# Filter Recommendation



## Westyggx (25 Jul 2011)

Hi Guys, i don't think my Tetratec 1200 is cutting the mustard in my 125l tank. Can someone please suggest a better one which is going to give me better flow in my tank? Buying another 1200 is probably not an option as i cant fit another one in my cabinet.

Cheers


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## Alastair (25 Jul 2011)

Hiya mate. Have you tried removing the two black foam media in the middle. I did that and flow improved alot when I ran them :0)


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## Alastair (25 Jul 2011)

Ps Have you looked at the all pond solutions filters mate. They look pretty good


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## Westyggx (25 Jul 2011)

No i haven't actually mate i will give that a go, whats the fx5 specs like?


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## Alastair (25 Jul 2011)

Westyggx said:
			
		

> No i haven't actually mate i will give that a go, whats the fx5 specs like?



I'm well impressed with my two on my tank, you'd have to turn the output down somewhat on yours though he he but awesome filter for the money. I got mine second hand, one for 60 and the other for 50. With a tank your size you could put filter floss on the top tray which will slow down flow a bit too. Othe than that just fill all the middle trays with bio rings. I was worried that it being such a monster of a filter that it would be noisy but was totally wrong on that. Plus, you can use them as a pump on water changes. I've gone from taking out 200 litres by bucket, which took a good while, to draining half the tank in under 5 minutes.


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## Westyggx (26 Jul 2011)

Alastair said:
			
		

> Westyggx said:
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> 
> 
> ...



Cheers for that mate ill have a look into them, yeh i bought my last Tetratec 1200 from Aquarist Classified for like £40 so was decent price for that filter. Ill have a look out for the FX5 once i've read up on it. Where does your water go then once you use the pump?


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## Alastair (26 Jul 2011)

I let some of it water my plants then the rest just down the sink mate.


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## Westyggx (26 Jul 2011)

No i mean do you put it straight into the sink or bucket to sink if it drains the tank in 5 mins lol.


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## Alastair (26 Jul 2011)

Oh sorry mate, straight to sink. I bought 8 meters of clear braided hose that is attached to an aqua stop valve, that pops on the output and then other end goes to the sink. Easy peasy. Then just have a mixer tap with hose that fills it back up :0)


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## Westyggx (28 Jul 2011)

Al i have sourced a FX5 second hand for £80, just wondering whether this is going to be overkill or not though? What do you think? Can the flow be turned down sufficiently?


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## Alastair (28 Jul 2011)

Yes mate, you can halve the outflow or less if you want to. That's what I did originally.  80 is a good price mate. Just fill the inside with lots of ceramic rings. Iquatics are great for them. Youd only need around 2kg of them I'm looking for another now as I've just bought another vision 450 for 250 squid :0)


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## Westyggx (28 Jul 2011)

Ok cool because i want great flow in my tank but i dont want a tidal wave haha. Comes with all pipework and media, is it 16/22 hose do you know? As i have a inline diffuser.

Cheers


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## Alastair (28 Jul 2011)

No mate, it's 25mm internal diameter lol. If you want to stick with the Inline diffuser, maybe pm George farmer as I recall in his jungle tank he used an fx5 but had a converter in the pipe to step it down to 16/22 and used the g6 outlet. It would be a tidal wave if you had it full whack ha ha .


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## Westyggx (28 Jul 2011)

Ok i actually have a glass diffuser as well so could stick this on for the time being. Cheers for the input i will message George.


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## Alastair (28 Jul 2011)

I run my glass diffuser under the intakes and the filter smashes up The bubbles


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## Matt Warner (28 Jul 2011)

How is the fx5 westy in your 125l? I was considering putting one in my 125l but was worried it would turn the tank into a jacuzzi lol!


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## Westyggx (28 Jul 2011)

Matty1983 said:
			
		

> How is the fx5 westy in your 125l? I was considering putting one in my 125l but was worried it would turn the tank into a jacuzzi lol!



Not getting it till Saturday mate.


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## logi-cat (11 Aug 2011)

Having more media in the filter tends to reduce your flow rate. By removing a sponge or two you increase the flow rate of the filter because there's nothing holding it back (or blocking the water's route).


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## Westyggx (11 Aug 2011)

Just to confirm this filter is the best thing i have bought for my tank, its alsmost completely stopped my BBA do to better flow/co2 distribution and my tank has never been so clear. I had a lot of noise initially but after some modifications to the size of pipes etc the filter is as quite as i could imagine it to be.

Cheers


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## Alastair (11 Aug 2011)

Awesome mate. Glad it's all sorted now. I love mine. I find the longer its left it polished the water better


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## greenink (14 Aug 2011)

Westyggx said:
			
		

> Just to confirm this filter is the best thing i have bought for my tank, its alsmost completely stopped my BBA do to better flow/co2 distribution and my tank has never been so clear. I had a lot of noise initially but after some modifications to the size of pipes etc the filter is as quite as i could imagine it to be.
> 
> Cheers



What did you do about the inline diffuser?


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## Westyggx (14 Aug 2011)

I sold it mate, using the ceramic now under the powerhead which is giving sufficient distribution.


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## Darren Carter (23 Mar 2018)

I’m looking at getting a fx4 for my 125l tank any advise u can give on the upgrades u used to help cut down on noise and run good in a 125l thanks in advance


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## Goose157 (23 Mar 2018)

They are big!! Lol... I recently got a jbl 1902 - 1900 ltr per hour and could not be happier.... it’s a big filter too but narrow enough to got in my small cabinet - the fx4 would no way fit !!! Too wide!! Cheers 
Chris


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## Darren Carter (23 Mar 2018)

I have worked out the size etc and it will fit under my cabinet I’m just more concerned about the flow rate in the 125l tank love the idea of doing water changes and refilling through the filter


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