1.5FT / 45cm divider tank

[Urban Aquaria]

Oh.. i have one small question. I ok with Shiruba XB-303 small canister. Seem like fit into my space. I will be using AL30 mini chiller which is 9~12mm hose, how am i going to connect into shiruba canister because the hose is 12~16mm right? So i need some sort of convertor head??

Yes, for those type of setups, you'll need to get converters to adapt the 12/16 hoses to 9/12 hoses... something like this:



You can usually find them at most of the popular LFS.

Note that with a reduction of the hose size in the filtration system, the overall flow rate will decrease abit too.

[Urban Aquaria]

So do u think shiruba canister is power enough ? I running on a fully shrimp setup.

Well, the Shiruba XB-303 is rated at 360 l/ph flow rate, so i guess if it's reduced slightly it should still be good enough for a 20 liter tank. Though the only way to know for sure is to actually test it out.

Alternatively, you could go for the Shiruba XB-305 model instead, it costs abit more but has larger filter volume with higher flow rate (ie. 440 l/ph), so that will give you more options in terms of flow rate adjustment.

[Urban Aquaria]

Erm.. my frd actually recommend me use undergravel filter. Is it recommended?

If you are using gravel substrate without rooted plants (aka traditional fish tank), then its fine... but if you are using active soil substrate or have rooted plants, then its not a good idea because the undergravel filter (UGF) will break down the soil granules faster while drawing in all the soil dust and nutrients and then recirculating it into the water column. In addition, plant roots will tangle into the UGF and clog it up, eventually you will need to overhaul the whole tank just to pull out and clean the UGF.

[Dscheng]

Tks for the advice UA ! Seem like undergravel filter quite troublesome.

[rakurime]

Not sure if this is effective if you are going to do UGF setup.



many layers of bio media before adding the top layer soil, i guess over time its very difficult to maintain, especially changing or cleaning the media which i believe you need to remove layer by layer, and of cause all livestock in and out of tank.

[rakurime]

Look at this tank, so much trouble to change/maintain the media

Canister filter still works the best!!

[Dscheng]

Tks for sharing!! Really troublesome.

[Dscheng]

Guys, If i used a cycled 2FT tank water into a new 45cm fish tank. Will it help to cycle faster?

[Urban Aquaria]

Guys, If i used a cycled 2FT tank water into a new 45cm fish tank. Will it help to cycle faster?

Not really... very little beneficial bacteria are suspended in the water column, majority are attached to surfaces like plants, hardscape, equipment and bio-media.

Its much better to transfer over items, the best is bio-media, they contain the highest concentration of beneficial bacteria in a tank, so those will definitely help kick-start the tank cycle.