zdrc
Active Member
I picked up a used 12 gallon aquapod recently, and I'm having some trouble coming up with a good filtration setup. This will be my first saltwater tank (I've had lots of freshwater tanks), and I'm fascinated by the subtle differences between the two hobbies. My knowledge from freshwater fishkeeping is complicating my choices, as there is some conflicting information between the two hobbies. I need some help coming up with a good filter set up.
The aquapod has 4 compartments in the back (see here). The aquapod came with only a large pored blue sponge that fits in the first compartment. This is intended to be mechanical filtration. I bought a used 210 gph inline pump which I can haphazardly use as a return pump (it's really quiet, basically brand new, and was only $20).
I want to keep some chaeto in the back because it seems overwhelmingly beneficial (nutrient export and live foods). I was thinking of putting this in the 2nd compartment. I was thinking I could run a simple submersible LED light in the compartment to grow it (like this or this)
I want to have some biological filtration that won't clog like a fine-pored sponge will clog. I was thinking one of the various forms of ceramic media (spheres or blocks). This would fill one of the compartments (probably the 3rd). The 4th compartment will house the pump.
However, I don't know where to put the heater with this set up! I could probably squeeze it in the 4th compartment. However, the water level in the 3rd and 4th compartments will run lower than the first two and I really want to make sure the heater is sufficiently submerged at all times. Because of this I was thinking I could ditch the sponge and run only Chaeto and the bio media. Chaeto would go in the first compartment, the heater in the second, bio media in the 3rd and the pump in the 4th. No mechanical filtration. Do you think this would work?
In the freshwater world, mechanical and carbon filtration are seen as mostly useless (mechanical is slightly more useful, carbon removes medication which can be useful at times). Biological filtration is all that really matters (e.g. sponge filters are dope). The filtration set up I described would give me lots of live foods and nutrient export via the chaeto and plenty of biological filtration via the ceramic media.
There is also a large dead space in the 4th compartment that extends below the 2nd and 3rd compartments (not the first as is shown in the aquapod manual I linked earlier). I really don't understand why this exists, and I wish the 2nd and 3rd compartments were full size. Should I put anything in the dead space? It's really hard to access, so I can't think of anything being useful
In my personal experience, detritus is not something to be feared in an aquarium. In fact, it's a critical part of the food web. I watched the Blue Planet II episode today on coral reefs and you can see suspended particles in literally every shot. IMO, if you're having problems with too many nutrients, you're probably not doing enough water changes (50% a week you slackers).
The aquapod has 4 compartments in the back (see here). The aquapod came with only a large pored blue sponge that fits in the first compartment. This is intended to be mechanical filtration. I bought a used 210 gph inline pump which I can haphazardly use as a return pump (it's really quiet, basically brand new, and was only $20).
I want to keep some chaeto in the back because it seems overwhelmingly beneficial (nutrient export and live foods). I was thinking of putting this in the 2nd compartment. I was thinking I could run a simple submersible LED light in the compartment to grow it (like this or this)
I want to have some biological filtration that won't clog like a fine-pored sponge will clog. I was thinking one of the various forms of ceramic media (spheres or blocks). This would fill one of the compartments (probably the 3rd). The 4th compartment will house the pump.
However, I don't know where to put the heater with this set up! I could probably squeeze it in the 4th compartment. However, the water level in the 3rd and 4th compartments will run lower than the first two and I really want to make sure the heater is sufficiently submerged at all times. Because of this I was thinking I could ditch the sponge and run only Chaeto and the bio media. Chaeto would go in the first compartment, the heater in the second, bio media in the 3rd and the pump in the 4th. No mechanical filtration. Do you think this would work?
In the freshwater world, mechanical and carbon filtration are seen as mostly useless (mechanical is slightly more useful, carbon removes medication which can be useful at times). Biological filtration is all that really matters (e.g. sponge filters are dope). The filtration set up I described would give me lots of live foods and nutrient export via the chaeto and plenty of biological filtration via the ceramic media.
There is also a large dead space in the 4th compartment that extends below the 2nd and 3rd compartments (not the first as is shown in the aquapod manual I linked earlier). I really don't understand why this exists, and I wish the 2nd and 3rd compartments were full size. Should I put anything in the dead space? It's really hard to access, so I can't think of anything being useful
In my personal experience, detritus is not something to be feared in an aquarium. In fact, it's a critical part of the food web. I watched the Blue Planet II episode today on coral reefs and you can see suspended particles in literally every shot. IMO, if you're having problems with too many nutrients, you're probably not doing enough water changes (50% a week you slackers).
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