External canister filtration

[andyroo]

Folks,



a) wife is fed up with the noise of my old canister filter and b) she's going to Miami next week and staying next door to a Petsmart.
So she's putting her dainty little (apparently) foot down and we're replacing my beautiful home-make duct-tape special.

As much as i prefer the mom'n'pop-shops and loath the Walmartization of my precious hobby, seems she has a point. It is time.

Need opinions in new canister to fit in cupboard.
a) 90-100 gal capacity
b) efficient- electricity is very costly.
c) silent/quiet
d) no special media. Can't easily replace.
e) fits in a 7" wide, 19" high and 15" deep cupboard. Have saw, can modify (a bit) when she's not looking.
f) good flow (loaches and river-stuff)

Petsmart website has a couple of fluval, eheim, rena and similar models. I've been making my own since i was a kid. Not sure what i'm asking for.
Current machine is (based on) a Marineland Magnum 330, well warn in the drive-magnet area and grumbling. Looses prime on occasion.

Should 50/60 cycle electricity make a difference?

I have an old "Little Giant" 63 watt external in a drawer, but seems overkill and electricity-thirsty compared to these new systems.

A

[janma]

One word: Eheim. I would personally get the EHEIM Professionel II 2028 for that tank.

a) up to 158gal (always oversize)
b) 20W
c) don't know, but all the Eheims I have are super-quiet, especially if in a cupboard
d) use what media u like
e) size in metric 21x21x45,5cm
f) 198GPH, which is quite good for a canister filter, but this depends on what media you put in it

A friend of mine got the new professional 3e, which is pretty cool. Both models have greater flow than the above, but the price is greater too

[andyroo]

i'm suffering a little bit of "sticker shock" with the Eheim, though they do appear to be bulletproof. When i can't replace easily quality becomes very important... though my attention is drawn to the Marineland and their glitzy website...
How much of the Eheim cost is paying for the brand, ie: is it a Cadillac or a Mercedes? (this analogy will get some backs up :)

[Ashleigh]

I think there are Aquapro models that are based on the 'idea' of Eheim. I have found these to be pretty good; I have two on my clown tank. I did have an Eheim wet and dry, although part has now broke, and I am having difficulty sourcing the bit. When I do, it will cost around £40. Its an impressive filter though, and if I had the money I would obviously use them over the Aquapro's


Ashleigh

[janma]

Don't know much about cars, I borrow a Ford from time to time. But the Eheim isn't that expensive, at least here. Ordering them from Germany saves money

But it's worth the price. I've tried other brands but I'll stick with Eheim now and in the future. The low running sound is a big plus. My river tank has two canister filters and one internal, all Eheim and the only sound is water dripping from my "water-wall".

[nighthawk]

If you can't afford the 2028 you could go with the classic line. The 2217 is rated for a 160 gallon tank. They can be purchased online with media for less than $150. Usually about $120.

BTW Eheim is the Mercedes of filters. IMHO

[kimura]

i recently got a new in the box fluval 404 for 62.00 shipped off ebay. some guy regularly sells them for about 85.00 including shipping but if you are patient you can find a good deal like i did. since they retail for 199.00 , even 85 bucks is a good deal in my opinion. good luck!!

[StraightClownin]

Petsmart Code. I used it to buy two eheim filters saved over 80 dollars from the online price.. which would prolly be 180+ from buying it in store.
Heres a code to order online to save yourself a ton of money!

Receive 15% off your order of $70 or more plus Free Shipping. Use code: SAVEAPR 4/1/08 - 4/30/08

[loachmom]

Just thought I'd chime in to say that I've had two Rena XP3s for almost a year, and I am very happy with them. I've never had an Eheim to compare them to, though, and that might be why I'm so happy with what I have.

[FISHNUTS]

I must say I will be going with an eheim next time I purchase a filter for my living room. I now have a Rene XP4 which is ok, it does suck some air and pushes it out the spray bar, for the life of me I cannot find where or how it is doing this. The noise is minimal and does not bother me or the wife so much. Frustrating when this should not happen from almost day one.

Judging buy your picture that is a nice tank so belly up to the petstore and put money down on a good quiet filter. Your wife is right on this topic. A noisy filter is fine for the basement but not for HER living room. Like the other posts say eheim!!!!

It may save you money in long run, nothing worse than an unhappy spouse.

sl

[Diana]

The Fluval is too tall, and there is not much give in the hoses. Also, they are difficult to get parts for, and do fail.
My Rena Filstars are younger, so do not have as long a track record with me, but seem to be better.
I have only one Eheim, and it seems to be rather wimpy as far as flow. It does not pick up much debris. I have moved it to several areas of the tank, and the other filter needs cleaning much more often, because the Ehiem is not doing the job. It is very quiet, but so are the others.
Both the Eheim and the Rena have the hoses coming out at an angle, and can swivel, so placing in a tight spot has some more possiblities.
The Rena is a shorter, wider filter than the similar sized Fluval. For a tank somewhere around 100 gallons (American or Imperial gallons) I would go with a Rena Filstar XP3.

[andyroo]

the machine i've got in now is a mid-'90s Marineland. It looses prime occasionally, particularly when it needs cleaning, but even with poor jamaican electricity and running constantly (and sometimes dry/primeless) for me for 4 years and for the original owner as marine for three (plus 3 years in a rat-filled storage shed) it seems pretty solid.
Any thoughts on this brand? They seem to have a new model out that has impressive specs for just over 1/2 the Eheim money.

http://www.marinelandc-series.com/

Beware of any with too flash of a website....

A

[Clowntje]

Here in Holland the Eheim is selled cheap trough internet but most stores if u buy there often give u a discount.
On this moment i have several Eheim pumps going from classic to ecco and now also the pro 3 serie.
which i love to bits, especially since u can adjust the flow of it and it has lots of extra's like riverflow, it also shows u when it needs to be cleaned.
i never used anything else since it either is rubbish or more expensive than Eheim.

Have a good look at the online stores in Finland most of the time they are cheaper than the stores, but watch out for the trick sometimes in the online stores u need to pay for the filtermedium. but that depends on the type of filter u decide to buy.

[andyroo]

As a final note:
Filter arrived. A Magnum 350. I don't remember that on the list, but "the salesman said it was the best for our tank". Same salesman that said the Eheim for 125gal would be too powerful and "suck up" our Y. modesta... So is the state of Petsmart's hiring standards. Might as well have gone to Walmart.

SO: i've owned Suzukis for the better part of a decade now. I know what "Cheap" feels like. I'm no engineer and even i can see where the problems (read: cracks and massive drainage) will occur. I notice it says on the box "up to 100 gal" but no flow rates or useful specs. At 35 watts it's also the thirstiest of the options and the impeller seems relatively small and simple. Internet user opinion seem pretty split- some think it's OK if it is the backup, others think it's utter foolishness and designed by a kindergarten class and others think it's the bee's knees. I tend to take the latter with a pinch of salt.

I see and know that several of you use these filter, usually in tandem with other things. So the question is: a) do i keep it and use whatever tricks you lovely folks provide to keep it alive and efficient including how on earth one keeps the "accordion micro-polishing filter" functional, or b) keep it in the box and when i get to Miami in July take it back to Petsmart and feed it to the snot-nosed college brat who "sold" (note seething venom) it to my wife.

We've got a saying around here: Suzuki Cheap. Means that it will be somewhat inexpensive and all the secondary bits (door handles, electric windows, door locks, radio antenna etc... ) will break or fall off, but it will never break down or get stuck. I hope this filter is a Suzuki rather then a Yugo.

A

[nighthawk]

The Magnum 350 is IMO a great mechanical filter. I hope it came with the Bio_Wheels. These are for biological filtration.

As for the micron cartridge, when you see the flow rate begining to slow down take it out and risne it with a hose. You can aslo soak it overnight in a bleach and water solution. This step isn't necessary but I do it because I like it to be nice and white when I put it back in. Just remember to rinse it until you no longer smell the bleach before you put it back in.