Clearing/cleaning Water

[sjolliff]

iv got a 400L discus set-up which i feed 4 times a day, cories do a good job of cleaning up, but there quite a bit of stuff floating around.
Iv got 2 EX1200 running together with a spray bar, iv got 3 powerhead the nanostream 2500LPH, hydor 1 1500LPH or hydor nano 900LPH not in use, and ready to use, but.

Trouble is iv got 8 discus and 2 angel fish and dont want to upset them as iv heard discus dont like strong currents

 

[raptorrex]

iv got a 400L discus set-up which i feed 4 times a day, cories do a good job of cleaning up, but there quite a bit of stuff floating around.
Iv got 2 EX1200 running together with a spray bar, iv got 3 powerhead the nanostream 2500LPH, hydor 1 1500LPH or hydor nano 900LPH not in use, and ready to use, but.

Trouble is iv got 8 discus and 2 angel fish and dont want to upset them as iv heard discus dont like strong currents

not sure this will help, but here we go.

i used a small filter with carbon as the media. i only used it every so often. it did a good job of "polishing the water". though i would normally suggest the tank is under-filtered. this is also bourn out by the fact you have debris in the water. you are, at best, turning the tank round at 1.5x, it could be less. for a basic 3x your filter would need to move 1200lph, so something like the 2400, may be more like it.
for the water movement and discus. would it not be worth looking at a sump system?

 

[fatheadminnow]

iv got a 400L discus set-up which i feed 4 times a day, cories do a good job of cleaning up, but there quite a bit of stuff floating around.
Iv got 2 EX1200 running together with a spray bar, iv got 3 powerhead the nanostream 2500LPH, hydor 1 1500LPH or hydor nano 900LPH not in use, and ready to use, but.

Trouble is iv got 8 discus and 2 angel fish and dont want to upset them as iv heard discus dont like strong currents

Is it stuff that passes through the filter? If so, try adding some filter fiber/floss to the filter to catch the smaller particles.

-FHM

 

[sjolliff]

Iv got 50mm filter floss fitted, the EX2400 is big and noisey and heard it does not turn out no where near 2400LPH, the 2 EX1200's iv got is around 2400LPH but less in real life, plus iv got 2 running just incase one fails.

i need to bump up my turn over, a powerhead will move the water aroung more, but not sure the fish will like it esp as 2 of my discus have just spawned on a amazon sword leaf, not sure what to do
There is the FX5 but then its the messing around with mature media un less i run it together for a bit

 

[waterdrop]

What about periodically running a medium small internal box filter that's run by a powerhead and just filled with floss.. surely there must be some kind of a "dedicated polisher" setup like this that people have done?

~~waterdrop~~

 

[sjolliff]

Yeah its more to move water around in the tank, so i get a better turnover.
But im not sure weather the discus and angels will like the current in the tank

the hydor nano is 900LPH and gives off a nice current but nothing too strong

 

[raptorrex]

Iv got 50mm filter floss fitted, the EX2400 is big and noisey and heard it does not turn out no where near 2400LPH, the 2 EX1200's iv got is around 2400LPH but less in real life, plus iv got 2 running just incase one fails.

i need to bump up my turn over, a powerhead will move the water aroung more, but not sure the fish will like it esp as 2 of my discus have just spawned on a amazon sword leaf, not sure what to do
There is the FX5 but then its the messing around with mature media un less i run it together for a bit

indeed the 2400 get only to, about, half its quoted flow. but then its the same with the 1200. mind you, if the 2 1200's are quieter than the single 2400, and you don't mind spending the money

one thing Discus are known for is, needing quality water. despite the pain of changing media. in the absence of a sump. perhaps the FX5 is the best way to go. or, if you have money, the Eheim 2080. both will do a better job, for longer, than the Tetra's

 

[sjolliff]

Im not wanting just one filter, because if one fails iv still got one to back-up, i looked at the 2080 but ther alot of money esp for the pro kit
but very nice

i was thinking of adding the hydor nano 900LPH to move the water around more, but not to sure on the current for the fish.

iv been advised to clean the ex1200's out every six months and change the floss every 6 months

i was thinking of changing the floss once a month?

 

[raptorrex]

Im not wanting just one filter, because if one fails iv still got one to back-up, i looked at the 2080 but ther alot of money esp for the pro kit
but very nice

i was thinking of adding the hydor nano 900LPH to move the water around more, but not to sure on the current for the fish.

iv been advised to clean the ex1200's out every six months and change the floss every 6 months

i was thinking of changing the floss once a month?

i would suggest changing/changing the floss every month or so, but not cleaning the rest of the filter. you could, as i do, put floss in one, but not in the other.

 

[sjolliff]

Would doing one every 2 weeks be ok. so 2 weeks filter on the left, then 2 weeks later filter on the right.

how often do you clean your filters?

one of my EX1200 is louder than the other ( humming noise) and i can hear some sort of vibration, sounds like the impeller.

iv got a brand new ex1200 which is there just in case or i need parts etc

do you think you think i should try a new impeller and see if it stops?

 

[raptorrex]

Would doing one every 2 weeks be ok. so 2 weeks filter on the left, then 2 weeks later filter on the right.

how often do you clean your filters?

one of my EX1200 is louder than the other ( humming noise) and i can hear some sort of vibration, sounds like the impeller.

iv got a brand new ex1200 which is there just in case or i need parts etc

do you think you think i should try a new impeller and see if it stops?

my though is, providing you only mess with the floss, you could do it daily, with no ill effects. you could use the top tray of one of the filters, purely for floss. it would make it easy to sort too.
you may find simply cleaning the impeller will do the trick, a good full clean of the pump, often solves this. even so be prepared to change it out, just in case. mind you, a rubber mat, can be effective too . remember, whilst they are good filters, they are built down to a cost. not all will be perfect. that does not mean they are faulty. just that, like cars, some are better than others of the same model.

 

[sjolliff]

Well iv just cleaned the impeller out and ran sum clean water through the head. the tank has gone cloudy as hell and even louder humming.

how do you clean the pump i cant see where to get access?

 

[raptorrex]

this will give you a PDF of the instructions.Tetra 1200 instructions you need page 6!