undergravel filter or better alternative?

[rak3nn]

Hi i have a small freshwater setup with gravel

do i need to install an undergravel filter or current filter is enough? or any other recommendations or tips??

appreciate the replies.

[rak3nn]

is eheim aquaball ok? any cheaper alternative? i think external filter will be overkill for my 20 gal setup.

[Urban Aquaria]

What filter are you currently using?

[rak3nn]

^currently using overhead filter. thanks

[BFG]

Never think an external filter is overkill. The space it saves from occupying inside the tank and the added volume of water it provided is a plus point. As well as ease of maintenance, not disturbing the flora and fauna.

[rak3nn]

any more tips?

as of now. whenever i re-do landscaping such at scattering gravel, water becomes dirty.. is is normal or my filter not enough??

[yan]

any more tips?

as of now. whenever i re-do landscaping such at scattering gravel, water becomes dirty.. is is normal or my filter not enough??

Re-scaping, its very norm that water gets cloudy.

under gravel is fine, I'm using in a low tech plant setup. (plant tied to driftwood & lava rocks)
there's two type of soil, normal and powder (reference from ADA soil).

Use normal soil to cover the under gravel (about 2-3inch) followed by 2-3inch of powder soil. This is just personal reference if you like powered type, if you prefer the normal soil, just use them for the whole setup.


If you're going to plant (rooted) to the soil, its might not be advisable.

1) your base get will be sucked into the under gravel filter
2) the plant roots will get stuck to the under gravel filter.

[Urban Aquaria]

any more tips?

as of now. whenever i re-do landscaping such at scattering gravel, water becomes dirty.. is is normal or my filter not enough??

It just means there is still alot of rotting debris and waste material trapped inside the gravel, your best solution is to do more frequent (and more intensive) gravel vacuuming to minimize the accumulation of all those rotting waste material.

under gravel is fine, I'm using in a low tech plant setup. (plant tied to driftwood & lava rocks)
there's two type of soil, normal and powder (reference from ADA soil).

Use normal soil to cover the under gravel (about 2-3inch) followed by 2-3inch of powder soil. This is just personal reference if you like powered type, if you prefer the normal soil, just use them for the whole setup.

Do note that if you use brand new active aquasoil (ie. ADA aquasoil) with undergravel filters, it will tend to drain down ammonia and nutrients away from the soil and output it directly into the water column, so it could result in extra high levels of nutrients flooding the tank water and may increase the chance of parameter imbalances, especially during the initial setup period. So additional or more frequent water changes to flush out the excess nutrients might be required for such setups.

[aquahob]

For me, if its only a small setup, i ll use hang over filter.

[AQMS]

I've tried overhead filter,under gravel filter,internal filter and external filter.
I would personally go for external filter,easier to clean and maintain.

[BFG]

Oops, posted on wrong thread.