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I have been reading a book on how to get a good aqaurium setup and found out that about undergravel filters. Are they worth the money? And what is the best filter system for a 29g tank?

To each is own... I would avoid UDF's.

Lots of "crud" can build up under the plates.

Edit:

I should give you a little more info:

With time, all that "crud" will just build up until it throws your water paramiters all out of whack.

Get yourself a Good Hob( hang on back ) filter. These filters are great. Ease of operation and ease of cleaning. Most of them have an internal filter you can remove/rplace/clean on a regular basis. In my opinion Marineland makes a good filter. But again it's all up to what you want or can afford.

Last edited by R0B at 14-Oct-2005 19:54

i agree, avoid UGF's UNLESS you connect good quality reverse flow powerheads to the uplift tubes to provide better water circulation and you keep up on water changes/gravel vacs.

R0B is correct in stating that ugf's tend to have "dead spots" where water flow all but stops and becomes stagnant. The detritus that gets trapped in these areas will eventually turn to anaerobic bacteria, which actually will produce harmful toxic gasses that can kill your fish when they seep into the water column.

Also, you're limited in what substrate you can have and the type of plants that will not hate the increased water flow over their roots.

I like to find rogue UGF's and toss them out my 2nd story window, then bash them in with a sledge hammer, drive over them with a vehicle and follow it up with a ritualistic sacrifice by way of fire

Hi,
And I, on the other hand, have used nothing but UGFs
for over 50 years in several tanks, and NEVER had a single
problem. I don't have to keep worrying about impellers,
replacing cartriges, cloged sponges, or overflowing HOB
style filters.

Many continue to echo the faults that they had when they
were first introduced and powered by airstones in the
uplift tubes. Today, we use powerheads, can easily
compensate for "sensitive" plants, and with a Python, or
similiar syphon, can keep them clean and working
efficiently.

Frank


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

I am with Frank but only 35+years experience with them.

I have never had a problem. It is just a matter of using a good gravel vac weekly on the places where there are no plants.

There are some photos of the tank here.

[link=Betta 11Gal Desktop &amp; Placidity 5ft Community Tanks]http://photobucket.com/albums/b209/keithgh/Betta%20desktop%20tank/" style="COLOR: #00FF00[/link]


Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
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I'm going to attempt to do an RUGF in my 10 gal with sand

The main reason I want to do it is to get the intake AWAY from the sand (it'd be near the surface). Other reasons include not having to worry about hydrogen sulfide (all the crap gets blown out of the sand, and it gets stirred constantly), and being able to put some big rocks in there (an' doin'some good aquascaping) without having to worry about cleaning under them all the time.

I ran a UGF in a tank once, and I hated it...pain in the butt to clean, noisy (was air driven), sucked all the crap in the gravel and left it there....meh...I hated them...

I can see them being alright if you've got a powerhead on 'em, an' you're cleaning them out constantly...but if yer just gonna let 'em sit an' rot, yer just gonna get hydrogen sulfide...

I'd either go RUGF, HOB, cannister, or sump...or more than one or all of the above

Have fun