Art_Giacosa

I'm in the planning stages of a nano. I'm stuck on filtration. Does a nano need a filter? Any recommendations if it does? What do you have on yours?

AaronT

I like the Red Sea nano HOB filters for nano tanks. I have one on my 5.5 gallon and it's great. IMO all planted tanks need flow of some sort so the water doesn't get stagnant. The nice thing about the Red Sea filter is that it's cheap at around $10.00 and the flow is adjustable.

JanS

Art, is it going to be plants only, or are you going to add fish or shrimp?

If I have any livestock in a tank I always want some sort of filtration.

They have some really nice little filters just for nano sized tanks out there these days. I belive Aqua Clear, Whisper and Azoo all have tiny palm filter sized ones to name a few. I know Whisper now has a tiny internal filter that really caught my eye as well.

gnome

I have an AZOO palm filter on my 2.5-gallon tank, but it's off most of the time (unless I forget to unplug it). I only use it to dose fertilizers, and the dry stuff dissolves within 5 minutes. I use a passive-type CO2 injection (in addition to Flourish Excel). I only have three tiny guppies plus two fry that they spawned, and maybe some snails in this tank, so filtration is not really necessary.

I do the same with the AquaClear MINI on my 10-gallon tank. I use it to dose ferts, then I turn it off. Come to think of it, I only run the power filter on my 20-gallon at night. The DIY reactor I made for this tank works a little *too* well and to be safe, I try to remember to turn on the filter when CO2 is likely to accumulate. After I dose the ferts in the morning, I unplug it... People might frown on this, but I really don't stock my tanks very heavily with fish at all.

-Naomi

Fosty

I'll agree with grandmasterofpool, all planted tanks should have some water movement. On mine, I don't yet have a filter and the water gets stagnant and a film develops on the surface thats pretty ugly, and I can't imagine that stagnant water is very good for the health of the plants. On the other hand the tank next to it is the same size, but it has a small filter and it is doing much better with no surface film and healthy plants. BTW, the only nanos I have experience with are 5.5 gallons. I've never had anything smaller than that.

turtlehead

You don't really need a filter for nanos, at least not for a 1 gallon, my tank is crystal clear without one.

gnome

This depends on the individual set-up. In the case of my 10-gallon, I had the opposite effect from above... Since I'm too cheap to get a pressurized CO2 system OR a canister filter, my AC Mini at the lowest setting was enough to degas out the very little CO2 my DIY system could supply. I was dosing ample ferts. I had the CO2 bubbling into a MiniJet 404. Every plant I put in there would die a slow, excruciating (for me) death. The owner of a very reputable LFS suggested that I turn off the filter. I was a bit skeptical myself because this was a 10 gallon tank, but he showed me how some of his beautiful planted 10's had no filtration and the fish were doing fine. Sure enough, when I unplugged my filter, my plants started pearling and I began to get good growth. Then again, I still have light circulation from the MiniJet (which is set at the lowest flow), so the water is not entirely "stagnant."

I get surface scum regardless of whether or not I have the filter running. The only way it disappears is if the water level gets low enough that the water is "splashing" into the tank from the overflow; but just because I don't see it doesn't mean I don't have organics accumulating in the tank. Surface scum is from organics. Water changes, healthy plants (minimal decay) and under-stocking with fish/not over-feeding are the remedies. But in my case, the only way to get the plants healthy is to turn off the filter. Plus, I'm very lazy with water changes.

I remember how Ghazanfar Ghori (whatever happened to him, anyway?) had a 2.5-gallon tank with no filter whatsoever, no CO2 injection, no heater, only an 18-watt Aqualight for powered hardware. He grew nothing but erect moss in this tank, if I remember correctly, and it was *awesome*!!! And his cherry red shrimp were breeding like bunnies in it. I don't think he was even adding fertilizer to this tank... The moss probably managed on shrimp waste and whatever was already in the tap water.

It can be done. I actually do prefer the look of water movement, but the drawback in my particular situation is that the CO2 gets depleted, and I have plants that need elevated CO2. A nano with Anubias or Marsilea or Java moss - you can go either way with filtration.

-Naomi

turtlehead

What gnome said is true, my 1 g is running like that 2.5 g. Only a 19 watt spiral CF

JanS

Naomi, that would make me very nervous to use a HOB on a part time basis. Any time it's on, it's going to draw stuff to build your good bacteria, and when it gets shut off, that bacteria can turn toxic. When you turn it on again, it's going to dump the toxic stuff back into your tank, and could be very stressful on the livestock in there.

I'm not saying it doesn't work for you, but you may be better off with something like a sponge filter or anything but an external filter given your usage pattern.

brianclaw

I'm still waiting on a Zoo Med Turtle Clean 501 canister for my 1ft cube. Those look like they'd make a pretty sweet canister for smaller tanks. They measure roughly 6" x" 6 x 3.5"(W), can run level with the tank and has a 78(?)gph rating(they claim it's suitable for tanks up to 30+ gallons).