Cheap Way To Filter This Tank?

[watertown28]

Okay the story. I got this 75 gallon tank for 35 bucks... could not pass it up. Had to reseal it, did let it set for over 2 days, water tested it for 12 hours, now moved it on the stand.
 
The only issue was there was no brace in the middle, and the plastic on top of the tank looked like it was replaced at one point... hence no brace. The plastic was in half, as in, only wrapped around half way with a splice in the middle on the sides, and it was lose.
 

 
 
Well, being somewhat handy, I made a frame for the top out of 2x4's...Nice and tight fit except for one corner, in which I put shims in to make it tight.
 
Anyways, I now realize a HOB filter is not gonna work with this. Canisters are just too darn expensive.... I was thinking of doing undergravel, but I have not really come to any thing that could tell me exactly what I need with it. I know I need a bracket or 2 and set the rocks over the top of that..... I have a power head, but thats where I get stuck.... how powerful would I need it to be?
 
Any other ideas on how to filter this would be great!
 
 
 

 

[squidneh]

I would recommend a SunSun internal filter.  They're cheap and you can find them on ebay/amazon.  They work great and have good reviews as well.  I bought one and went higher in gph than recommended figuring a cheap filter wouldn't be very powerful and it turned out way too strong.  I have one now at the right rating and love it.   

 

[NickAu]

 
Canisters are just too darn expensive.

They are not that expensive I paid $ 60 bucks for 1 of these.

Biopro Aquarium External Canister Fish Tank Water Filter 800 LPH + Aqua Sponge

 

[BiggTexx]

I second the SunSun option.  I would look for a SunSun "Out Side" filter on Amazon. Although they are not the fanciest ones on the market, they are cheap and still get the job done. I am currently running one as a backup/QT filter.
 
Here is a review I did on the SunSun HW-302 and a link where you can find them for around $45 on Amazon.
 
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/437875-sunsun-hw-302-out-side-filter/
http/www.amazon.com/SunSun-HW-302-3-Stage-External-Canister/dp/B00892EN22/ref=sr_1_1?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1429363583&sr=1-1&keywords=sunsun

 

[attibones]

Have you considered building your own filter? I'll send you a link to my favorite video for this sort of project. I've never built my own canister, but I have made my own sponge filters and HOBs with great success. If you build your own canister, you'll save a ton of money and you can customize the whole thing.

Internal canister: http/m.youtube.com/watch?v=p-SK90oRxeM
External using primarily PVC: http/m.youtube.com/watch?v=UVWqq73mW_4
External using a water dispenser: http/m.youtube.com/watch?v=OxFb3EeZ7l8

 

[BiggTexx]

Internal canister: http/m.youtube.com/watch?v=p-SK90oRxeM
External using primarily PVC: http/m.youtube.com/watch?v=UVWqq73mW_4

Haha, Joey is awesome!

 

[watertown28]

Have you considered building your own filter? I'll send you a link to my favorite video for this sort of project. I've never built my own canister, but I have made my own sponge filters and HOBs with great success. If you build your own canister, you'll save a ton of money and you can customize the whole thing.

Internal canister: http/m.youtube.com/watch?v=p-SK90oRxeM
External using primarily PVC: http/m.youtube.com/watch?v=UVWqq73mW_4
External using a water dispenser: http/m.youtube.com/watch?v=OxFb3EeZ7l8

Yeah that was the route I was looking at. Menards is like 5 miles away and you can pretty much get anything and everything I want there. Wife hates that fact.

 

[watertown28]

Okay I was thinking of doing the internal tube one which is a great idea. I can at least get it working with the pumps I currently have until I can get the ones in the video.
 
With that said, now I did some reading on the media to use for the bio.... now if I understand this correctly, surface area is not the only factor in the process otherwise undergravel would be king in that sense. It has a lot to do with air also.
 
So I was thinking, if I were to get some of those cheap plastic type scrubby pads to use as my bio grower, would putting a airstone, like in between the mechanical filterand the bio pad help grow the bacteria? Or even below the mechanical padding ... would that help a lot?