Fluval Hagen filters - Has anyone used them before?

[seangee]

I ended up not changing much. Although it was a cheap and nasty all in one I quite liked the filter setup. Simple powerhead to spraybar with the water landing in a plastic box with holes on the bottom, giving a rainfall effect. I removed the floss when it died and left the coarse sponge below the grill. (Excuse the Rooibos teabag ). I know some would say I need more media but I have always had minimilist tendencies, and that frogbit covers 100% of the surface.

If I add a normal sponge filter to the inlet the flow is reduced to a trickle. This would have worked as my original plan was to use this as a breeding / fry tank. Now its a QT and home to 13 adult nano fish that makes the flow inadequate. Not a problem the flow is fine without an inlet filter. Then I decided I may try this as a species tank. I know technically its probably too small but as a QT its working well and the fish behaviour is good, as is the water quality. But then what happens if / when they breed. And they will with nothing else in the tank, and in time I may add shrimp. So I needed an inlet filter without reducing the flow.
This did the trick

Hang on a minute... Now I have a perfectly good nano powerhead and filter just lying around. Does anyone have a small glass box lying around so I can have somewhere to store them?

 

[seangee]

I ended up not changing much. Although it was a cheap and nasty all in one I quite liked the filter setup. Simple powerhead to spraybar with the water landing in a plastic box with holes on the bottom, giving a rainfall effect. I removed the floss when it died and left the coarse sponge below the grill. (Excuse the Rooibos teabag ). I know some would say I need more media but I have always had minimilist tendencies, and that frogbit covers 100% of the surface.
View attachment 368859
If I add a normal sponge filter to the inlet the flow is reduced to a trickle. This would have worked as my original plan was to use this as a breeding / fry tank. Now its a QT and home to 13 adult nano fish that makes the flow inadequate. Not a problem the flow is fine without an inlet filter. Then I decided I may try this as a species tank. I know technically its probably too small but as a QT its working well and the fish behaviour is good, as is the water quality. But then what happens if / when they breed. And they will with nothing else in the tank, and in time I may add shrimp. So I needed an inlet filter without reducing the flow.
This did the trick
View attachment 368860

Hang on a minute... Now I have a perfectly good nano powerhead and filter just lying around. Does anyone have a small glass box lying around so I can have somewhere to store them?

 

[OldFishKeeper]

Thanks for the reply Colin I'll have another look for alternatives. Sadly a HOB or external filter won't work with this tank. I need to keep the glass lid on as it reduces evaporation and noise (tank in bedroom)

I cut down double layer greenhouse panels as lids. They are easy to "cut-to-fit" and do reduce noise. I find Aquaclear filters are quiet provide you keep the tank full.

 

[MuddyWaters]

I'm way late to this, but I think what you have is fine. Honestly, as long as there's good flow over enough media to house sufficient bacteria to eat the ammonia and nitrite, you're good. For years I lived in ignorance, and during that time I always wondered how folks could just drop a sponge filter in a tank and call it a day. I was very focused on the idea that the filter was there to do mechanical filtration- mainly because I just didn't know about the biological component.

What I've found, much to my delight, is that with a good sponge filter, there's not much, if any debris floating around in the water anyway, so if I change water with a reasonable schedule, and vacuum the bottom, the water stays clear and the cheap sponge filter works great!

Having said all that, I love cannisters and will usually use them too, but it's nice to know that the simpler filters are very effective. I never understood how an undergravel filter could do anything- didn't make any sense to me- but then again, I didn't know jack crap about what I was doing LOL.

 

[OldFishKeeper]

I'm way late to this, but I think what you have is fine. Honestly, as long as there's good flow over enough media to house sufficient bacteria to eat the ammonia and nitrite, you're good. For years I lived in ignorance, and during that time I always wondered how folks could just drop a sponge filter in a tank and call it a day. I was very focused on the idea that the filter was there to do mechanical filtration- mainly because I just didn't know about the biological component.

What I've found, much to my delight, is that with a good sponge filter, there's not much, if any debris floating around in the water anyway, so if I change water with a reasonable schedule, and vacuum the bottom, the water stays clear and the cheap sponge filter works great!

Having said all that, I love cannisters and will usually use them too, but it's nice to know that the simpler filters are very effective. I never understood how an undergravel filter could do anything- didn't make any sense to me- but then again, I didn't know jack crap about what I was doing LOL.

Great post, @MuddyWaters! I have found as well, over the years, that cheap sponge filters are great.

I have used Mattens, the "new and improved Aquarium Coop" with all their wiz-bang inventions, Fluval-Hagen, AquaClear, Canisters of all varieties and Under Gravels.

Here is my experience...

Mattens are great if you don't mind the expense, reduced tank width, excessive flow, difficulty cleaning and noise.

AC's coarse sponges do not filter out small particles and are not friendly to shrimp or fish fry. Their newer, contributions with finer bubbles and curved, directional tubing are a PITA for back-pressure and blowing off airlines.

AquaClear HOB filters, of which I have many, create too strong a current for some fish, do not necessarily provide for whole-tank coverage and can be noisy if tank levels are not maintained. I now use them for a quick, short-term clean up.

Cannister filters are great for larger tanks (over 40 gallons). They are best used with sponge covered intakes to stop excessive cleaning cycles and spray bars to avoid excessive currents.

Finally, I have never found a good use for UG filters unless you are using them in reverse. This means using a pump to send water under the gravel, just like nature uses underground springs. This includes the rage 20 or so years ago when heat wires were run under the gravel. Been there, done that, will not do it again!

In short, cheap, finer sponge filters are the best for most of us. Put several in a tank in order to remove one to seed a new one. Clean them regularly, in tank water and you will be fine.

Long response but, I hope this helps,