Filter question
- Thread starter Mosinmatt
- Start date
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Just a couple fish and cuc and maybe some soft coral and anemone WAY down the road once I am confident with what I'm doingScrap the HOB/canister filter and just use a skimmer.
And getting more technical, depending on your bio load and if your keeping coral, you may not need either. Just a wave maker.
Marco S
Always Learning
I have a 45 gallon with two HOB filters, (both rated for 70 gallons) and they handle the bio load fine. The only reason I have two filters is because I already had one from a previous tank so I figured I would throw it on as well, but one would have done just fine. I do not run a skimmer on that tank, but it is fish only so I rarely check water parameters. If you want an Anemone and coral, I would recommend ruining a HOB filter and a skimmer.
Edit: figured I would add that a HOB filter and skimmer basically do the same thing, but the filter will give you extra room to put things like bio balls and carbon or GFO. Also, the filter keeps what it filters in the water so if it isn't cleaned regularly it can raise your Nitrates and Phosphates while the skimmer takes it out of the water so it wont contribute to high Nitrates or Phosphates. Smaller skimmers need to be cleaned out more often though. My skimmer on my 160 needs to be cleaned once a month or so, but the skimmer I had on my 20 gallon needed to be cleaned every week.
Edit: figured I would add that a HOB filter and skimmer basically do the same thing, but the filter will give you extra room to put things like bio balls and carbon or GFO. Also, the filter keeps what it filters in the water so if it isn't cleaned regularly it can raise your Nitrates and Phosphates while the skimmer takes it out of the water so it wont contribute to high Nitrates or Phosphates. Smaller skimmers need to be cleaned out more often though. My skimmer on my 160 needs to be cleaned once a month or so, but the skimmer I had on my 20 gallon needed to be cleaned every week.
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Salty Lemon
Doing my best to make waves.
I've used both and have been happy with both but it really depends on you. I love skimmers and I've had a Reef Octopus HOB. It worked great. Here comes the "but"...What I didn't like about it is you had to constantly keep an eye on it. If it overflows, you have a mess all over your floor. When I cleaned my tank, I would have a foam overflow issue and would have to stand by with a bowl for foam scooping while I adjusted the container. After awhile you just know what to do and it isn't so bad. Now...if you are willing to keep on top of it, you will love what it does for your tank. If you don't want to hover over these things, I'd go with the biowheel. It also does its job and you will be happy with the results so long as you maintain it and change the filters when you are supposed to. I used a canister filter paired with my HOB skimmer on my 55 and they work great together -- although a canister is a bit bulky. I had to rinse it out every so often. I keep it on hand in the closet in case I ever need it again. I was happy with it. But with all parts of your tank, no matter what you get, you will be having to do regular maintenance. It is part of the hobby. Have fun. I can't wait to see pictures.
