[johnwoods04]

I just bought a fluval 404 and a fluval 304. is this enough. Im going to start with about 20 small fish. i am also wanting to do a 3d bg, so that may make the tank smaller. i have two 300 watt heaters. is there anything else i should be buying. any help would be great. thank you

 

[johnwoods04]

also wanted to add that i need to make intakes and returns, can i make my intakes short in case the filters decide to leak so im cleaning up 20 gallons instead of 60. *** heard horror stories with the flavuls and leaking.

 

[shellies215]

I think you can get away with one 300 watt heater, and yes you can shorten your intakes some, but I think I read somewhere that fluval recommends they be 7 inches below the water surface.

I have been using fluvals for years and never had one leak, just pay attention to what you're doing and don't tear the O ring on the lid, and you'll be fine.

 

[dotbomb]

If you are concerned about them leaking then instead of cutting the intake tube just drill a small hole up hear the water line.

I'm running a Fluval 405 and an Eheim 2217 and have not taking any of these precautions though. Just have to be careful as you work with the filter.

 

[johnwoods04]

That is a great idea. I'm making the intake i will do that. Thank you both.

 

[dielikemoviestars]

Make sure to read up on "cycling" your tank. Article in the library section of this site. It'll save you a lot of heartache

 

[johnwoods04]

I did some good reading. Do you think the fluval 404 and 304 have enough flow to circulate the water. or should i look into getting a circulation pump and putting it in a corner?

 

[RRasco]

You will probably need a powerhead or two to hit the dead spots, but that's really up to you. It keeps the substrate cleaner if you don't allow it to settle. Those two cans should have more than enough flow for the fish.

 

[Glaneon]

I have a 305 & 404 and no leaky issues (once I replaced an old O-ring in the 404).

I would definitely get a circulator, I put a 1200GPH Aqueon in my 125 and it works great!
(Koralias will move a lot of water, just not very far into the tank, which is what I needed in this case).

 

[johnwoods04]

Should i connect the filters in parallel and use a one inch pipe or give each filter its own intake and exit. If i do run them in parallel should i put the intake on one side and the exit on the other?

 

[Glaneon]

give each it's own intake/exhaust.

 

[car0linab0y]

Should i connect the filters in parallel and use a one inch pipe or give each filter its own intake and exit. If i do run them in parallel should i put the intake on one side and the exit on the other?

w/my 405 I have the intake and return on the same end with the return facing the opposite end of the tank. that and two powerheads at a slight upward angle across the top. gives good surface agitation and pushes everything on the bottom back toward the intake.

 

[johnwoods04]

I just built my pvc lines and did just that so each canister has its own intake. looks pretty good. I used 1/2 pvc do you think it will be large enough?

 

[car0linab0y]

I just built my pvc lines and did just that so each canister has its own intake. looks pretty good. I used 1/2 pvc do you think it will be large enough?

I would've gone bigger personally. But if you're happy with the flow, stick with it.

 

[Randy_G]

The old style of Fluvals used to crack the lid, because of a poor design. I had one crack 2 lids. To Hagens credit they replaced the filter with the new design under warranty. :thumb: The new design worked wonderfully, and shouldn't leak.