Filter Help

[saratogaslim]

Hello all!

Really loving this site and learning a lot! I brought home an adopted tank setup tonight....a 20 US gallon long with five Tiger Barbs living in it. I'm thrilled to have them! Not my first tropical tank, but my first in a long time. They seem to be doing okay with the move thus far...I greatly appreciated the move guide here!

That said, I think the tank came with an inadequate filter. It's a Top Fin 20, and from my research that's just covering a bare minimum. Also, I am confused...is this carbon? The previous owner of the tank gave me a sponge with all the equipment she had for the fish, but it clearly does not belong to this filter.

So what I am wondering, if I am correct and this is not an adequate filter for the tank (especially because I want to add a couple more fish at some point, when all is well), what is recommended? Brand, type, etc? And the sponge I have...can I somehow put it in the tank so that bacteria grow on it ahead of time?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Tolak]

Congrats on the new tank, glad you are enjoying yourself here!

Top Fin is an entry level filter, the Top Fin 20 will just make it. If the sponge fits in where the cartridge usually goes it will work, you may have to cut it down. I've cut down Aqua Clear sponges to fit in Whisper filters & such.

When I was running hob filters I ran mainly Aqua Clears. An AC 50 works great on a 20 or 29 gallon tank, I used to abuse these filters in a breeding setup; overstock, 50% water changes without turning the filter off, and so on. They kept running.

The only reason I don't run them is as the fishroom passed the 20 tank mark, plugging in a filter for each tank became an electrical hazard. I now have everything running off of one large air pump, which used less electricity as well.

 

[ian]

I swapped mine just recently from a Stingray 15, to a Fluval u2 and am impressed no end by the Fluval u2. I swapped it becaus i have a planted tank and it has a spray bar which is handy for planted tanks.

 

[OldMan47]

You asked "is this carbon?" I am not sure what you are talking about with the question. Carbon is mostly found as black granules and sometimes the more expensive stuff is an extruded black product. Basically it resembles a very small gravel that is really just what is left of wood that has been burned in an oxygen poor environment to produce just the carbon part of the wood without all of the other bits that started out as a part of the wood. You can think of it as the skeleton of a piece of wood that is left behind after all the oils and moisture have been boiled and burned off.

 

[kelly528]

Okay-- While carbon does do everything it is advertised to do, it only lasts for 3 days, making it a relatively ineffective (not to mention expensive) filter media.

Ammonia removers are also gimmicky... don't go for them as they starve the bacteria present in a healthy tank.

Basically what makes a good filter is

a) Durability/Raliability
b) How many GPH they can filter (of course, how many GPH you actually need depends on your tank size and stocking)
c) The amount of surface area available for bacteria to live on.

As mentioned, the aquaclear is a super-good filter for this. I simply save the carbon bag it comes with (you can remove meds with it) and stuff the carbon section with filter wool.

I am also quite happy with my Fluval 2 Plus.

Another good tip is not to be shy about dropping cash for a quality filter... although they are up there in price, few people bear in mind that the media for them is considerably less expensive than the carbon inserts meant for cheaper types and lasts way longer. A good filter will pay for itself in a short while!

 

[saratogaslim]

Thanks, all, for the replies!

Congrats on the new tank, glad you are enjoying yourself here!

Top Fin is an entry level filter, the Top Fin 20 will just make it. If the sponge fits in where the cartridge usually goes it will work, you may have to cut it down. I've cut down Aqua Clear sponges to fit in Whisper filters & such.

When I was running hob filters I ran mainly Aqua Clears. An AC 50 works great on a 20 or 29 gallon tank, I used to abuse these filters in a breeding setup; overstock, 50% water changes without turning the filter off, and so on. They kept running.

The only reason I don't run them is as the fishroom passed the 20 tank mark, plugging in a filter for each tank became an electrical hazard. I now have everything running off of one large air pump, which used less electricity as well.

Thank you, and I definitely am! Afraid I am hooked. And that is about what I figured on the Top Fin 20, and also saw somewhere here that I should aim for something higher than *just* rated for the size of the tank. I've written down the info about the AC and will go and look at them this weekend. Thank you for the advice!

I will see if I can stuff the sponge in there...the filter cartridge was already started on the Top Fin, so I hate to remove it now, but I'd like to get this sponge going too, so that I can swap to that instead.

I swapped mine just recently from a Stingray 15, to a Fluval u2 and am impressed no end by the Fluval u2. I swapped it becaus i have a planted tank and it has a spray bar which is handy for planted tanks.

Also wrote this down, thank you ianho! I am interested in planting the tank in the long run...or in starting a second tank and planting that, so perhaps this would be a good fit.

You asked "is this carbon?" I am not sure what you are talking about with the question. Carbon is mostly found as black granules and sometimes the more expensive stuff is an extruded black product. Basically it resembles a very small gravel that is really just what is left of wood that has been burned in an oxygen poor environment to produce just the carbon part of the wood without all of the other bits that started out as a part of the wood. You can think of it as the skeleton of a piece of wood that is left behind after all the oils and moisture have been boiled and burned off.

I was asking if it was a carbon filter, as opposed to the sponge-type filter. Sorry if I was not clear.

Okay-- While carbon does do everything it is advertised to do, it only lasts for 3 days, making it a relatively ineffective (not to mention expensive) filter media.

Ammonia removers are also gimmicky... don't go for them as they starve the bacteria present in a healthy tank.

Basically what makes a good filter is

a) Durability/Raliability
b) How many GPH they can filter (of course, how many GPH you actually need depends on your tank size and stocking)
c) The amount of surface area available for bacteria to live on.

As mentioned, the aquaclear is a super-good filter for this. I simply save the carbon bag it comes with (you can remove meds with it) and stuff the carbon section with filter wool.

I am also quite happy with my Fluval 2 Plus.

Another good tip is not to be shy about dropping cash for a quality filter... although they are up there in price, few people bear in mind that the media for them is considerably less expensive than the carbon inserts meant for cheaper types and lasts way longer. A good filter will pay for itself in a short while!

Kelly, thanks! Sounds like your theory of spend more now, save later is definitely the best one, and the safest for the fish as well. Appreciate the info and the things I should keep in mind while shopping!