Just got my new tank! 125 gallons.

[Brian Anderson]

i just got my tank. its sweet. it came with a bunch of stuff but i again have some questions.

1) do i have the filters in that emperor the right way?
2) what are the gray things pictured?
3) are 3 emperor 400's enough for this tank...plus some airators?
4) what are the clear things pictured?

thanks everyone.

 

[webcricket]

Can't answer everything for you, but pic #3 are vinyl strips that go on the back of a glass canopy:

The glass slips in the groove and then the vinyl rests on the edge of the tank.

 

[dekalb21]

1. If I'm remembering correctly you use only one blue filter, not two back-to-back like that.
2. You put the grey piece in the back slot to catch larger peices of junk, or for other filter media, it snaps apart. back = closest to back of filter.

EDIT: It looks like you may only have one side to that grey piece? There are supposed to be two that snap together.

 

[CoreyMac]

Gray piece should be 2 pieces for each side. It's for additional media such as carbon.

 

[Grundy]

The water comes in on the side opposite the wheel. The blue should be facing that direction (away from the wheel) with the gray piece between the two. You can put carbon, zeolite, biomedia, or more sponge in these if you like. Good luck!

 

[Brian Anderson]

next question, this thing is right by my bed.

5) are the whisper air pumps the quitest?
6) about what size should i get.
7) what are the bigger size pumps for and what are the littler ones for?
8) they most all have dual outlets so what would it take to work one airstone? i can figure out what needs what and how to figure out how much air to run to a thing if i can get a general idea.

thanks.

 

[Grundy]

3 Emperors should be plenty on that tank. In fact, I don't think you would need an airstone (unless you want one for one of those decorations, etc.) Having a 125 gallon myself, I can tell you that one of the best things I did was getting canister filters. Don't get me wrong, the Emperors have been on the tank for over 6 years and have done a decent job of filtration and aeration. However, the canisters I have are practically silent and help with water flow in the tank. If you have the resources get an Eheim or Fluval for that tank.
What are you thinking of having in the tank? That may help answer some of your questions.
Good luck!

 

[Brian Anderson]

well here are a few more pictures before it cracked. (see other post, its getting fixed somehow)

i have some stuff coming in the mail
-18" plants
-13" plants
-smaller size plants (ebay lot of brand new from 5"-11")
-prime decholorinator
-AP test kit

also i found someone selling a emperor 400, a fluval 403 and 404...so im probably going to jump on that as i want another emperor, and might add one of the canister filters.

9) canister filters go in the water right?
10) if im right on 9 how do you guys hide them?
11) im going to use pool filter sand...will i have to clean it? if so how?

i think thats all for right now. thanks a lot.

http://img481.imageshack.us/img481/7645/justpictures026if9.jpg

 

[jjanoch]

1. If I'm remembering correctly you use only one blue filter, not two back-to-back like that.
2. You put the grey piece in the back slot to catch larger peices of junk, or for other filter media, it snaps apart. back = closest to back of filter.

EDIT: It looks like you may only have one side to that grey piece? There are supposed to be two that snap together.

They are designed to allow for one or TWO filters per side. I started using two, and only swapping out one each month (alternating) to keep the cost down to the same as using one (replacing every 30 days). Not sure how much the additional filtration does, but the filter is designed to allow for this.

 

[dorkfish]

9) they do not go in the water. They go inside the stand or wherever you decide to put them. The only parts visible inside the tank will be some tubing.

11) I used it in my reef tank and did not clean it. I didn't expierience any significant downsides to doing htis, although the tank was really cloudy for a day and a bit cloudy for another week (during which time you will be cycling the tank anyway, this is also probably gonna happen even if you do clean it).