove a lift and
syphon off water through the lift. This gets rid of a lot of debris you
wouldn't normally get. When I do this, I tend to just do an entire
20-25% through one of these holes. I've found this really keeps my tank
clean.

> 5. one site i visited recommended cutting window screen to size(not
> the metal kind) and dividing the substrate into two layers with half
> the substrate below the mesh and half above to prevent fish from
> digging all the way down and to ensure proper depth of
> vacuuming.(?which is?) claims the screen was nontoxic and did not harm
> fish physically, and allows for plants to be in tanks with a ugf and
> species who will root them up. has anyone else heard of this? might
> just be a bunch of bloated syntax.

I've never heard of this myself but then I've never had fish that were
real gravel diggers. It sounds like an interesting idea. As above, I
know very little about plants (I think i have a brown thumb), but i
would guess if the roots can get in the screen, it would work.

HTH and wish I had more concrete answers. Make sure to keep us posted.

-Ben

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