Does anybody run the Marineland Tidepool Filter Setup???

[Big Boy69]

Can you please tell me more about it???

I looked at a tank today and he said the Tidepool overflow is together with the skimmer. And that's what it looks like.

Can someone tell me how good the setup is and how it basically works??

[Big Boy69]

^^

[tgreene]

I have it on my 80, and it SUCKS!!!!

It's loud
It leaks around the drip trays
It clogs up
It air locks
It's loud
It surges and runs dry, heating up the return pump, before "releasing" the airlock and filling the sump again.
It's loud
It's prone to alge clogs

[wax addict]

i have one on my 75g and i think it rocks. it is quiet, does not leak. i dont know how it could from where he is talking. has never clogged and has been one of easiest maintainance filters ive ever had. you pull out the trays and boom youre done . media is customizeable and media is fairly cheap for it carbon pillow pads and the fine pads are the ****. i use about 8lbs of crushed live rock in the sump with a skimmer, via aqua 3600 and heater.
once i adjusted the ball valve on the return side i have never touched it since, and have had no fluctuations in sump . i love the damn thing

[tgreene]

The leaks come from the moisture that builds up in the "tower" section where the trays are. The tower is a seperate piece of plastic that is poorly fastened to the sump base, and is prone to leaking.

Salt creep is also a major concern, especially from the bleed hole in the top of the return drain/tower lid.

Last but not least, SPLASHING is a nightmare with these Tidepools!

[wax addict]

isee what you are saying, i actually siliconed the seam at the tower and put a lid with hole for return hose. it did splash pretty bad before that. after that though . works perfect. i think i am 1 of the only people who love this thing and cannot figure out why. for the money and how simple it is. i guess its an opinion. i still love mine

[nick18tjetta]

I have never used one, but one of my lfs's orders theses things by the pallet on a fairly regular basis. They use them mainly on fish only systems.

nick

[Big Boy69]

wax addict or anyone,
could i possibly cut the tidepool box in front of the bio wheel
(a big square),and mount the biowheel part on top of say the grating they use for corals at LFS's and put it inside say a 20gal tank on one end. It would create a big overflow off of the bottom of the tidepool into a 20 gal high tank. Making even more oxygen exchange.
Then put a pile of liverock underneath the biowheel under the grating and add my heater, skimmer and pump submersed in the other side of the 20 high???

Would something like that work since i'll already have the filter setup??? And making more water for the main tank????

I would love some input on the idea.

[tgreene]

I wouldn't do it!

First off, if you dose Calcium, then sooner or latter you'll come to realize that your Bio-wheel has become a large revolving chunk of live rock, which completely defeats the purpose of having it there to begin with. Now, if you attempt to clean said LR with either Vinegar or Muratic Acid (my weapon of choice), then the biolife will instantly be nuked into oblivion and you'll start a new cycle with traces of acid remain in the fibers.

In all honesty, I'm strongly considering removing the tray tower and Bio-Wheel, then setting the sup up as a fuge system, with the return pump placed in the Bio-Wheel section... This would eliminate just about everything that I hate about the Tidepool system, and would be better than tossing it into the garbage! ;)

[Big Boy69]

Can the tidepool be used for reef??

[tgreene]

That's how I've been running mine for the past 2 years.

[spamin76]

I just hate wet dry filters in general - I have one on my 90 and I am just too lazy to break it down and take it off... but I don't like it much at all.

[Big Boy69]

For the guys that run this setup, in what order from top to bottom, what media and pads do you run???

How are your water parameters normally???

[tgreene]

Top tray is coarse filter pad.
Center tray is generally kept empty, but I currently have charcoal in 2 mesh filter bags stuffed in there.
Bottom tray is kept full of ceramic bio noodles.