Posts Tagged ‘Aquarium’

My poor fish are nervous for your answer! I have a very small pond in my backyard and pond filters are too expensive. I thought I’d be brilliant and buy a 65 gal aquarium filter but ,(since it’s suppose to hang on the lip of an aquarium), I need to rig it to stand at the ponds edge. . any advice?

Is that possible?

No to pick on about. com (mentioned them in an earlier post in Fish as Pets), but after an email form a hobbyist about aquarium power heads/pumps I thought I would investigate what is being said in reviews and stumbled across an article with the reviews of five different power heads.

Either they are from another planet or I must live in a parallel universe!

First they left off the list two of the best aquarium and pond power head/ water pumps then their reviews were quite contrary to my extensive experience with these pumps in literally 100s if not thousands of aquariums over the years in my aquarium maintenance business.

Here are six pumps I will review (including refutations of their comments):

*ReSun; this pump (power head) was really left off their list, although not as well known in the USA/Canada they are very well loved in Asia and Australia. ReSun has some sizes such as the #6 that are quite capable for very ?mucky? pond environments and yet operate very well. The stainless steel coated impellers along with the ceramic shafts found on the larger models) are extremely durable and nearly never fail.

These pumps are very reliable and start up without a problem; they also have very brilliant head pressure (in fact among the best)! ReSun pumps can be submersed or place in line.

The models 3A, 5, and 6 are awesome in heavy duty applications such as ponds or very large aquariums where high flow and head pressure are necessary (as well as ability to deal with large amounts of particulates in the water).

About the only con is that with their heavy duty construction, these pumps can be somewhat noisier than some others (although still not terrible here either). ReSun power heads are also not as adjustable in flow as some other power heads, but this a minor inconvenience IMO.

*Via Aqua; ; this is a real workhorse line of pumps that is VERY widely used in the professional aquarium maintenance community yet did not even get mentioned by about. com (go figure!). These pumps in the power head line (not the basic line) also have ceramic shafts and very durable construction. Via Aqua pumps (along with ReSun) can be used in sumps or as a power head and have brilliant head pressure. The Via Aqua power head line (such as the VA 1300) can be submersed or used in line which adds to versatility that not all pumps can match. For Aquarium sumps (usually in marine applications) the Via Aqua 2600 and 3300 are unsurpassed in usefulness.

Again the only con is these pumps are a small noisy, but only when used in line (they are a small quieter than the ReSun line when submersed). Via Aqua power heads (as with ReSun and Rio) are also not as adjustable in flows as some other power heads, but this a minor inconvenience IMO. This inconvenience is more than made up for in versatility! I will also admit to a couple of models by Via Aqua that I not recommend due to less than desirable durability and these are the 2300 and 4900.

*Rio (by Taam); although no longer a preferred pump by me as the person who founded Rio started Via Aqua and improved on some of its problems. These are still brilliant pumps IMO and although I partly agree with about. com with their assessment, I reckon they go overboard with their comments as to high maintenance. Rio power heads are very powerful with brilliant head pressure (depending on the model).

The cons are the impeller (although very durable), seem to have problems in environments (especially ponds or dirty aquariums) that have a lot of debris and organics in the water column. But they still are very excellent at starting up when used as wave makers and are properly maintained. These pumps are also not adjustable in their flow

*Maxi Jet Power heads; I will have to agree the most with about. com on their assessment of these pumps. They are reliable and economical and start back up easily even when used as wave makers. But they do have their cons and that is they have poor head pressure and are not very versatile (unlike the Via Aqua, ReSun, and Rio pimps) as they are only power heads and nothing more.

*Penguin Power Heads; I do not generally agree with assessment by about. com on these power heads. Although they do have a clean feature with the reverse flow power head for UG filters (which are not very common anymore though), the other nice feature is the adjustable flow feature.

But nice these features are these power heads have a poor track record for reliability, they have very poor head pressure, and do not re-start well after the pumps have been in service for a while (in applications such as wave makers).

*Hagen Aqua Clear Power Heads; this pump is also over rated by about. com in my extensive experience with them. I have used more Aqua Clear power heads than ANY other (including the Via Aqua pumps I now generally recommend). When these power heads first came out they were industry leaders in design, but they are of 1980s technology IMO and although they are better than Penguins in reliability and head pressure, they still would stop and not re-start in many of my applications when power was even briefly interrupted, making them a poor choice for wave maker applications. Aqua Clear power heads also do not handle high organic/debris loads well and need more maintenance than the Rios that about. com claimed needed!

Bottom line with Aqua Clear power heads is that they are reasonable ?retro? pumps, but certainly NOT the latest in technology!

*ZooMed Power Sweep; even though I sold these in my business, I rarely recommended them. They are basically a gimmicky power head with poor head pressure and low output. They are not real durable and the ?sweeping? directional output feature is run by cheap plastic gears that often fail. These pumps do not handle high bio loads well and are best used in small aquariums or better vivariums where not much is questioned of them.

SUMMARY:

I have had persons also question me why many brands such as Via Aqua are not as commonly available as Hagen and does that make them of lower quality as no one really wants them?

The answer is quite simple; Hagen is sold through a larger network of mainline Pet Store distributors (although they are now transitioning to their own in house distribution system). This system promotes an all or nothing approach to marketing their products basically meaning you carry the whole line (excellent and terrible) or not get discounts or even sell anything at all. This marketing system has been very successful (not to mention slick packaging), but this does not mean a better product.

Via Aqua (among many other high end brands) does not sell through traditional marketing distribution methods and systems, rather it sells many high end Marine fish importers and similar without all the expensive marketing gimmicks. This in particular places their products in the hands of Aquarium Maintenance Professionals who do not care about slick marketing or whether it is the fad, rather whether it works or not which is why Via Aqua and many other similar high end companies choose to sell this way.

For further information and pictures in an article that is still being added to, please visit this url:REVIEW OF AQUARIUM (& POND) POWER HEAD PUMPS BASED ON REAL WORLD EXPERIENCE

It feels fantastic to have aquariums in a corner of your house or office. The visibility of life moving and glowing makes you realize that the world is full of colors and is gorgeous. But buying an aquarium and your choice of fish does not end all that is required to keep you aquarium environment healthy for the fish. Whether you have a small cabinet aquarium of a fish pond, many pond equipments and liners need to be fitted around to keep the fish environment healthy. Let?s see what accessories are essential for aquariums and ponds. Aquarium Heaters: If your aquariums are lying in air conditioned rooms, then there is no problem. But if not then you need to keep the aquarium and pond water up to the room temperature. Otherwise the fish may die due to cold or heat. Thus aquarium heaters are vital to be installed. Aquarium pump: A excellent aquarium pump keeps the water flowing, which is vital for the air inside the tank to circulate and to allow the water to flow to the filter and remove contaminants. Aquarium pumps can be either internal or external depending upon the architecture of the aquarium. Aquarium filters: Aquarium filters are needed to keep you aquariums or fish pond water clean extending the life of your fish. Fish food: To feed your pet fishes you require balanced, nutritious, complete food pellets and flake fish foods for aquarium, marine, pond and water garden fishes. Food with balanced amount of vitamins and proteins are best to feed your fishes. A fish food should be digestible resulting in less waste release and complete nutrition for the fish to develop and grow with finest colors. Nishikoi staple fish food is one such brand that has a complete range of healthier fish food. A range of tropical aquarium and aquatics products is available in the market. Online dealers are also available on the websites that provide aquarium supplies and other pond products supplies at your doorsteps. So buy these vital accessories and keep you aquariums and pond fishes healthy extending their life.

Sponge filtration is an often overlooked type of filtration for freshwater aquarium or ponds and even marine aquariums . Many persons look past their simplicity as ineffective, but therein lies their quality. I have used them for my aquarium maintenance for 27 plus years with brilliant results. Here then is a list of their attributes:
[1] Simple to use, most run on very basic air pumps or powerheads. One of the best beginner aquarist filters due simplicity and cost. But sponge filters are also well loved with breeders and research facilities, as they are very efficient yet simple filters.
[2] Brilliant biological filtration, they are very porous and can maintain very large aerobic bacterial colonies in proportion to the space they occupy. Please note that not all materials used for sponge filters are equal, there are patents because of this! The Hydro Sponge Filter holds several patents for sponge filters for this very reason!
[3] Mechanical filtration, although they are not the best mechanical filters, they still do a excellent job for their small size and make brilliant secondary or primary filters when used in combination with other filters such as HOB, canister, or internal filters.
[4] Very few “dead” areas trapping pockets of noxious bacteria, unlike undergravel filters and even wet/dry filters (which in my experience are over rated).
[5] Simple to clean, simply remove the sponge and squeeze or rinse in ancient aquarium water or dechlorinated tap water. The advantage here is the aquarist is less likely to ignore cleaning the filter (unlike many complex filters), which can lead to organic build up, increasing nitrates and lowering KH and ph.
[6] Sponge filters are fantastic in marine aquariums in a couple of different ways; one way is in a sump (sometimes sideways) with a small power head pump (such as a Via Aqua 480); the other (usually in a reef application) was inside the aquarium with either an air pump or power head. The beauty of either application is they are simple to rinse out with used aquarium water, which in the reef application was especially useful in that I could dispose of allot of debris before it cycled and produced Nitrates. They are an brilliant compliment to “live rock” filtered reef aquariums.
[7] Probably the best choice of filtration for breeding tanks, hospital tanks, and even discus aquariums, due to the fact that they do not “suck” in baby or weak fish or attract noxious bacteria.
[8] For cichlid breeding they excell, as they are not easily disturbed by cichlids tendency to dig.
[9] Inexpensive
[10] Now available in larger sizes for aquariums over 60 gallons.
[11] Sponge filters can even be used in ponds. With the “Hydro Pond Filter”, simply attach a power head pump (such as a Via Aqua 2600), then run your return line wherever you like (waterfall, ECT). Or the Hydro Pond II can be run off a simple air pump. These filters can work on ponds up to 1500 gallons (or more with additional units).
[12] There also are sponge filters that are used as a “Pre-Filter” for intakes of canister, wet/dry, power filters and more. They offer increased bio-filtration to your existing system, as well as protection from baby fish, plants, or anemones from being sucked into the intake of your existing filter.
These pre-filter sponges are especially useful for HOB (power filters) as they increase the bio capacity (far more than bio wheels in experiments I have done) and retain the aerobic bio filtering bacteria during filter media changes. With out these Sponge pre-filters, HOB filters are poor to honest bio filters, with them they are brilliant.
[13] Sponge filters are fantastic for planted aquariums, they do not interfere with root structures and maintain a biological balance that ideal for planted aquariums.