dear everyone,
i'm somewhat new to the hobby. about seven years ago i had several planted tanks, mostly amazon swords, and was breeding rams and apistos at one point, but i ended up selling all my gear and getting out of the hobby because i had to move. i've missed having a planted tank, and am getting ready to set up my first aquarium since 2003!
here's the deal: someone gave me a 40 gallon breeder, pre-drilled, with a pair of holes at the top of the tank. one hole has a bulkhead. here's a picture: http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a91/ReadyRocksteady/breeder40.jpg. here's another picture: http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a91/ReadyRocksteady/breeder40-a.jpg
the guy at my LFS suggested i get a canister filter and use the holes as input and output. very easy. but i don't like the idea of having such a low, visible water line, and i don't like noise. i want a pretty tank, above all, not a high-tech one. should i go with the canister? or should i try sealing up the holes somehow and using a HOB filter? i've used aquaclears in the past and love them. or should i try to sell this tank and get one without holes? please advise!
my goals for the tank are very modest: i want to grow some easy plants and have some tetras swimming around. low cost, low stress. i might fiddle with diy co2 injection or fertilizing with excel, but i'm not planning on getting fancy. for the substrate i'm thinking of doing a layer of peat underneath a layer of plain sand. and of course i'll need another lightstrip or two.
here are some pictures of my past tanks (with some wildlife photos and cats thrown in): Animals - a set on Flickr
many thanks in advance!!
i'm somewhat new to the hobby. about seven years ago i had several planted tanks, mostly amazon swords, and was breeding rams and apistos at one point, but i ended up selling all my gear and getting out of the hobby because i had to move. i've missed having a planted tank, and am getting ready to set up my first aquarium since 2003!
here's the deal: someone gave me a 40 gallon breeder, pre-drilled, with a pair of holes at the top of the tank. one hole has a bulkhead. here's a picture: http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a91/ReadyRocksteady/breeder40.jpg. here's another picture: http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a91/ReadyRocksteady/breeder40-a.jpg
the guy at my LFS suggested i get a canister filter and use the holes as input and output. very easy. but i don't like the idea of having such a low, visible water line, and i don't like noise. i want a pretty tank, above all, not a high-tech one. should i go with the canister? or should i try sealing up the holes somehow and using a HOB filter? i've used aquaclears in the past and love them. or should i try to sell this tank and get one without holes? please advise!
my goals for the tank are very modest: i want to grow some easy plants and have some tetras swimming around. low cost, low stress. i might fiddle with diy co2 injection or fertilizing with excel, but i'm not planning on getting fancy. for the substrate i'm thinking of doing a layer of peat underneath a layer of plain sand. and of course i'll need another lightstrip or two.
here are some pictures of my past tanks (with some wildlife photos and cats thrown in): Animals - a set on Flickr
many thanks in advance!!