# how much filtration for a 125 gallon malawi cichlid tank???



## kraylon

My lovely wife today surpized me today by buying me a new 125 gallon fish tank and im in no hurry of setting it up but i like to do my reseach first. My plan with this tank is to use it to upgrade my 55 gallon malawi cichlid tank to this 125 gallon, as of now i has 1 fluval 304 and a fluval 204 will this be enough filtration fo this size of tank? and will a fluval fx5 be way too much?

i know you can never have to much filtration but i don't think that having a huge amount of current will make my cichlids very happy, but i could be wrong

the tank is 48 wide by 24 tall by 24 across

he is a list of my fish with their names

1 Male Malawi Pike Cichlid (Slanky) 1 Female Kalingo (Tatter) 1 Red Zebra (Mr. orange) 1 Male Blue Johanni (Blinky) 1 Demasoni (Roni) 1 Male Dimidiochromis compressiceps (Snack) 1 Mystery fish (Mystery fish) 2 Yellow Tail Acei (Purple people eater & purple mini) 1 Male peacock (pea tree)


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## teqvet

I've got a magnum 350 deluxe and an emperor 400 for filtration on my 55g. The fish love the current set out by the Canister. During the day, I turn the output head so it faces across the tank, and at night I shoot it straight forward to make less current, so they can sleep in their nooks a little bit better.

Regarding filtering a 125g... I'd personally err on the side of over filtration, but everyone knows what their fish want, so in the end it'll basically be what you want.


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## Boomr99

No such thing as too much filtration. and current is easy to control.
You want at least 4x water turnover per hour. thats 500 gallons per hour (gph) for your tank.
Keep in mind that the ratings on filters are grossly exagerated because the flow rate is measured with no length of tubing and no filter media. So if I was you I would aim for at least 800 gph "rated". that should be enough.


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## kraylon

so the fx5 that says that it does 924 gallons an hour would be fine but how do i control the current and do cichlids like lots of current?


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## CichlidAndrew

You could hook up the output to some sort of long diy pvc that extends the length of your tank for low flow.


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## kraylon

at the top or the bottom of the tank?


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## CichlidAndrew

I dont think matters. Just preference. It is just a way to disperse the flow to keep it down and prevent a huge blast out of a jet.


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## gherlevi

Just for another perspective, I'm setting up a 125 as well (hopefully soon!) and bought the FX5 in anticipation.

It should be an excellent filter for a 125. I'll actually have an Eheim 2026 on the other end because that filter will already be cycled.

The FX5 output direct the water in two different directions. And, though the specs state a ridiculous 900 GPH or something, the actual flow will likely be noticeably less once you pack it with media. And, that's perfectly fine!

For me, I wanted a big honkin' canister. I thought about a wet/dry setup, but I was concerned about noise.

Hope this helps


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## F8LBITEva

my Peacocks love the current, I also have a powerhead in there to keep debris suspended for the intake pickups *** noticed my fish like "surfing" in the powerhead jet. They totally love it! Good luck and post pics.


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## partsrep

My Africans love the currrent as well. I have two powerheads that come on with my daylights to kick up the current some.

I run an Eheim 2028, Eheim 2322, AC110, Maxijet 600 & 900.

If you go with the FX5 you might try placing a "T" in the output hose and running it to a spray bar at either end of the tank. One aimed at the surface and the other aiming down into the tank slightly. That will give a nice rolling current and keep your substrate clean at the same time provided you have you pickup below the return spraybar that is aimed at the surface.

Good luck with the new tank! :dancing:


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## kraylon

i think im going to use the fx5, and im going to use a 3d background i have not decided if im going to make one or buy one yet, is there any thing i need to do different with the use of a 3d background?

im also going to use the eco complete gravel, i like to use 2 heater instead of one just in case one fails i plan on useing the stleath heaters, any other suggestions would be great

Thanks


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## partsrep

I noticed the specs of the FX5 say it only handle 1.5 gallons of media. For the money you spend on the FX5 you could buy an Eheim 2260 and get 3 times (18 liters) as much media media and have money left over to put towards a AC110 or Emperor 400


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## partsrep

Stealth heaters are excellent and I like the idea of 2. If one were to fail at least the tank won't be completely unheated.


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## kraylon

the fx5 is about $200 and i would like to run just one filter instead of 2 it makes cleaning a little easyer

and i noticed on here that a lot of people like to use pool filter sand where do you buy this stuff??


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## gherlevi

For the right price, the FX5 still strikes me as a solid filter. Yes, the space is less for customizable media, but there's also a ton of reusable sponge filter media that rings each basket. That still counts for somethin' 

For $200, the FX5 is a pretty good deal.


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## UMphreak

I got my fx5 for 186.00 with shipping on ebay. Thats without media though.


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## LG0815

i would by 2 fluval 405 canister filters and 2 aquaclear 110 powerfilters and mabye a ugf filter


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## porksnorkel

the fx5 is one badarse filter folks. very quiet and pumps a ton of water. don't be fooled though. if u read the packaging closely on the fx5, the pump is rated at 900+G, but the actual flow is only around 585G or something. still, it is the most bang for the buck.


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## mittzgame

I have two AC110's and Eheim 2217 (jet return, not spray bar) and two UGJ systems pushed with two Rio 1700's- 4 jets each. Thats somewheres around 2800 gph of water moving through my tank at any given time. We have all the bio (except the two little inserts for small fry tank filters) in the Canister and AC's are loaded with mechanical filter pads (quilting material).

(And I just noticed my Demasoni spawning again!! I guess that male really likes the side panel of the slate background!)

Anyways, back to the subject at hand- I don't think you'd have to worry about too much current. Personally I think putting the bio in your cannisters- then you'd only have to maintenance them every 4-6 months- and adding an AC110 or two for mechanical only. Buy the AC from craigslist (I got one of mine for $20!) you will save a lot of money, and if you need to buy a replacement impeller or motor ($2 or ~$20) you'll still save a lot over retail. Plus, even though the fx5 sounds cool and probably works well, you already have the fluvals, and that way you can save more money by reusing what you have.

PFS is great. I've used both that and eco-complete and was very happy with the more natural look of the PFS, as that was what I was transitioning to. If you'd like pics of my previous setups for comparison, let me know.

:thumb:


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## kraylon

pics would be great

where do you get pool filter sand i checked my local Lowes and they didn't have such a thing, but not to many people were i live have pools


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## porksnorkel

if ur shopping at the hardware store ,look for "play sand". it's over w/ the masonary/brick stuff...usually on the far wall of the store,other side of lumber.


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## mittzgame

Have you checked the yellow pages for pool supply stores? That's where we found ours. If there aren't many pools around, you may be out of luck...

From what I've heard, play sand has smaller grains and will thus be harder to wash and more likely to get kicked up by the fish/filters. It's still a fine sand to use if that's all you have though.

Here are pics of the eco-complete. We mixed in one bag of black tahitian moon sand with two bags of eco-complete so that the black was more dominant.

55gal Jan/07









55gal July/07









I'm trying to remember for sure, but I think we switched out the sand and the rocks at the same time and if we didn't I must not have taken an pictures during the between stage. My current tank has PFS and Quickrete construction sand mixed- the construction sand has varying grain sized up to the size of a very small pebble (~2mm or 1/8")










:thumb:


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## kraylon

WoW  great looking tanks are those real plants?? 
and how much black sand did you mix with the eco-complete??


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## mittzgame

Yup, real plants. The first picture had jungle vals, anubias, and java fern. The last picture is all Jungle Vals.

We mixed one bag of black with two bags of eco-complete.

:thumb:


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