Cp's Tank And Filtration Setup Options

[desireless]

Ah, think I kind of recognised the setup and place......

Hahaha, that's the place when you fell into the nearby well right?

[CP]

Heh heh heh you guys really boh beh chow

[Allan]

 
Its 7x2x2,the filter measures 7x10"x10".The tank capacity is abt 700litres,and the filter contains another 100l.Currently there are only 4 occupants, 2ranchus and 2 ryukins,so they now have the luxury of 200l per fish.I have another 9 ranchus currently on vacation in outdoor rental ponds. 
 
The max no of fish I ever keep in this tank is 9,in which the nitrate levels will rise to 50ppm before my weekly water change.I perform 80% water changes weekly irrespective of the number of fishes,and currently with only these four buggers the nitrate levels hardly reaches 25ppm by end of the week. 

 

Nice write up and cool setup! You didn't mention much about aeration except about the equipment. At 200 litres per fish I guess the existing aeration setup is okay. I guess that's why you don't have to pay much attention. Remember Goldfish needs more DO than many other type of ornamental fishes the next time you change the stock ratio.

I don't know if I should say this seeing you enjoy setting up filtration (and does it so well!) but your existing stock ratio and weekly water change habit probably doesn't need any filtration at all!

Without filtration, nitrate will not be present. You only need to worry about Ammonia... but at 200 litres per fish, the ammonia level will probably be lower than many bros' filtered setup, or a crowded greenwater tub!

No nitrate - happy big fish.

[jhansolo]

The design of the filter its has to induce sedimentation.The trick is to "force the water to rise",and sedimentation will naturally occur.

I've been thinking about this for a long time ... now it is in action. I think a simple monthly maintenance where the gunk is taken out once a month, in your present system just put a tube into the the overflow.

yours the best ... if only My Ministry of home affairs can agree

[mountain]

The filter materials are then washed in the bathtub.My gosh!
Suprisingly,there is no foul smell.In fact,the smell is rather pleasant,like 'smell of garden soil after it rains.'

while it makes most of us who plays with Biofiltration feel cool when we see the dirtyness it has accumulated. but do check your biomaterials as they have a high chance of getting cloaked up.. when they gets cloaked up.. the filtration can crash any minute.

[white horse T1]

No nitrate - happy big fish.

Cp
i just have one question:
does it make u happy too to see a big tank with only 4 fishes?

even arowana owner will envy the tank space u had.
u ve allow ample space and a presumably a good water quality environemnt for the goldfish growth, fish will defintely be happy.

coming from the aesthetic perspective, unless u have 4 big bruces, i can't help it by finding yr tank having the "hollow" look. it is of course less disturbing than seeing a overcrowded tank.

correct me if i am wrong, i thought this tank used to house an arowana before? very familiar

[CP]

Nice write up and cool setup!  You didn't mention much about aeration except about the equipment.  At 200 litres per fish I guess the existing aeration setup is okay. I guess that's why you don't have to pay much attention.  Remember Goldfish needs more DO than many other type of ornamental fishes the next time you change the stock ratio.

I don't know if I should say this seeing you enjoy setting up filtration (and does it so well!) but your existing stock ratio and weekly water change habit probably doesn't need any filtration at all!

Without filtration, nitrate will not be present.  You only need to worry about Ammonia... but at 200 litres per fish, the ammonia level will probably be lower than many bros' filtered setup, or a crowded greenwater tub! 

No nitrate - happy big fish.

200l per fish only at this moment.I used to keep up to 8 or 9.

The Rena pumps out 400l/hr for aeration.I dont measure the DO level,but I guess that the DO will be sufficient even without the airpump.

There are 3 main areas where water is heavily agitated:
1)The inlet from the filter back to the main tank.It produces so much noise and splash I had to submerge the inlet into the water.The capacity of the Eheim circulates the tank water 3 times every hour.
2)The first compartment of the filter.Water drawn from the pump produces agitation.
3)The last compartment,where water is spread thinly over the perforated plate before trickling into the bio-balls.

But anyway,wtf,just provide airpump la.No harm to over aerate,it provides backup in case the Eheim spoils and provides aesthetically looking bubbles as well.

[CP]

while it makes most of us who plays with Biofiltration feel cool when we see the dirtyness it has accumulated. but do check your biomaterials as they have a high chance of getting cloaked up.. when they gets cloaked up.. the filtration can crash any minute.

There is no pic to show,I'll try to put it in words.
The intermedite partitions are set 2 inches lower than the height of the filter.If one compartment chokes,the water will not pass thru but will overflow to the next compartment.

[CP]

Cp
i just have one question: 
does it make u happy too to see a big tank with only 4 fishes? 

even arowana owner will envy the tank space u had.
u ve allow ample space and a presumably a good water quality environemnt for the goldfish growth, fish will defintely be happy. 

coming from the aesthetic perspective, unless u have 4 big bruces, i can't help it by finding yr tank  having the "hollow" look.  it is of course less disturbing than seeing a overcrowded tank.

correct me if i am wrong, i thought this tank used to house an arowana before? very familiar

I have slowly come to realise (personal preference) that no point having plenty of average looking fishes,keep upgrading and waste money.Everytime I purchase a new fish,I will keep watching and admiring it without paying much attention to the rest,until I get another new fish.
If I have a pair of solid tokong showgrades now,I wouldn't mind having just 2 even.You are right,I am not really satisfied at the moment,still contemplating whether to rid all the average looking ones and replace with a few solid ones.

The size of the tank is due to 2 reasons:
1)I had to get it custom made so that my two existing cabinets can fit under it.Its exact lenght is 2.16m, or 7'1".
2)Should I get tired of goldfish one day and decided to keep aro instead,I would have got a suitable tank!

But I would advise against this size.Max 6 ft.This tank barely just made it into the elevator.The stand that you see had to come up by the staircase!!
Its takes 6 persons to carry,and you need to use suction pads to handle it.It was made by my friend who is in the glass industry,who refused payment from me but I paid him anyway;a sum which I do not wish to disclose.

[desireless]

Haha.. I was also wondering how one could see to a 6 footer (and above) tank into a flat. I stayed at the 13th floor and have a hard time fitting a 4ft tank into the small lift. Anything more than that will have to climb the stairs...

I think it is good to have a friend in the construction industry... Who knows you'll be needing a crane when you upgrade your tank?

"WATCH OUT! Tank coming in by the window!!"

[CP]

I think it is good to have a friend in the construction industry... Who knows you'll be needing a crane when you upgrade your tank?

What?!!Want to upgrade so more ah!

I fail to add, a simple water change takes almost 3 hrs.
1 hr to siphon the water,another one and a half to fill.Got time to finish a movie in between.

[Allan]

Design of the filter compartments:

I always have crystal clear water without the use of fine (and disposable) filter mats or water clear additives.Suspended solids clouds the water so the key word for clear water is SEDIMENTATION.
The design of the filter its has to induce sedimentation.The trick is to "force the water to rise",and sedimentation will naturally occur.
Note how the compartments are designed in the sketch.The arrows represents water direction.

Thank you for sharing the above. It's something new to me and I'm glad I now know about it.

If you study closely, design number 1 and 3 are essentially the same. #3 may be better because it has three "ups" versus #1's only two.

But #1's current as it goes "up" may be weaker/slower compared to #3's narrowed downward thrust generating a stronger upward push.

... just a piece of my mind on this matter for your reading pleasure.

[mountain]

What?!!Want to upgrade so more ah!

I fail to add, a simple water change takes almost 3 hrs.
1 hr to siphon the water,another one and a half to fill.Got time to finish a movie in between.

bro .. your 3hrs .. does it include the filter cleaning?? Gee !! 3 hrs can really finish a Alexander gay movie!!

[CP]

bro .. your 3hrs .. does it include the filter cleaning?? Gee !! 3 hrs can really finish a Alexander gay movie!!

No.Water change only.

This post is showing the filter cleaning for the 1st time.The whole process about 6 hrs from 10am to 4pm.Intention to do it once a year.

[goldrush]

Thxs bro cpiw 2002 for sharing your “monster”with us
You have highlighted on the concept of sedimentation which are derived from large pond setup and you manage to package it in a concise and workable filtration system. However I hope that the mere maintaining of the system does not hamper your festive mood every year so to speak. Your system have the luxury of five compartments.The first compartment should be the sedimentation chamber whereby the water inlet should be introduced and impeded by spray bar against some resistance to allow residual solids to accumulate at the bottom.You have done well by incorporating the mat. However perhaps of the massive bioload of the incoming debris ,the mechanical filtration should be clean more often, sparing the effort to touch the biological section of the system.Your grid system is superb in encompassing debris in a confine location. But without a backflush system and bottom drain,this may be area where anaerobic activities may harbour, so perhaps periodic siphoning through the grid may be helpful in reducing scum and reduce likelihood of bad bacteria activity.I have noticed also that you have housed your filtration media in nets which facilitate removal and easier maintenance kudo to your ingenious idea.One question for you is ,are the compartments covered in any way if not do you run into midge problem(bloodworm turning into adult midges)I have noticed that you have some money plants feeding on the first compartment?Correct me if I’m wrong.Nitrates are highest after the last biological activity,so try to incorporate into the final compartment before your trickle system.I hope by periodic mechanical washing and flushing it will reduce your time taken to do a complete overhaul and eliminate your backbreaking feat every Christmas


Cheers
goldrush


This post has been edited by goldrush: Tue, 28 Dec 2004 10:49 am