How to circulate and aerate a 10g

[changhsu]

Hi,

 

I have a ViaAqua AR 380. It is an upright 10g tank. I'm planning a very low maintanence tank, so I think I'm getting only LR, LS, inverts and corals etc, ie no fish, no feeding, very occassional water changes.

 

http://www.commodityaxis.com/tank.htm

 

I'm wondering what is the best way to get good circulation and aeration?

 

So far, here are the options I'm aware of:

 

1) a small Rio 50 or 90 powerhead that's quiet to operate and cheap eg $10. Is this going to be enough?

 

2) a ZooMed PowerSweep 212 or 214 rotating powerhead for about $14-$17, eg from Petco.com.

 

Does anyone have a ZooMed PowerSweep?

 

2a) is it noisy or just the same as a Rio? I prefer not to use the ViaAqua's built-in wet/dry trickle filter because the powerhead and trickling is too noisy for my bedroom. I assume better circulation creates better aeration and bio-filtration so that I can run the trickle filter for only a few hrs a day or even completely turn it off?

 

2b) is this overkill? is the ZooMed going to turn my small tank into a whirlpool washing machine and stress out the critters? i think the 212 is rated for a 20g and 214 for a 30g.

 

3) or is an extra powerhead really necessary since this tank supposedly has a superior integrated design? Can I just run the built-in trickle filter during my sleep (when I won't be aware of the noise). I think this won't be enough circulation, right?

 

Comments? What other cost-effective and quiet options would you suggest?

 

TIA

 

-chang

[adinsxq]

i have two of these....

http://aquaglobe.com/

(the 300 gph model)

 

in my 5.5, these bad boys run silent and have a easy pin-style flow adjustment (no getting out the pliers to twist any control knobs). they're super small and i can easily imagine them in a larger tank. the AC adaptor isn't integrated into the actual powerhead making it super tiny and won't generate any significant heat in your tank. the ouput can be rotated a full 360 degrees and ... gasp!... the suction cups actually stick. got them from dave espi

 

but if you want a used rio200 wink wink wink, PM me.

[Dave ESPI]

Adin posted for me (TY.)

 

also, look around here. (do a SEARCH)

there are quite a few threads on your questions.

if you want any of the heads, PM me.