Advice on Filter, Media ect..

[Mekks]

Its been awhile since ive had a large fish tank, Picking up a used 75gallon tomorrow and I wanted some advice.

It comes with, Tank/Stand/Hood/Older filter.

I would like to buy a new filter, heater, media for the bottom of the tank ect..

Should i stick with a hang off the back filter? a cannister? Do I need a undergravel filter also?

Could I use stand as the media on the bottom or would i be better off with something else?

any help would be great. I dont want to go impulse buy parts.

[mark razmandi]

what you are reffering to media as, is actually called substrate. you can use a pool filter sand which is a great choice. canister is what i would use on that tank. a rena xp3 or eheim 2217 would be good

[Mekks]

Went shopping today. Picked up

150LB White Mystic II pool sand
emperor 400 bio wheel filter
Marineland Multi-Stage C-530 Canister Filter 150 Ga
Water conditioner
stress zyme
a garden hose
adapter faucet -> hose

Should I go with a inline heater? or one that sits in the tank.

Also where can i get 100% ammonia? i went to wall mart and the only kind they had was a cleaner typed that bubbled up when i shook it.

[mark razmandi]

walgreens, lowes, home depot, cvs, target...try those. i really dont like marineland canisters and i personally would have gone with an aquaclear HOB filter BUT the emperor is a great filter and i would get a jebo jager heater, a 250w

[Judge]

HI Mekks and welcome to FTF. The bio wheel is a bit gimmicky but I have used the same Marineland for a long time and it did very well. No complaints. Ace Hardware has pure ammonia. I looked everywhere until I found it there.I have 3 titanium heaters in my tanks. I have them placed on the back in the middle and I have never had any issues with them. Jebos are a little cheap. I had one as a beginner long time ago and it did not last more than a couple of months...maybe they have improved.
Feel free to ask any questions, we're here to help.

[mark razmandi]

jebo jager heaters are some of the best glass heaters on the market. titanium heaters are great too but they can tend to be pricier and not widely available. bio wheels suck and thats why i like aquaclears if you gotta go HOB. but dont let that discourage you bro, that emperor is an excellent filter and you got a canister too so thats great! your set up is fine and it will lead to a healthy aquarium

[Mekks]

Originally Posted by mark razmandi

walgreens, lowes, home depot, cvs, target...try those. i really dont like marineland canisters and i personally would have gone with an aquaclear HOB filter BUT the emperor is a great filter and i would get a jebo jager heater, a 250w

as for the emperor.. The guy at the fish store tossed it in for 20$ The marineland canister.. this is the biggest one they make and it seemed to get great reviews. Now i'm just getting back into tanks so long as it don't break I should be ok.

[mark razmandi]

Originally Posted by Mekks

as for the emperor.. The guy at the fish store tossed it in for 20$ The marineland canister.. this is the biggest one they make and it seemed to get great reviews. Now i'm just getting back into tanks so long as it don't break I should be ok.

20$?!?!?!? heck yea man thats a DEAL!!!

[Mekks]

Hydor ETH 300 In-Line Heater 300 Watt - 5/8 inch

Any advice on that heater? would prefer inline but if its total crap I can order something diffrent.

[ZeroSystem]

The only Hydor I've ever used was a wimpy 7.5 watt heat pad that boosted the ambient water temperature by a few degree's in my 2.5 gallon. Not sure how their other heaters are, but this little thing did it's job just fine. I run an AC110 and an Emperor 400 on my 75g. I personally like the AquaClear better, but the Emperor is certainly a great filter none the less. For $20 bucks, you diffinetly can't go wrong!