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Retirement and forum shutdown (17 Jan 2022)

Hi,

John Howell who has managed the forum for years is getting on and wishes to retire from the role of managing it.
Over the years, he has managed the forum through good days and bad days and he has always been fair.
He has managed to bring his passion for fish keeping to the forum and keep it going for so long.

I wish to thank John for his hard work in keeping the forum going.

With John wishing to "retire" from the role of managing the forum and the forum receiving very little traffic, I think we must agree that forum has come to a natural conclusion and it's time to put it to rest.

I am proposing that the forum be made read-only from March 2022 onwards and that no new users or content be created. The website is still registered for several more years, so the content will still be accessible but no new topics or replies will be allowed.

If there is interest from the ITFS or other fish keeping clubs, we may redirect traffic to them or to a Facebook group but will not actively manage it.

I'd like to thank everyone over the years who helped with forum, posted a reply, started a new topic, ask a question and helped a newbie in fish keeping. And thank you to the sponsors who helped us along the away. Hopefully it made the hobby stronger.

I'd especially like to thank John Howell and Valerie Rousseau for all of their contributions, without them the forum would have never been has successful.

Thank you
Darragh Sherwin

Fluval U2 or U3? Alternative?

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27 Jan 2014 17:01 #1 by archibalts (Arvis)
My AquaOne 102F (came with setup) starts to act funny in my 65l tank.
Just to be sure I would like to purchase a backup filter. There is no way I could install external filter as aquarium stand is too small for it.
So at the moment my picks are Fluval U2 (max 400lph) or U3(max 800lph). Both has middle spray bar which reduces water movement. With 800lph it could be overkill for my aquarium, but maybe somebody can convince me to go for Fluval U3?
I have a couple plants in my aquarium, 4 guppies, 4 corys, 2 bristlenose pleco 3 swordtails and a fan shrimp.
In my current setup I'm using Organic Aqua and my current filter has only black coarse sponge inside. Setup is approximately 2 months old, so I believe I can move away from OA as aquarium should be cycled.
At the moment U2 is for 30£ in amazon, U3 for 38£. Any alternatives?

Have to mention, U2 and U3 are using 3 stage filtration - sponge, polycarb and bio. I would like to change poly/carb to floss. I don't see the reason for carbon to be in aquarium. Maybe I'm wrong?!

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27 Jan 2014 18:09 #2 by wolfie (Anthony)
i used a u2 in a heavily stocked 60l with no hassles whatsoever ,very good filter imo,i have one for sale as well €20 takes it just needs media and has very little use

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27 Jan 2014 18:21 #3 by Homer (Kevin)
Eheim pickup, best Filter.

Kev.

The Glass is always greener on the other side.


It's NOT "Chee lick", NOT "Chee Chee Licks"!!! Cichlids is pronounced as "Sick Lids"!!!!!

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27 Jan 2014 18:23 #4 by Homer (Kevin)

The Glass is always greener on the other side.


It's NOT "Chee lick", NOT "Chee Chee Licks"!!! Cichlids is pronounced as "Sick Lids"!!!!!

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27 Jan 2014 19:12 #5 by archibalts (Arvis)

i used a u2 in a heavily stocked 60l with no hassles whatsoever ,very good filter imo,i have one for sale as well €20 takes it just needs media and has very little use

Was you using it with poly/carbo cartridges? There are a lot of confusing statements about carbon use in planted aquariums.

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27 Jan 2014 19:31 #6 by archibalts (Arvis)

Eheim pickup, best Filter.

Kev.


I'm very fussy about water clarity. As I see Eheim indeed looks very good filter by reviews, but how about small particles? Hard to believe, that sponge can collect smaller pieces as well.
Friend of mine has tank which clarity is perfect example for me, just he is using internal+external+UV. I can use only internal.

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27 Jan 2014 19:39 #7 by Homer (Kevin)
No Filter, other than a Filter using Diatomaceous earth will give you nearly instant clear water, Filters become more effective at removing particulates the more clogged they become as the gaps between the filter medium becomes dirtier, any Filter will give amazing results the closer it gets to needing a clean.

The more and denser you pack a filter with floss, the best polishing media, the slower the movement the water will be.

Kev.

The Glass is always greener on the other side.


It's NOT "Chee lick", NOT "Chee Chee Licks"!!! Cichlids is pronounced as "Sick Lids"!!!!!

Please Log in to join the conversation.

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27 Jan 2014 19:57 #8 by archibalts (Arvis)

No Filter, other than a Filter using Diatomaceous earth will give you nearly instant clear water, Filters become more effective at removing particulates the more clogged they become as the gaps between the filter medium becomes dirtier, any Filter will give amazing results the closer it gets to needing a clean.

The more and denser you pack a filter with floss, the best polishing media, the slower the movement the water will be.

Kev.

Got you! So then from what I understand, I have to buy way more powerful filter then I need, let it get dirty and then I' ll have clarity as I want.

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27 Jan 2014 20:04 #9 by Homer (Kevin)
Pretty much!

Kev.

The Glass is always greener on the other side.


It's NOT "Chee lick", NOT "Chee Chee Licks"!!! Cichlids is pronounced as "Sick Lids"!!!!!

Please Log in to join the conversation.

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27 Jan 2014 20:46 #10 by wolfie (Anthony)

i used a u2 in a heavily stocked 60l with no hassles whatsoever ,very good filter imo,i have one for sale as well €20 takes it just needs media and has very little use

Was you using it with poly/carbo cartridges? There are a lot of confusing statements about carbon use in planted aquariums.

no I was using sponge floss and ceramic and was always crystal clear

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28 Jan 2014 06:34 #11 by archibalts (Arvis)
Cheers guys! At the end I was going for U3, but amazon wasnt shipping it to IRL, so I ordered U2.

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