Author Topic: Canister filter adjustment. (Read 4964 times) 26 replies

TheCannyScot · « **on:** July 24, 2019, 09:33:40 AM »

I want to decrease the rate of flow from my canister filter. It doesn't have that ability per se and I was wondering if ir it ok to partially close either the intake or outflow connectors or would that have a detrimental effect on the motor/impeller. If it is safe to do this, which one should be adjusted? I imagine that partially clamping one of the hoses would have a similar effect?

Littlefish · « **Reply #1 on:** July 24, 2019, 01:56:35 PM »

Which canister filter do you have?
What is the reason for wanting to reduce the flow? Is it disturbing your fish?
There are other ways to reduce the impact of the flow, rather than partially clamping any hoses, so if you give us as much information as possible we should be able to offer some suggestions.

TheCannyScot · « **Reply #2 on:** July 24, 2019, 02:28:33 PM »

Firstly, I won't be setting the tank up for a few weeks yet as other commitments are having to take priority. The reason for me wanting a reduced flow is as follows. Number one, I'm a plonker! I bought the filter with the intention of keeping central american cichlids as I have kept them in the past, some 20 years ago, but I have been talked into keeping discus by my wife, who, because I am disabled, will be doing all the donkey work when it comes to water changes etc. So I bought an external filter with cichlids in mind. I have been reading up on discus and it seems that they are not particularly strong swimmers and will not do well in strong currents. Therefore I am looking for ways to reduce the impact of the flow this particular filter will deliver.
Waldbeck Clearflow 55 UV Aquarium Outdoor Filter • 55W • 4-Stage Filter • 2000 l/h • 9W-UVC •

Littlefish · « **Reply #3 on:** July 24, 2019, 04:15:14 PM »

Great news that it's not set up yet.
You will find that most flow rates are measured without media in the filter, so it's unlikely that you'll get 2000l/h. You can put extra media in, which will lower the flow rate.
I can see from the pictures that this filter has a spray bar. I'd suggest setting things up with extra filter media to get an idea of the water movement, and if you think it's too much, then you can consider making the holes in the spray bar slightly larger. This will have a big impact on the water movement, so it may even be worth considering having the spray bar lower in the water and pointing towards the surface first, before making permanent adjustments to the equipment.
The spray bar also comes in sections, so you could also try just having 2 sections pointing into the tank, and another section pushing the flow against the glass.
There are a few things to try, and you may not be able to get things finalised until you get the fish, but at least there are a few options.

TheCannyScot · « **Reply #4 on:** July 24, 2019, 04:40:45 PM »

Thanks again Littlefish, those are some sound suggestions for me to try. As you say, I will be able to get a reasonable idea of the strength of the flow before I even put fish in the tank, so that's a massive bonus. I hadn't thought of having different sections of the spray bar pointing in different directions or about enlarging the holes, but I did think about drilling more holes pointing in different directions??? I should be able to get things right for the fish now, he says with fingers crossed, lol. Many thanks....

Littlefish · « **Reply #5 on:** July 24, 2019, 05:57:13 PM »

I'm sure that you will be able to get the water flow to a point that discus are happy with just by playing with the spray bar.

I have a Fluval FX4 (approx. 2600l/h) on a 220L tank that houses South American fish, including marbled hatchets. I used extra filter media, and changed the output nozzles for wider ones, and the hatchets are fine with the flow. Most of them actually swim directly in the water flow, and the 2 that are less keen have worked out that the quietest part of the tank is to the side of the output nozzles. Fish are not as daft as people think.

Whether you end up drilling extra holes, larger holes, or have part of the spray bar facing a different way, you will get to know when your fish are happy with the flow rate.

TheCannyScot · « **Reply #6 on:** July 24, 2019, 08:24:13 PM »

Hi, I think it's going to take me some time to start thinking like a fishkeeper again after all these years without a tank in my life. It seems to me that if you have a problem regarding almost anything, you should ask a woman; my wife is just like you and can come up with solutions to problems that would never occur to me. Lateral thinking, that's what you women are great at, whereas, as my wife is always telling me "if there is a difficult way to solve a problem, you'll find it", lol. Oh well, that's life I suppose! Thanks for all the help and suggestions. I'll let you know how I get on once I get the tank up and running.

Littlefish · « **Reply #7 on:** July 24, 2019, 08:35:25 PM »

I'm sure I couldn't possibly comment on the lateral thinking capabilities of women in general, however......

All I know is that I have had lots of issues and problems with numerous tanks in the past few years, and have pretty much had them all resolved, or been given a list of options, by people on this forum. I've been lucky.

TheCannyScot · « **Reply #8 on:** July 24, 2019, 08:38:38 PM »

It is patently obvious to me that I have started off in the same vein. Looking forward to lots more help over the coming weeks and months.

Littlefish · « **Reply #9 on:** July 24, 2019, 09:07:48 PM »

That's what we're here for, and I look forward to hearing how your tank progresses.

jaypeecee · « **Reply #10 on:** July 26, 2019, 09:02:35 AM »

Quote from: TheCannyScot on July 24, 2019, 02:28:33 PM

I have been talked into keeping discus by my wife, who, because I am disabled, will be doing all the donkey work when it comes to water changes etc.

Hi TCS,

Let me say at the outset that I have never kept Discus. And my knowledge of their needs is also minimal. But I understand that Discus require ultra-soft water. That would translate to RO/RO+DI water as your starting point. And, seemingly, very frequent water changes. That all adds up to a lot of work for your wife.

Just my two penn'orth.

JPC

Littlefish · « **Reply #11 on:** July 26, 2019, 10:01:41 AM »

Excellent point @jaypeecee

I've not kept discus either, but may be able to throw TCS a bit of a lifeline. One local MA seems to specialise in discus, which is odd considering the hardness of the water in the area. However, and again I need to reiterate that I know nothing about discus, the LFS sell Stendker brand discus. Apparently they are commercially bred in Germany, and are "accustomed to tap water".
I know this throws up all sorts of discussions on the water that fish evolve to live in, and whether putting them in different water stresses them, etc. but I've attached links for Stendker, plus a company that sells this brand in the UK.

https://diskuszucht-stendker.de/en/home/ueber_uns/

https://www.devotedly-discus.co.uk/

https://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/features/discus-the-whole-truth-and-nothing-but-/

Although the links I've provided are very pro-discus, I'd suggest doing quite a bit of research prior to making any final decisions.

TheCannyScot · « **Reply #12 on:** July 26, 2019, 04:15:30 PM »

Quote from: jaypeecee on July 26, 2019, 09:02:35 AM

Quote from: TheCannyScot on July 24, 2019, 02:28:33 PM
I have been talked into keeping discus by my wife, who, because I am disabled, will be doing all the donkey work when it comes to water changes etc.

Hi TCS,

Let me say at the outset that I have never kept Discus. And my knowledge of their needs is also minimal. But I understand that Discus require ultra-soft water. That would translate to RO/RO+DI water as your starting point. And, seemingly, very frequent water changes. That all adds up to a lot of work for your wife.

Just my two penn'orth.

JPC

Firstly, European bred, Stendker discus, no longer require soft water and have been bred to live in tap water; so from moderately soft to moderately hard pH values. Many discuss breeders are of the opinion that RO water is a thing of the past and breed their fish to accept a wide range of water qualities. My wife, since you decided to bring her into the discussion, was the one who initially did all the research into keeping discus. Many years ago she wanted to keep discus and 20 or so years ago your points were probably valid ones but these days, not so much. As things stand, it is she who is pushing me to keep discus and she is fully aware of all the work involved. We are grateful for your obvious concern regarding the amount of work she is undertaking, but we assure you that the proposition was fully discussed by us and a joint decision was made to go ahead, as I imagine these types of things are dealt with in most partnerships.

TheCannyScot · « **Reply #13 on:** July 26, 2019, 04:36:42 PM »

Quote from: Littlefish on July 26, 2019, 10:01:41 AM

Excellent point @jaypeecee

I've not kept discus either, but may be able to throw TCS a bit of a lifeline. One local MA seems to specialise in discus, which is odd considering the hardness of the water in the area. However, and again I need to reiterate that I know nothing about discus, the LFS sell Stendker brand discus. Apparently they are commercially bred in Germany, and are "accustomed to tap water".
I know this throws up all sorts of discussions on the water that fish evolve to live in, and whether putting them in different water stresses them, etc. but I've attached links for Stendker, plus a company that sells this brand in the UK.

https://diskuszucht-stendker.de/en/home/ueber_uns/

https://www.devotedly-discus.co.uk/

https://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/features/discus-the-whole-truth-and-nothing-but-/

Although the links I've provided are very pro-discus, I'd suggest doing quite a bit of research prior to making any final decisions.

Thanks for the links, but I have already done quite a bit or research, as has my wife, and we both have contacted discus keepers who buy stock from "Devotedly Discus" and we have been given lots of positive advice and help, even though, at this stage, we still don't even have the tank. The supplier of Stendker discus is in Germany and breeds his fish in tap water, minus any unwanted additives, and has been doing so for a number of years so they are in no way stressed by the water we have here in the UK; as long as the water is clean, with a constant pH and temperature, there is no reason for any competent fishkeeper to fear keeping discus.

Littlefish · « **Reply #14 on:** July 26, 2019, 06:08:18 PM »

Great to hear that you've done lots of research & talked to other discus keepers. There's nothing quite like getting advice from people with first-hand experience.

The staff at MA rave about Stendker, and there are a lot of discus keepers in this area (our water is 17dH).
That store also previously had their massive display tank filled with discus and it looked amazing.
Which colour variations do you like? Which ones are you thinking of getting?

TheCannyScot · « **Reply #15 on:** July 26, 2019, 07:25:21 PM »

We haven't made any firm decisions but my wife likes the Marlboro Red and either the White or Red Leopard and my preferences are the Solid Fire Red and the Blue Diamond. You can see them here - https://diskuszucht-stendker.de/en/Diskus-Farbvarianten/Farbschlaege/ . I hope you like our choices.

Littlefish · « **Reply #16 on:** July 26, 2019, 07:51:42 PM »

So many different colours and markings, and all lovely fish.
It's good that they have pictures of the fish at different sizes, the small ones look so different to the mature/jumbo ones, and I should imagine it will be fascinating to watch them develop.

TheCannyScot · « **Reply #17 on:** July 26, 2019, 08:04:59 PM »

I certainly hope so LF, it could be extremely interesting. I have a TDS meter, but don't know how to convert accurately to degrees hardness. It shows a TDS reading which is 185ppm, which according to a conversion table Matt sent me reads 150 - 250ppm is in the "slightly hard" category. Obviously I would like to know it's dH, but I'll have to do some searching to see if there is an accurate table.

TDS(ppm)   Conductivity(uS/cm)   °f   Hardness
0-70   0-140   0-7   Very Soft
70-150   140-300   7-15   Soft
150-250   300-500   15-25   Slightly Hard
250-320   500-640   25-32   Moderately Hard
320-420   640-840   32-42   Hard
Above 420   Above 840   Above 42   Very Hard

According to two different conversion tables (including the one on here), the dH is 10.38 or 10.4 which means

?. Can you help?

Littlefish · « **Reply #18 on:** July 26, 2019, 10:08:42 PM »

Looking at the table, that has the hardness as french degrees. 10.4 dH German is equivalent to 18.5 degrees French, which is equivalent to 185ppm. I tend to use this calculator when multiple units are being used, otherwise I get a bit confused.
https://www.lenntech.com/calculators/hardness/hardness.htm

So I'd say that your water is at the lower end of the "slightly hard" range. I'd guess that it's hard enough to be stable, without being so hard as to limit the fish you can keep. Also, you'll be fine with the Stendker discus.

The Stendker information says their discus are kept in water that is 15dH German, so it's slightly harder than your water, and is at the bottom end of the "moderately hard" range at 267ppm.

Littlefish · « **Reply #19 on:** July 26, 2019, 10:19:56 PM »

I've just had a quick look at TDS meter information, I think they will suggest your water is slightly harder because it measures total dissolved solids. The measurements we tend to use are just for calcium carbonate. I think it's only slightly different, and perhaps one of the more knowledgeable people will be able to give a better explanation.

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Canister Filter Adjustment.

Canister Filter Adjustment.

Author Topic: Canister filter adjustment. (Read 4964 times) 26 replies

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