How loud is your canister filter?

[eieio]

give it some time to "burp"
there may still be some air coming up from the media & baskets inside - takes awhile
completely silent? no. but under normal circumstances, very quiet!
what difficulty are you having with the hoses?

[rengnath]

I cant get them to just fall straight. For example, my intake tube isnt straight in the tank because the tubing keeps bending it the wrong way. Hopefully the tubing will straighten out over time. If anything, I will have to get suction cups and tie-wraps to secure the tubing to where I want it to be.

And before I forget to ask, how long should I keep my old filter running with the new one so I dont loose any bacteria? I dont want to have to re-cycle my tank.

[eieio]

I couldnt have put that any better! It's really dissappointing when I got to my LFS and ask a question, and they answer it incompletly or with a snotty attitude. Im only 19, and have only had a brackish aquarium for under a year so I dont know everything. I have even told them right out, I want to buy a _______, what do I want to look for? And they take me to the thing Im looking for, and walk away. I now buy everything I can from http://www.thatpetplace.com. I have never dealt with them over the phone, but I have never had a problem and they have great prices. And all over their site, they post things about customer service incase you need help. The only problem with online is it can take a while to get your stuff.[/quote]

i don't mind the wait for internet purchases
if i'm in a real hurry to get what i need, i just pay the expedited shipping
the web prices are generally so much lower than local retail (at least around here), and with no sales tax (usually), it winds up being a "wash"
livestock is about the only thing i buy locally anymore
btw, Drs Foster & Smith is very good too

[rengnath]

i don't mind the wait for internet purchases
if i'm in a real hurry to get what i need, i just pay the expedited shipping
the web prices are generally so much lower than local retail (at least around here), and with no sales tax (usually), it winds up being a "wash"
livestock is about the only thing i buy locally anymore
btw, Drs Foster & Smith is very good too

I havent heard of them before but I will definetly keep them in mind. I never liked purchasing online until it came to aquarium decor. I wanted my tank to look like a swamp/estuary, but any stumps or driftwood was extremly expensive. Online, I found 2 plastic stumps that looked great for under $50. I laughed the other day when I walked in to my local fish store to see one of the stumps I bought with a price tag of $79.50. They must have the same supplier I do! I understand that the local fish store's mark-up is how they make a profit, but Im not paying their mark-up for bad service. They do have a really good selection of fish. Ordering livestock online doesnt sit well with me. I like picking out the fish I want, and watching it for a bit to make sure it healthy before I open my wallet.

[eieio]

I cant get them to just fall straight. For example, my intake tube isnt straight in the tank because the tubing keeps bending it the wrong way. Hopefully the tubing will straighten out over time. If anything, I will have to get suction cups and tie-wraps to secure the tubing to where I want it to be.

And before I forget to ask, how long should I keep my old filter running with the new one so I dont loose any bacteria? I dont want to have to re-cycle my tank.

to get them to fall straight, here's what i do:
lay the hoses on a flat surface
gently twist & bend them so that they lay flat & straight
you can use a hair dryer to again, gently warm them up to increase "bendability"
then reassemble
i always use a zip tie to hold the outlet hose in place after i adjust the level of the outlet
can you put your old filter media into your new filter canister?

[rengnath]

I wish I wouldve done that before I set it up. I guess if they dont look any better in a couple days I can take them off, it shouldnt be to hard.

For the old media, I have 2 large flat filer cartriges. One would fit on the one side of my new canister filter. They wouldnt be able to fit in the baskets. Should that interfer to much with water flow in the filter or would that be ok?

Worst case senario, if I shut off my old filter right now and did nothing more than empty the water into the aquarium and ring-out any water from the old filters, I shouldnt really suffer any consequences, right? I could skip doing a water change so I dont change the salinty at all. All that would probably happen would be a small cycle tomorrow that would probably be gone with in a couple days, right?

[RTR]

Well, all of my canisters are Eheim Classics. All other brands were given away a long time back. All are totally dead silent. If you want to know if a particular canister is running,you need to touch the top drive unit to feel the slight vibration. I would not have anything else in the house. Some of them are pushing 40 years old now,and still run 24/7/365 in absolute silence.

The Classics are not user-friendly. If I did all-in-one canister filtration (I do don't), I would use Eheim's Pro series.

I have this peculiar idea that tanks should be seen and not heard...

[rengnath]

Thanks for your reply RTR! I actually looked at a couple of Eheims because they were in my price range, along with Cascades, but I wasnt sure because I hadnt heard anything about them. I like the whole tanks should be seen, not heard. However, its easier said than done in most cases.

[eieio]

I wish I wouldve done that before I set it up. I guess if they dont look any better in a couple days I can take them off, it shouldnt be to hard.

A) it wouldn't be too hard. i'm never "settled" until things are "just right"

For the old media, I have 2 large flat filer cartriges. One would fit on the one side of my new canister filter. They wouldnt be able to fit in the baskets. Should that interfer to much with water flow in the filter or would that be ok?

A) i'm not sure of the shape or configuration of your old filter cartridges, but my inclination would be to gut the media material out of them & put that into the new canister, into the appropriate spaces
be sure to keep them wet & don't rinse them with tap water!

Worst case senario, if I shut off my old filter right now and did nothing more than empty the water into the aquarium and ring-out any water from the old filters, I shouldnt really suffer any consequences,
right? I could skip doing a water change so I dont change the salinty at all. All that would probably happen would be a small cycle tomorrow that would probably be gone with in a couple days, right?

[rengnath]

And just an update for everyone; I am SO HAPPY that I went to a canister filter! My water has turned CRYSTAL clear in the past 2 hours it has been running. My water was always clear, but it had a slight haze to it, but now it looks great! I dont know what everyone else runs for media in their canisters, but I have in one basket, fluval pre filters with carbon, the next basket I have fluval bio max, and in the last basket I have fluval bio max with a fluval polishing pad. Im am 100% sold on canister filters! I love having the ability to choose what I want for filter media.

[rengnath]

I wish I wouldve done that before I set it up. I guess if they dont look any better in a couple days I can take them off, it shouldnt be to hard.

A) it wouldn't be too hard. i'm never "settled" until things are "just right"

For the old media, I have 2 large flat filer cartriges. One would fit on the one side of my new canister filter. They wouldnt be able to fit in the baskets. Should that interfer to much with water flow in the filter or would that be ok?

A) i'm not sure of the shape or configuration of your old filter cartridges, but my inclination would be to gut the media material out of them & put that into the new canister, into the appropriate spaces
be sure to keep them wet & don't rinse them with tap water!

Worst case senario, if I shut off my old filter right now and did nothing more than empty the water into the aquarium and ring-out any water from the old filters, I shouldnt really suffer any consequences,
right? I could skip doing a water change so I dont change the salinty at all. All that would probably happen would be a small cycle tomorrow that would probably be gone with in a couple days, right?

I think Ill do this. I really want to get that old filter off of there, and I dont see any harm if I keep all the old media.

[eieio]

And just an update for everyone; I am SO HAPPY that I went to a canister filter! My water has turned CRYSTAL clear in the past 2 hours it has been running. My water was always clear, but it had a slight haze to it, but now it looks great! I dont know what everyone else runs for media in their canisters, but I have in one basket, fluval pre filters with carbon, the next basket I have fluval bio max, and in the last basket I have fluval bio max with a fluval polishing pad. Im am 100% sold on canister filters! I love having the ability to choose what I want for filter media.

yep!
now, .......what about an avatar?

[rengnath]

yep!
now, .......what about an avatar?

As soon as Im done cleaning my tank! Ill be done shortly! Darn algae!

[soggydrysuit]

I like RTR's comment that he thinks aquariums should be seen and not heard.

My lot is not quite silent - combined, they're noisier than the LFS!

Most of it is protien skimmer noise, bubbles or venturii's on powerheads tearing up the surface, so that's fine. Most tanks are in a seperate lounge away from the telly etc so as not to annoy my wife

I've a fluval 404 in there and that is pretty quiet if purged of air. It's the return that makes a splash...

[RTR]

LOL! Skimmers are noisy - It is their nature. Anything with bubbles makes some noise.

My tank room is not all that quiet. I do use some techniques I would not use in the living areas of the house And I don't do salt anymore so noise is a bit easier to avoid - the pumps are not as strong, water movement is usually slower It is hard with marine and high brackish to be really quiet.