Filter current too strong?

[solefald]

Hello everyone,

Couple of days ago we got a juvenile P.waltl from a local pet store (What a cool little guy!) along with an "amphibian starter kit". A 10Gal tank, a filter, some rocks, plants, a book and so on.

Everything is fine, but I am very concerned about the filter. It's a submersible Ovation 210 / 53GPH filter with a spray bar and it sits in about 7"-8" of water.

My concern is that it creates a very strong current with, and without the spray bar, and poor little guy gets thrown around the tank a whole bunch. I have tried putting the spray bar above the water, but it does not help much and sounds like a shower head. Tried turning it in different directions, towards the glass, away from the glass, up, down, and towards the rocks to diffuse the current, but It seems to me that the current is still way too strong. Also, turning the spray bar output towards the glass or a rock (1" away) creates enough back flow for suction cups holding the filter to the bottom of the tank to come off! I mean it's CRAZY strong.

I am not familiar with these filters, so I am not sure if this was done by design, but the pump was advertised specifically for shallow water and reptilian/amphibian setups.

Another thing i noticed is that Norton (thats what my son called him) would constantly go and try to get on top of the pump, in the area where current was not as strong, but before he even got there he got flipped and thrown around a bunch. So this morning, before leaving for work, I turned off the filter and he immediately chilled out, walked around the tank, climbed on the rock and stuck his head of out the water. I am not sure what it means exactly, but he appeared pretty happy.

So my questions are:
1. How does P.waltl handle currents and what is too much of a current?
2. What filter would *you* recommend? I assume adjustable flow a way to go?
3. What is the best way to diffuse that flow? I can try to drill more holes in the stray bar to releve the pressure.
4. What does it mean when they just stick their heads out of the water? Is this good or bad?


Sorry for the long post, and than you in advance
-i

 

[Ltdanicecream]

If the animal is being tossed around then its definately too strong hah. In my ten gallon, I dont even use a filter and my water is clean enough to drink (Im not going to try though!) Live plants *essentially* do the same thing as a filter, in that they take bad thingies out of the water and put good thingies in, so some elodea might be a good investment. If you get a turkey baster (God I love my turkey baster) and suck out the waste, you should be good with frequent water changes and no filter. Is this your first newt or salamander? If so, welcome to the hobby! :blob:

 

[Mac Myers]

Hello everyone,
3. What is the best way to diffuse that flow? I can try to drill more holes in the stray bar to releve the pressure.

My 15.3 cents American.
Drilling more holes will help ( all on the same side) as will increasing the diameter of the holes. Then make sure they are just slightly submerged and pointing up and towards the back tank wall. I had a friend who dilled a small hole in the bar cap too. Using a longer spraybar can help as well. You can also use tubing to create a longer "bar" with more holes. Increasing the amount of aeration my also slow the current. I'm not that familiar with your filter... but I use a Repticlear 350 that actually has a flow rate adjuster... bit it's INSIDE the filter upside down on the bottom of the impeller housing and not mentioned in the directions at all. I've also had luck covering outlets with a foam filter thing like the one that comes with the Zoo Med 501:happy: