Some Questions

[des22]

Hi

Im thinking of putting together a 240-270L 50% planted, community tank.

1. Will twice the volume, so 500-700L per hour be ok for filtering?
2. How do I know what strength heater to use?

Thanks

 

[Craster]

General recommendation for a standard tropical community is 4x turnover, but for a heavily planted tank 10x is recommended. This doesn't all need to be filtration - you could supplement with a powerhead to just provide circulation, for example. I'd say aim for something like 1000-1200lph filtration, then add a powerhead if you want to further increase circulation.

Best suggestion on heaters is to look for fully supplied aquariums of the sort of size you want and see what wattage of heaters they supply, then up it a bit - also two slightly underpowered heaters is usually better than one, in case of failure. The Juwel Rio 240, for example, comes with a 200W heater - so I'd suggest 2 150W heaters.

 

[waterdrop]

Agree with the above.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[des22]

Ok so im looking at a 4x turnover in water from the fillter and maybe a power head to move the water around.
and for heat 1wat per littre.

Another question

Are these quick test strips that you get like the "Sera Quick Test 5 in 1 Strips"
any good? Are they accurate enough to use and be trusted?

 

[waterdrop]

NO, you need to get a liquid-reagent-based test kit. Most of us use the API Freshwater Master Test Kit as it has very definite color changes when the toxins hit zero. The Nutrafin Mini-Master Test Kit is also widely used although some complain about discerning different "pink" levels. The Interpet product is also used although I'm not sure if this might be a tablet-based set of tests. Regardless of tablets or not, there have been a few grumblings about it. Actually, beginners usually fuss a bit about how hard it is to match liquid colors to the color charts but after a bit you get used to the overall process and find it doesn't bother you. The liquid tests are much more accurate than strips and cheaper in the long run.

Its nice to have a syringe with measurements on it for use with the kit (2 of these is nice if you are doing fishless cycling, so you can dedicate one to the ammonia.) Also its nice to have one of those small electronic kitchen timers to hang around your neck so you can do other things while waiting for the tests to finish. Also you need a notebook to serve as your logbook during fishless cycling and for other aquarium notes.

~~waterdrop~~