# 40 Gallon Breeder Canister Filter



## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

I am almost ready to add my mgoc and plants.At first I thought about just using a powerhead for 
circulation but now I see more NPT tanks with canister filters for circulation.
I have been looking at the Fluval 406 and it would provide almost 400 gph.Before I pull the plug and order one, is this an acceptable filter for my sized tank?

TIA


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## Say Car Ramrod (Feb 20, 2012)

A 406 is a good size filter for the tank. Most people shoot for a gph of 10x the tank volume. 

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## SBS (Feb 26, 2013)

Yes, I agree with the above. 10x is best even in NPT tanks. If you can set it up with a spraybar along the back, then even better.


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## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

Say Car Ramrod,Thanks for you advice.


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## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

SBS,
Thanks for your input,the spraybar sounds like a good idea.I was thinking about using the lily pipe setup,but a spraybar might be more usefull.


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## niko (Jan 28, 2004)

Do yourself a favor and find info here on this forum about setting up the water circulation inside the tank in such a way that it assures the best water movement and waste removal.

Fluval is as good as any other commercial filter. Fluvals are known to get noisy in 2-4 years (replacing the shaft fixes it usually).


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## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

niko,great advice.
Do you have any specific circulation threads you can refer/link me to?
Actually,I just found this,
http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/filtration/88242-how-setup-proper-water-flow.html


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## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

Well I have been doing some reading up on past APC threads and have another question. 
Is it ok to start my canister full of 
Lava rock.Can I remove the foam prefilter and fill this area with lava rock.My goal here would be to get the canister started up and not having to bother it again for awhile.


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## niko (Jan 28, 2004)

Never forget that the filter is just part of the system. It will work only IF the system is working well. That means that you can compensate for one part that is not working very well by changing the others:

Using only lava rock is not a good or bad idea. It all depends on how your system is setup. Too many fish and you got to forget the "lava rock only" filter. The Japanese use only biomedia (it is pumice, not lava rock) because their tanks have very low fish load, the water is not loaded with fertilizers, and the flow throughout the tank and the shrimp in it make it very efficient in removing waste.

If you want to emulate the Japanese biofilter media go on ebay and get a full box of pumice sold for Bonsai. It is the exact same thing as ADA's biomedia and way cheaper. There are different sizes. You need the grains to be about 5 to 10 mm.

Chances are you will be overloading your system with fish. That's what most folk in the US do. In that case you are better off having a second filter that is only mechanical. The most practical approach to filtration is to have both mechanical and biological filtration anyway. I Japanese tanks the pumice serves both purposes but don't forget that the entire tank is setup in a specific way so the pumice works just fine.


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## glennd (Jun 30, 2013)

niko,
Thanks,I will definitely be in the high fish load camp and will take your advice.I will use the canister filter as it is configured from Fluval.


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