# 90 gallon tropheus filtration



## cjacob316 (Dec 4, 2008)

do you guys think that an xp3, an eheim ecco 2234, with two aquaball powerheads with sponges attached would be enough to filter a 90 gallon tropheus tank? with about 30 tropheus i guess


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## Pali (Dec 22, 2009)

It should do it yes

I would throw in a tunze or koralia for extra water movement

:thumb:


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## cjacob316 (Dec 4, 2008)

i was thinking if the two canisters don't get the surface moving enough i might throw on a koralia to take care of it

i should be getting this ecco tonight for $40 so i was hoping it would be good enough for the 90, if not i was going to put it on a 55


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## Pali (Dec 22, 2009)

What size aqua balls?

There are different sizes of filter attachings as far as I remeber!?!

The koralia was in my intention to give the fish some water movement, im pretty shure the canisters should be able to give plenty of surface movement.


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## cjacob316 (Dec 4, 2008)

iwas thinking maybe two 2206's with just the basic sponges attached, all i want is some minor bio and mechanical filtration with them, but mostly their function will be to push water towards the intakes in the corners.

that model is rated 60-100 gph so the two together will move the water around


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## zebra7 (Jan 24, 2004)

On a 75 or 90 gallon Tropheus tank , IMO , two Aquaclear 110's/500 did the best job filtering for the buck. No powerhead's were needed, just a airline to help remove Carbon deoxide from the system. I've tried a few different filter Combo's in the past , and the Aquaclear's alway's did very well handling the fish load.


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## cjacob316 (Dec 4, 2008)

i thought i had specified, but i don't want hobs on this tank, quiet is key in the living room.

and it's dioxide (sorry)


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## zebra7 (Jan 24, 2004)

The Ehiem will definatelty fit the bill if quiet is what your after. I will say that a new aquaclear will be just as quiet though, have you owned one before ? Is this your first Tropheus tank ?


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## cjacob316 (Dec 4, 2008)

zebra7 said:


> The Ehiem will definatelty fit the bill if quiet is what your after. I will say that a new aquaclear will be just as quiet though, have you owned one before ? Is this your first Tropheus tank ?


i don't know what you're smoking, but no hob is quiet, and there is no way for an hob to be as quiet as a canister. the motor may be quiet, but i am not keen on water falling. that is worse than any slight hum i have heard from a motor, the only thing worse than the waterfall is when an impeller starts grinding


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## zebra7 (Jan 24, 2004)

In your previous post you speak of using a canister for plenty of surface movement, do you think that will be silent ? If you don't allow sand to be sucked into your filter, there will be no grinding sound's to be worried about. If you were familiar with the working's of a Aquaclear you would know the filter spill's into the tank, it's not sprayed. As long as your tank's water level is wear it should be, at the top of the aquarium, there would be no sound at all. Before you make remark's about someone, like " I don't know what your smoking, " you should know what you are talking about. Make's perfect sense, if you knew anything about filter's you wouldn't be asking people for their advice on how to filter your tank, :thumb:


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## Afishionado (Jun 6, 2006)

When it comes to quiet, the problem with AC's (and hobs in general) is the attention required to keeping them quiet over time. As they age parts wear. Even in crystal clear water sooner or later the impeller and spindle will start to get noisy and need to be replaced. _Even if you use a prefilter._ (We're talking over a period of years here). Over time the lid may fit a bit more loosely and rattle every so often if it is not weighed down... And even with weekly water change fillups, evaporation can drop the water level enough for the surface turbulence to make sound in the interim. In the din of a busy room that may not be an issue, but in the dead silence of a room you are trying to sleep in it can be annoying (that's a personal thing - some may feel it is soothing).

I've been using AC's and other hobs for over two decades, as well as varying models of cannisters. Ime hobs and cannisters in general are not in the same league for quiet, certainly not under the condittions most people will use them and certainly not over long term usage. I'll agree that a brand new aquaclear will be pretty quiet for awhile, if you're diligent about keeping the water level topped up.

PS: I have tanks where I use cannisters only for surface movement. Very quiet. Water levels dropping due to evaporation can make them noisy, but it has to drop further than with a hob for this to happen - typically does not become an issue in the weekly interval between water changes for me.


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## zebra7 (Jan 24, 2004)

For "good" surface movement, the filter's return need's to be at the top of the aquarium, or pointing up toward's the top, correct ? . There is a very fine line when it come's to making a ripple, or tiny splash at the water's surface. The least bit of evaporation will make any filter, HOB or canister make a bit of noise. It shouldn't be much of a chore, especially in a living room, to keep a aquarium's water level where it should be, at the top. As for wear and tear, Aquaclear's are better than most long term, if kept properly. All magnet's wear with time, and canister filter's are the same. With the exception of Ehiem, most are not as reliable as a Aquaclear. I also have been keeping aquarium's for over two decade's, and had my share of most filter's on the market. There is alot of variable's, and opinion's, when it come's to filtering a tank, especially one with a heavy fish load. Like I stated earlier, two aquaclear 110, will provide plenty of bio-load, and water movement , for a 75 or 90 gallon tank. There is NO need for a powerhead of any sort in a 4ft tank. I personally add a single air line to all of my tank's containing African cichlid's to maintain a proper PH. My statement was simple, and correct from the start. Good luck with your decision, :fish:


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## cjacob316 (Dec 4, 2008)

*zebra7* give up on the hob's already. i have plenty of hobs and i have canisters believe me when i say i know what i want between the two, hobs create a lot more water noise than a canister, even with the canister agitating the surface it doesn't make half the noise of water falling from an hob into the tank, no matter how far the water falls, it makes a noise that I don't want next to my head in the living room.

please feel free to not comment on this topic again. get it, NO HOB"S!!

i know how to create surface movement with a canister and keep it silent as well, my main worry was the lack of turnover and the low rate of flow from the ecco. the ecco will only agitate so much of the surface, the xp3 will agitate a lot more, the two together will not agitate the entire 48x18 inches of surface i can solve that with powerheads, not an issue

my focus is will the filters be good enough for the tank. i know plenty about the filters i own and the job they do on the tanks they are on. since i have never had an ecco, and never had tropheus before, i am trying my ass off to make sure i get this right.

again, don't even mention an HOB because i don't want any on this tank. period, end of story



> My statement was simple, and correct from the start


no it's not correct for this application because i stated that i did not want an HOB, I DON'T WANT AN HOB. should i say it again for you? in fact i didn't ask what filters should i get, i asked would my filter choices be fine, and you never gave me a proper answer, you just caused an argument.


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## zebra7 (Jan 24, 2004)

Thank you, because for the first time you stated that you didn't want HOB filter's. PLease find for me in your opening post's where it say's, I DON'T WANT TO USE HOB FILTER'S, please show me. You are the one wasting people's time, and starting argument's .. It's too bad that there are people like yourself who only wish they knew what they preached. The worst part of it is new comer's to the hobby may take what you say as the truth. On my last note, what I've forgetten about in this hobby you still have NO clue about. Go do your filter research ...


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## cjacob316 (Dec 4, 2008)

cjacob316 said:


> i thought i had specified, *but i don't want hobs on this tank*, quiet is key in the living room.
> 
> and it's dioxide (sorry)


that was right after your first post

but to reiterate. i asked what you thought of the filters i named, i didn't ask you to provide me filters you like. and i then stated that i don't want hob's on this tank after you suggested some. then you continued to argue about using an hob. you were not helpful at all, just aggravating. you know nothing about me so how can you suggest you know more? you have not helped me with my problem, just created more.



> You are the one wasting people's time, and starting argument's


this is *my* thread, i wanted help from people who were willing to talk about my certain concern. if you feel like helping people is a waste of time then don't post answers. you wasted my time having to read your posts, then you continually responded with argumentative posts. it's *my* tank, *my* opinion on which type of filters to use matters more than yours, if *i* say no hob's i don't like their noise, then respect my request, shut up about hob's and answer my original question. don't take over *my* thread with another issue


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## cjacob316 (Dec 4, 2008)

can a mod just lock this thread and get it over with, i got the help i needed. this thread doesn't need to be commented on again or drug out any further

thanks


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## zebra7 (Jan 24, 2004)

It's funny, I've been a member on this site since 2004, and this is the first time I've had a problem with a member. The only one with a attitude is you CJACOB, it's member's like you that destroy forum's. Not to worry, It's a waste of time to try and help someone like yourself. I'm finished with this thread.


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## Lawsman (Mar 11, 2010)

Not getting into this debate. But, for a HOB or cannister, it is recommended you turn over the water 10X per hour. So, in your case 900 GPH. So, the guys recommended two AC 110's are there in terms of turnover rate and cost efficiency, but it's your tank and your money so if the water noise bothers you, then canisters rated for a total of 900 GPH is the way to go for keeping Troph's!

I too have both in use. There's pros and cons to both filters-really just a matter of choice-that choice is yours!


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

opcorn: :lol: 
It is all good entertaiment when guys argue over NOTHING. :thumb:
Only thing I regret is we in the UK do not have these powerful but noisy high turnover but rubbish filter volume HOB filters easily available. :wink:

Close the thread you must be joking, not had this much entertainment by two folk so stuck up their own............ for a long time. 8)

All the best (and I mean it to all) James

PS the best way to keep a thread going is to ask for it to be closed. :wink:


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

cjacob316 said:


> do you guys think that an xp3, an eheim ecco 2234, with two aquaball powerheads with sponges attached would be enough to filter a 90 gallon tropheus tank? with about 30 tropheus i guess


Yes. :lol:


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## cjacob316 (Dec 4, 2008)

guys, i don't know why you keep going back to HOB's this thread was not supposed to be a debate between HOB's and canisters, i asked a simple question, that only two people who posted actually even tried to help me answer, the rest was junk and a waste of time. I was upset because I didn't want to get into some debate from some idiot about filter types, but he chose to ignore my request and egg me on and nag at me until I had enough and went off on him.

the type of filter is usually always personal preference, i hate seeing people suggest something someone never asked about

if i ask for suggestions on canisters don't even think about offering up hob options, if i ask about suggestions on hob's don't talk about canisters to me, obviously i made up my mind on what type of filter i want, i just want suggestions about which specific model.

I have been keeping fish for a while, I have had many tanks, i've had a lot of different hob's and now on my third model of canister. i know the differences in type of filter, i know what i like and don't like from the two types. you don't have to school me in filter types.

I have made the mistake of not providing the information the OP actually asked for, and i'm trying to get better at basically just answering the **** question and not pushing my extraneous views, that don't apply, onto someone, and i definitely have the good sense to apologize to the OP when I disrespect them like that.

It was completely useless and disrespectful to argue with me about my opinion on noise. If i think HOB's are noisy, you should shut the f* up and accept that even the slightest water fall noise irritates me, don't tell me I'm wrong, and that it's not noisy, because I obviously think it is, and i'm not alone. When someone is talking about things like this, in their own topic, for their own tank, their opinion matters more than anyone elses. accept it, don't argue it. It's my frickin tank, not yours, get over it, you were completely wrong. I asked for No hob's and you continued to try to push them onto me, you're a PITA get over it


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## frank1rizzo (Mar 14, 2005)

One thing I think you may be overlooking is that other people use current threads to answer their own questions, and to learn from.

I think his point (which he may have gotten across in the wrong way) is that there are HOB filters that run just as quiet as canisters, which is totally true.

I totally understand your "Need for canisters," I feel the same way. My major peeve is that they force the tank another 2" or so away from the wall. But if somebody told me that there is an ultra thin model that means you can scoot the tank back as far as you can with a canister, I would not snap back at them. Just take the info and do what you please with it. That is what this forum is about.

Bottom line:
It may not influence your decision, or be totally relevant to you, but it might help someone else with their problem or question. :thumb:


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## frank1rizzo (Mar 14, 2005)

Oh and... your current plan is plenty of filtration.

I would use one output to create surface movement, and the other pointed down to keep the water moving near the bottom. You really don't "Need" the power heads, but of course, it can't hurt to have nice water movement.


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## cjacob316 (Dec 4, 2008)

frank1rizzo said:


> Oh and... your current plan is plenty of filtration.
> 
> I would use one output to create surface movement, and the other pointed down to keep the water moving near the bottom. You really don't "Need" the power heads, but of course, it can't hurt to have nice water movement.


i like this idea. so i might use the xp3 spraybar at the surface, and the eheim outlet pointing down, but i think i'm at least going to stick one powerhead opposite the spraybar to get some more surface agitation, because i know the xp3 doesn't provide enough from previous experience in this tank

like i said, even if my tank is filled all the way up, i still hear the falling water, and that's what bothers me about hob's, not motor noise or anyhting, i have an aquaclear on another tank in another part of the house and i love it, in fact i'm getting a 110 with a 55 for that other room as well, i'm just picky about this certain tank, and i just wanted my opinion and request to be respected in my own thread, every OP needs to have his/her/its wishes respected

again thanks for the suggestion, i really like the idea, part of the idea for the two powerheads was to push water towards the intakes to hopefully keep the middle of the tank clean, that's something i could always add if needed later on


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## frank1rizzo (Mar 14, 2005)

It is probably my hatred for the way the spray bar looks affecting my judgment, but I feel like I get just as much surface movement from my XP3 with the spray bar off and just tilt the output nozzle up toward the surface of the water, toward the front middle of the tank. You might want to give it a try and see if you like it. The water coming out of it also makes a super fast/easy way to start a siphon during water changes, Just place the hose over the output for a second and your done. No sucking on hoses, or screwing in a python.


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## cjacob316 (Dec 4, 2008)

i'll try the jet, i had it on for a while, but it was so hard, that it created a lot of splashing against the front wall because i had it directed straight forward, and i felt like it accelerated evaporation, and evap indeed slowed once i switched to the spraybar


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## frank1rizzo (Mar 14, 2005)

I don't even use the jet, I just have the naked output nozzle.


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## NorthShore (Feb 3, 2006)

Well this thread has run its course. =D>


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