Not sure what to do---advice please

Hi all, I would like some help please.

I have a 30g. wide and am using a penguin 200 for filtration. It's only turning over ~7 x the number of gallons per hour instead of the desired 10 x. My plants are not gently swaying and this concerns me.

The two options that I know of to improve this is to add another filter of same size and place them equally at the 1/3 point in the tank (from left and right), or get a small powerhead.

I was going to get another penguin to increase water flow and add more filtration. So, I experimented by moving the existing filter over to the 1/3 mark on the tank; it did nothing to improve the movement of the plants in that 1/3 section of the tank. So, although I would be doubling the water movement by using 2 filters, it doesn't appear that it would help in actually moving the plants.

Thoughts?

 

Pick up a powerhead ... you can get a small one for reasonably cheap. Try this ....
Marineland Ml90509 Maxi-Jet 400 PRO, 110/500GPH: Amazon.com: Pet Supplies

 

+1 Agreed

 

That's actually a good deal ... Might pick one up for my cube ... ;D;D

 

Ok, thank you. Where do you place the powerhead?

 

I'd try the opposite corner of your tank from the filter ... There's not really a wrong placement. It's more a matter of preference.

 

Thank you for your help. Do you have yours at the top or perhaps in the middle? I would think placing one at the top is best.

 

I kept mine at the top about 3 inches below the surface to create a better ripple effect at the top. Again, its preferences. Just go for a good ripple effect to exchange the gases.

 

Thank you so much for your help.

 

Pick up a powerhead or switch to a canister. With plants you don't really want to disturb the surface that much to keep co2 in the water