Not running filters 24/7?

[genitor]

I just read a debate in another forum where a guy had fry growout tanks and to conserve energy he had the filters on timers that would operate the following way:

sponge filters- on for 30 secs, off for 60 secs
hob's- on for 2 hrs. twice daily (his hob's have biowheels and he says they don't dry out)

What do you guys think about this?

[xoolooxunny]

i think the hobs dry out.

on for 30 off for 60? he uses more energy on the startup to make up for the 60 seconds that they're off, at least thats how most lights work, so i would imagine thats how a motor works as well, if not more energy.

The only way to really know is if he buys one of those contraptions that hook into your outlet and tells him how many kw hours he uses and then compare full running for a day and then try his crazy scheme of timed filtration.

[genitor]

i think the hobs dry out.

on for 30 off for 60? he uses more energy on the startup to make up for the 60 seconds that they're off, at least thats how most lights work, so i would imagine thats how a motor works as well, if not more energy.

The only way to really know is if he buys one of those contraptions that hook into your outlet and tells him how many kw hours he uses and then compare full running for a day and then try his crazy scheme of timed filtration.
Air pumps that drive spong efilters use electromagnets not motors. Hob's use induction motors. Not sure about startup currents for any of these (although i should since i did a course on these electromechanical machines last semester).

[Drumachine09]

Sounds kinda stupid to me.

[xoolooxunny]

i really dont see the point in keeping fish for a hobby if one of your main concerns is saving electricity by skimping out on the filtration, with all the different costs going into maintaining fish, i would think electricity is one of the cheaper things involved.

I started up a 75 gallon tank that runs a substrate heater, a 300w water heater, a canister filter & power head (that run 24/7), along with the lighting, and the electricity bill went up a couple of dollars a month, pretty cheap compared to the other things i buy for these little fishies!!

[cocoa_pleco]

I always have my filters running. The bacteria need the running water, and i find when you restart filters, especially canisters, they shoot out alot of crap.


That guy is stupid. If he cant spend 50 cents a day on running his tanks, get rid of em.

[genitor]

i really dont see the point in keeping fish for a hobby if one of your main concerns is saving electricity by skimping out on the filtration, with all the different costs going into maintaining fish, i would think electricity is one of the cheaper things involved.

I started up a 75 gallon tank that runs a substrate heater, a 300w water heater, a canister filter & power head (that run 24/7), along with the lighting, and the electricity bill went up a couple of dollars a month, pretty cheap compared to the other things i buy for these little fishies!!
I agree with you about the neglible amount of electricity consumed. I'm just curious as to if this will filter a tank efficiently. A few questions that come to mind are:
1-do fishes produce ammonia constantly or are there times of the day that it peaks that are related to when you feed them?
2-How quickly does the bb convert the ammonia and nitites.

Also, there was a post i read where a guy wanted to put a tank in a spot where ther is no electricty and was wondering how filtration can be obtained. So if this system with the hob's actually works i'm thinking maybe he could use some type of battery to run his filters for a certain amount of time each day and then recharge them every couple days?

[cocoa_pleco]

I read a question on no electricity too. Why the hell would someone trust batteries? use a extension cord or move the tank.

[Chrona]

Filters pull minimal electricity. Heck, big canister filters like the Eheim Pro's only pull 25 watts. By far the greatest use of electricity is with your heating, then your lighting.

[xoolooxunny]

our little fishy friends pump ammonia out of their gills all the time, but i imagine there is much more in their waste, and a just as much if not more in the food that doesnt get eaten when overfed:4:

[xoolooxunny]

I agree with you about the neglible amount of electricity consumed. I'm just curious as to if this will filter a tank efficiently. A few questions that come to mind are:
1-do fishes produce ammonia constantly or are there times of the day that it peaks that are related to when you feed them?
2-How quickly does the bb convert the ammonia and nitites.

I would think the bb takes care of the nitrite and ammonia as fast as you can eat a cookie. With a stable tank, there is never a measurable amount of ammonia in the tank, at least with our store bought test kits, which means, to me, that the bb converts it as fast as the fish put it out. Just an educated guess, anyone feel free to tell me I'm wrong, I won't be hurt, just learned.:14:

[Chrona]

You are completley wrong!!!


Just kidding. I don't know either, but I would assume it is within a minute or so as the ammonia is passed through various biological media. Adding ammonia to the water column won't result in instant conversion, because very little bacteria lives there. So in a 10g tank with a 100gph filter, you'd technically have to wait a maximum of 6 minutes, but it's probably less than that because the substrate takes care of a bit.

[xoolooxunny]

You are completley wrong!!!


Just kidding. I don't know either, but I would assume it is within a minute or so as the ammonia is passed through various biological media. Adding ammonia to the water column won't result in instant conversion, because very little bacteria lives there. So in a 10g tank with a 100gph filter, you'd technically have to wait a maximum of 6 minutes, but it's probably less than that because the substrate takes care of a bit.

Let's look into it, in case something like this ever comes up again, and just for our own knowledge, bc now i'm curious. And while we're at it, let's make it a big cookie:ezpi_wink1:

[Lady Hobbs]

With fry, all he needs is a sponge filter but it needs to keep running. I don't get the shutting it off and on either.

[crackatinny]

Also, I may be wrong here, but doesn't the movement of the water aid in oxygen?

[Lady Hobbs]

Sure does. I can see me shutting mine off and on all night. I'd be up all night PRIMING.

[Cichlid_Man]

The only time I shut my filters down is when I am cleaning them.

He's messing with the bacteria and actually using more power starting and stopping those filters as someone already pointed out.

Filters run 24/7

[cocoa_pleco]

If the guy wants to save electricity, use his houselights less since 50 cents a day is too much for equipment.