Tropheus filtration

[mark razmandi]

a wet/dry is the way to go man, i learned this from john here on the box. It out performs everything and makes your beneficial bacteria bulletproof...you dont have to mainten a W/D hardly at all. MY fish have never been happier since i got a wet/dry....here is what i would do, and once again, i learned this from jon (fshfrk)...get a wet/dry and then use your canister and your hob strictly for mechanical filtration, that way you can clean out your canister and HOB completely without having to worry about your BB or anything and just leave your W/D alone....i will NEVER have another tank without a W/D

[geoff_tropheus]

The only thing you dont get with the Eheim 2229 that you would get in a regular wetdry of the same volume, is the flowrate. That;s it nothing more...

[Zulaab]

You can make your own Wet/dry.. see John Fshfrk he makes simply the best DIY wet/dry's no doubt. If you want to buy your own. Goto Amazon.com and pick up a Pro/Clear 200 (if your tank is drilled already with stand pipes get one without, else get the 200 with a pre-filter.) You will need a pump to return the water back and I would recommend you get a Danner Supreme MAG-18. I own have used Pro/Clear units and for Fresh Water the Pro/Clear is the best. (at least how I feel about them and many others out there)

You can goto the Pro Clear Freshwater wet/dry's to see their fresh water wet/dry's.

[trophicide]

Thank you all for your input. I'm going to get another Eheim 2229. So I'm going to run 2 Eheim 2229's, 1 FX5, 1 AC 110 for water polishing and 2 koralia 4's. Who knows, eventually i will run a true wet/dry on the next troph tank if I get that far. While back I designed a sump and had plans for a spare 20 long. Bought a glass cutter and silicone and saved lots of junk to build my own but the wife has her overflow fish in it. I like to build stuff myself but my space is limited and time is short, and any DIY projects take up space and lots of time especially when learning. I like that Pro Clear setup though. I am curious about the sump area though. If it says sump area of 19 gallons is that while its running at the normal water level in the sump or is that right before it spills all over the floor?

[Zulaab]

The sump area in on a fresh water wet/dry isnt anything but a holding area. While running, the water sits to the bottom of where the bio balls are. None of the bio balls should be submersed while running.. The extra space is there for when the pump gets turned off and the over run comes back into the wet/dry. As long as you fill your tank up the first time and let the water run into the wet/dry and let it fill 1/2 full and stop putting water in the tank, you then turn on the pumps and it will start pumping water out of the wet/dry and back into the tank and then that will in cause the water to flow back into the wet/dry and cycle. In case of power failure the max water since you didnt add anymore water to the tank will only fill back up to the 1/2 point. You will just have to add water as you have evaporation from your main tank.

The first time setting up a wet/dry is always the difficult part.. once setup.. its nearly bullet proof..

[trophicide]

Ok for instance the proclear 200 says it has a sump of 19 gallons. When the water is flowing at its normal height just under the bio material then you have added 19 gallons to your aquarium correct? Or does that mean the sump will hold 19 gallons before it spills over the edge?

[Zulaab]

It will hold 19 gallons before you spill over.
Say you have a 100g tank.. The overflow will start when your tank is about 95g full. The water will fall into sump below your tank. You will fill the sump until you about 1/2 full of water. You then stop adding more water to the tank. It will stop filling your sump and now this is the state of the sump when the pump is not running.
You then turn on your pump and it will drain the water out of the sump and attempt to over flow your tank, but as you start filling the tank up to the 100g mark the water will start flowing back into the sump, and you will never overfill the tank. You will notice about 1/4 of the sump will fill your tank and it will look like the tank is always filled to the top. 1/4 of the sump will always have water in it (this is about the place where the bio balls is not covered by water)

You will need to add water to your tank as the sump dries out from evaporation. Once setup and running you will think this is one of the easiest systems in the world to take care of and it keeps your tank very clean.

Wet/dry's are easy to understand the first time you have set them up. They are simply that easy to deal with.

[trophicide]

I understand how they work I just did'nt know what the 19 gallon sump meant as far as it will hold 19 gallons before spill over or if it meant it has 19 gallons in the sump under normal operation. Thanks for clearing that up and taking time to explain.

[Gene D]

I happen to be one of those in the Eheim wet/dry camp with you. I have a 2227 that performs perfectly. I agree with you that silence and fact that it is a sealed system make up for the decreased flow over a traditional W/D. I also like that the flow rate on these varies during the breathing cycles and helps move waste off the bottom. I think you have good handle on what you need to do.

[aggrofishkeeper]

Only thing I don't like about a w/d is it's loud as hell and you have to keep an eye out for the water level in your tank because it effects the sump as well.

[Zulaab]

Once setup.. the only place you are going to look is the sump for how much water is in the system, because all evaporation is going to effect the sump amount not the water level in the tank. This is because the sump will always fill your tank. Once you run out of water in the sump it will start drawing air into the tank and you will see it as bubbles in the exhaust back into the system (you are now running the sump dry)

[ssrprelude]

Once setup.. the only place you are going to look is the sump for how much water is in the system, because all evaporation is going to effect the sump amount not the water level in the tank. This is because the sump will always fill your tank. Once you run out of water in the sump it will start drawing air into the tank and you will see it as bubbles in the exhaust back into the system (you are now running the sump dry)

+1 water level should never change, sump level will everyday. Under power the overflow box and it will be super quiet.

[myjohnson]

Only thing I don't like about a w/d is it's loud as hell and you have to keep an eye out for the water level in your tank because it effects the sump as well.

there are a lot of ways to make a wry/dry quiet.

Like Jesper and Jim are saying.....

Another reason why I like the wet/drys is because the display tank water level never drops. No white hard water line marks.

But honestly, canister w/d will get punked hard by a real w/d. Canister's don't have that surface skim action.

Additionally, the surface water on a tank with a w/d always looks super clear. This also allows light into the tank better. Makes the fish look brighter and promotes additional algae growth for tropheus to graze one.

[geoff_tropheus]

aint no scum on mE!!

[fshfrk]

I like a flow of 1,000g-2,000gph over 200gph. So I say convetional wet/dry.