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ok, so I'm thinking of setting up my 20L as a stream/river type setup, the problem with that of course is maintaining a strong-ish unidirectional current. I figure I need a flow rate of about 300 GPH although a little faster would work too. the big problem is getting water collected at one end of the tank and delivered to the other, preferably while going through the filter somewhere along the line.

I have looked around and found one website ([link]http://www.loaches.com/articles/river-tank-manifold-design [/link]) with an article that describes a river-tank manifold using powerheads, but I'm concerned that with such a short tank the water wouldn't slow down enough to be adequately collected by the sponges used in this kind of setup. the other problem is that this setup doesn't allow for a filter.

any Ideas?

proud father of a bunch of baby haps. http://picasaweb.google.com/Sktchy/BABIES

Hi,
I'd suggest a canister filter large enough to turn the tank
over several times in an hour. Put the output (return)
at one end of the tank and through a spray bar that
was located underwater and pointed towards the other end.
Place the intake(s) at the opposite end.
Be sure to place some large rocks in the midst of the
currents to give the fish a place where they can get out of
the current and rest. Even fish in the fastest streams have
boulders that they can rest behind.

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

Just a note to thank you for that neat link with the manifold, i hadn't thought of something like that. Much cleaner and much more efficient than what i had thought of! Nice

It works in a 20g long. I know I read an article of someone that used a 20 long with that system only cut in half(1powerhead, 1 sponge) to breed homalopteras. It's a pretty versatile design that has been used in tanks of various size and shape. If your really worried about the sponge pulling in enough water you could use 2 sponges to 1 powerhead but there shouldn't be a problem with 300gph. Most run a powerfilter off one of the ends or a cannister with the spraybar behind the powerhead and the output tube behind the sponges. If you wanted to get a bit more complicated you could also setup a sump system like is used in marine tanks. Run an overflow down to a tank below the 20g, filter it in this lower tank, and pump it back up to the otherside of the 20g. You'd get unidirectional flow, a place to put filter media, and you can run most any gph you want provided you put in a big enough overflow and return pump. But it requires slightly trickier plumbing, since it's running outside the tank there's a chance for leaks, and overflows can sometimes be noisy. Everything has it's pros and cons.

the manifold seems like a good idea, if it really will work in a small tank then that's what I think I'll use, since it wouldn't mean buying a new and very expensive filter system.
thanks for the feedback everyone.

proud father of a bunch of baby haps. http://picasaweb.google.com/Sktchy/BABIES