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eheim 150 canister filter

2K views 5 replies 5 participants last post by  jaysee 
#1 ·
new to hobby and don't know about much. bought eheim 150 canister for 20 gallon tank. came with pads and 2 different other forms of filtration. followed instructions and think all is ok. no under gravel filter. been up about 4-5 weeks. lots of stuff if I move gravel is something wrong? when and how should the filter be cleaned or changed? have 7 tetras in it all small.
 
#2 ·
Sounds like possible excessive feeding or you need to increase or improve you water changing techniques. When removing water, try to remove the larger waste debris from the bottom as this may not bey picked up by the filter.

I base the frequency of filter cleaning on the amount of fish for the size of the tank. I have some filters that I clean every couple of weeks and some that go 4 months or more. With only seven fish in a 20 gallon you could go months without cleaning but I would suggest doing it once a every month or so until you figure out how long it takes before it needs to be cleaned based on your feeding and fish. Clean the filters in aquarium water; tap water will kill the beneficial bacteria growing on the filter. I usually gently squeeze the filter in a bucket of water that I removed from the tank until the majority of the debris is removed.
 
#4 ·
Is the tank planted (live plants)? Does the tank have substrate (gravel,sand,etc). From the info you gave us it could be overfeeding. I have QT with 6 tetra and they don't eat much.
 
#5 ·
planted aquarium and lighting

hello all, I am bonz's other half. This project is entirely hers and she has not wanted any input from me so I have stayed out of it. I have watched and read all the posts and am not sure of what the information she has received has done to help. The tank still looks bad, especially the plants. fish seem to be doing well though. I am quite a bit older and when I was a teen I raised fish that I sold to local pet shops. I did well with plants and could always split them for additional sales. I know the hobby has changed since I quit 50 years ago. I think that is why she did not want my advise. Back then we didn't have canister filters only undergravel and we only had incandesant lighting. I never had the problems she seems to be facing. Are things really that different now? She has fertilizers and gro-lights and still is having trouble. She still won't listen to me, but then again maybe I am wrong in this day and age. Can anyone please explain why those old ways won't work anymore. I would appreciate knowing and then maybe I will quit trying to give her advise. Thanks to all, "the other half"
 
#6 ·
hello all, I am bonz's other half. This project is entirely hers and she has not wanted any input from me so I have stayed out of it. I have watched and read all the posts and am not sure of what the information she has received has done to help. The tank still looks bad, especially the plants. fish seem to be doing well though. I am quite a bit older and when I was a teen I raised fish that I sold to local pet shops. I did well with plants and could always split them for additional sales. I know the hobby has changed since I quit 50 years ago. I think that is why she did not want my advise. Back then we didn't have canister filters only undergravel and we only had incandesant lighting. I never had the problems she seems to be facing. Are things really that different now? She has fertilizers and gro-lights and still is having trouble. She still won't listen to me, but then again maybe I am wrong in this day and age. Can anyone please explain why those old ways won't work anymore. I would appreciate knowing and then maybe I will quit trying to give her advise. Thanks to all, "the other half"
Fishkeeping is as difficult as you want to make it. Is it any harder now than it used to be? Yes and no. I think it's easier than it used to be because we actually know how things work, and information is so readily available. However, with this knowledge comes a greater range of how things can be done, and the more people "do" the more that can go wrong.

Me? I run low tech tanks and have a mostly hands off approach. I don't mess around with them on a daily basis like some people like to do. I like that my tanks need a minimal amount of maintenance and don't require daily supervision.
 
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