Aquaclear realization - too late

I had one of those 'Ah Ha!' moments, but it was just a bit late.   

I have been in the process of setting up a 20L as a growout and decided not to use a cheap tetra filter I had, but to get an Aquaclear 50. After ordering I had the realization that all the  small aquaclears us the same motor just different impellers. I avoided the 70 becasue it would be too much current... I should have got it and just put in a smaller impeller.   

The larger sponge and increased media would have allowed longer periods of time before having to clean the filter. Oh well, it is done now. But I will be ready next time!

I also thought of add an AC70 impeller to the 50 motor but thought against it. The chamber is not designed for the higher flow and could cause problems with too much intake and not able to output fast enough. Could cause a flood! But going the other route with a smaller impeller in a 70 would be great for a small tank where you dont want a lot of flow but you want a lot of media.

Do you know if this is also true of the AC110?

Interesting...

MRTom wrote:Do you know if this is also true of the AC110?

no, different motor

I read a review about this on amazon, when I was looking for an impeller replacement for my ac70. One of the reviewers mentioned that the motors from the AC20's up to AC70's were the same size, while the impellers were the only things that were different.

That being said, I ended up buying an impeller that was meant for a smaller Aquaclear, slower flow for a bigger container, and that really helped with my 15 gallon column, now my fish aren't swimming in a cyclone!

Looks like someone else also tried this on another forum to good results as well. Nice to know.   

And knowing is half the battle!!!   

dwarfpike wrote:And knowing is half the battle!!!   

I dont know why I want to say 'Go Joe!'

I believe this works the same way on some sizes of aqueon filters as well, if any of you are ultimate cheapass like I am. I have noticed this before, and since you brought it up, I might try it out....

I have a filter for a 30gallon on my indoor 20, but the flow has always been a bit much for me and my floating plants. On the other hand, I have a filter for a 20gallon on my outdoor 20, and it doesn't have enough flow... so if I am able to switch them, everything should be good! Thanks for the tip!

edit; didn't work on the cheapo ones I have

I've always believed in too much flow is a good thing. To that end, I installed an AC70 on a 10 gallon and it works beautifully. I placed it on the end and as a result, it looks like a river on the surface, but when I'm ready to feed, I just move the flow control to the minimum setting and feeding is not a problem at all. That tank is spotless though.

What I think most people believe in (myself included) is if the water is flowing slower through the filter media, it gives the filter media to filter out more of the bad stuff in the water.

Kinda like how uv sterilizers work. If the water flows too fast, the water doesn't get enough exposure to the uv light bulb, thus nothing gets killed.

Granted, that's just my own personal theory. I do like to over filter my tanks still. But I've gotten to the point where I'm causing too much water turbulence in some if my tanks.

Take these two videos for example, the first video shows my 55 gallon tank with all my filters on full blast, two marineland penguin 350 HOBS, and two cascade1000 canister filters. Notice the neon tetras staying at the bottom, and see how they're struggling to swim in place and generally they just huddle in one corner (probably because there's less flow in that general area)

Then look at the 2nd video, I turn off all the filters so that there's no flow. I waited for about 10 mins before I filmed, to make sure that the flow of water has slowed down, and you will see a difference in how the fish swim. That being said, I turned the filters back on and tried to find ways to really slow down the water flow, in this case, if I were using aqua clear filters, I would have replaced the impeller from a smaller aquaclear model to get lesser flow.




Now with that being said, I am by no means saying that lower flow is good. I think it really all depends on what kind of fish you're taking care of, as other fish have different needs. :-P
But yeah, just thought I'd throw that out there.

So for my 20L for my planted puffer tank I could get an AC70 and put in a 30 impeller or is a 50 impeller a better idea?

I'd probably just go one step down. But it's not crucial id say for a pea puffer tank. Especially if you can just add a baffle on it. :-)

It's for a GSP and a couple night goby's in the future. Filter would be on the back. No room for it on the end.

I have not had a chance to run my ac50 yet on the 20L yet so I cant comment on the flow. But if I were to be able to have done it all over I would have got the AC70 and done the 50 impeller. I think that would have been an awesome combo with a nice large sponge and lots of media, yet a reduced enough flow where the fish would not get stirred up too much.

Hmmmmm, I wonder if you could do the same thing to penguins.   

I had a penguin a long time ago that needed an impeller and found one of the Tetra brand was able to replace it. The Tetra was considerably cheaper than a Marineland replacement at the time. Dont remember exactly what models were involved.

Found the info: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

"You can buy a Tetra Wisper pump impeller item 25828 (fits PF 30, 1, & 10-20) from Petsmart. Pop of the end capes from your Marineland impeller shaft, and replace the ones on the Tetra impeller shaft with the old ones from the Marineland impeller (the tetra end caps are a larger diameter and won't fit the filter). Works fine and the tetra parts are much cheaper."

This was for the Marinland Biowheel 200 Impeller

Interesting. Wouldn't mind slowing down the flow on the 150 I have.

dwarfpike wrote:Interesting. Wouldn't mind slowing down the flow on the 150 I have.

Not quite a flow reduction but a mod to baffle: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

DMD123 wrote:Not quite a flow reduction but a mod to baffle: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Hmmmmmmm.

Was reading somewhere else to put a prefilter over the intake and that would decrease flow...

DMD123 wrote:Was reading somewhere else to put a prefilter over the intake and that would decrease flow...

Not very noticably. Also added more filtration on the inside hoping for the same. Might try that baffling idea next.

I like the penguins quite a bit and have had them in the past. I have looked at a ton of different mods and I think another person commented that the 150 would have been the perfect filter if it had the intake from the 200. I believe that was the mod. Not sure what an increase in the intake would accomplish in terms of increased flow, but not the direction you are trying to go.