Older tank equipment

When I got my 29 gallon it came with some older type of fish supplies,

I already looked up how to use them, but Im still wondering if they are gonna do the job in my tank, it came with an undergravel filter which Im wondering if will do a good job in cleaning my tank, especially since I am gonna have my first hard scape so Ill be having rocks in the way of some spots in the filter. Just wondering if the UnderGravel Filter will do the job.

 

This was a highly debated topic for quite a while. I think the consensus from my research was that it served its purpose and could function well if properly maintained. Lots of rock work and thick gravel beds tended to reduce its effectiveness. Not to mention the ease of utilization of things like HOB filters or canister or even sumps further discounted the use of undergravels. The best answer I could give would be to research the pros and cons of an undergravel and understand the maintenance associated with them.

 

I think the short answer is they work in some situations, and when they work, they work just as well as other filters. In some other circumstances, they are not good at all.

I had them in 55g tanks with good success. The guy I got them from was this hardened old-timey hippie. He had a 150g or 200g tank with 4" of gravel at the ends going down to 2" or 1½" in the middle. The difference between his setup and "normal" ones was that he (and I did too after seeing his work) used at least one 350gph powerhead. I like the Odyssea ones, but there are others that might work too. Just plug the powered into the uplift tube and it will pull all the junk into the rocks to be held there till you gravel vac.

The tech is old-school, but it works fine (I have an airpowered system in my 55g African cichlid tank as I write this. That is, in addition to the 2 Penguin 350s....).
It works fine as a primary filter, biologically. If you want "scrubbed" or "polished" water, then you will need a different type of filter that allows pads that are super fine. Sand bottomed tanks would not work since the sand would just cycle right through the grate (and the whole idea of getting the junk into the substrate and out of sight would be defeated).

What type of fish do you plan on and what kind of scape? I think that is the bigger question rather than whether the filter works.

 

I think the short answer is they work in some situations, and when they work, they work just as well as other filters. In some other circumstances, they are not good at all.

I had them in 55g tanks with good success. The guy I got them from was this hardened old-timey hippie. He had a 150g or 200g tank with 4" of gravel at the ends going down to 2" or 1½" in the middle. The difference between his setup and "normal" ones was that he (and I did too after seeing his work) used at least one 350gph powerhead. I like the Odyssea ones, but there are others that might work too. Just plug the powered into the uplift tube and it will pull all the junk into the rocks to be held there till you gravel vac.

The tech is old-school, but it works fine (I have an airpowered system in my 55g African cichlid tank as I write this. That is, in addition to the 2 Penguin 350s....).
It works fine as a primary filter, biologically. If you want "scrubbed" or "polished" water, then you will need a different type of filter that allows pads that are super fine. Sand bottomed tanks would not work since the sand would just cycle right through the grate (and the whole idea of getting the junk into the substrate and out of sight would be defeated).

What type of fish do you plan on and what kind of scape? I think that is the bigger question rather than whether the filter works.

I just want Cardinal Tetras, Pearl Gourami, and some warm water Cory Catfish.

But for right now im gonna haft to keep my platy in it.

 

I just want Cardinal Tetras, Pearl Gourami, and some warm water Cory Catfish.

But for right now im gonna haft to keep my platy in it.

The corys need soft substrate so their barbels stay healthy, so I would look at small rounded river rocks if you want to use a UG filter. If you don't want a UG filter, then I'd just use sand.

 

The corys need soft substrate so their barbels stay healthy, so I would look at small rounded river rocks if you want to use a UG filter. If you don't want a UG filter, then I'd just use sand.

ok thats cool since the tank came with small river rocks.

 

ok thats cool since the tank came with small river rocks.

Sounds good. Did it come with powerheads or an air line? I think powerheads are more fun, but probably not necessary unless you have fish that like water flow.

 

Sounds good. Did it come with powerheads or an air line? I think powerheads are more fun, but probably not necessary unless you have fish that like water flow.

It came with airline, but I do wanna buy a powerhead in the future for future tanks.

 

Air line works fine, but I loke the powerheads because I can get sponge filters that clip on to the inlet for when I stir up junk from gravel vacuuming or messing with decor position.