The Eternal Question

dlee9707

So, i thought we just needed to have one of these. Filters, best bang for the buck? Canister or HOB? Voice your opinions.

Personally i think canisters are better than HOBs for the money because of how customizable they are. You can put any media in it you want easier and stuff it with a ton more floss if you want to polish more.

Only canisters i own are a fluval 404 and an eheim something.

The fluval is a little noisier than the eheim, but has about 100 more GPH for 100 bucks less (the eheim retails at 270 according to lfs who sold it to me for 220)

The Fluval is a PIA to prime as well. It boasts "Easy prime pump" or something like that, it takes forever. The eheim i pressed the big button twice and it syphoned to fill the container, which is see thru so i could tell when it was done. The eheim also displaces alot more and its hoses are cooler than the ribbed fluval hoses.

As for HOB's, i have a penguin HOB we got used, either the 300 or 500 gph model, i dunno which. I think Aquaclears are better based on what i've heard but have no experience. The penguin almost emptied my 65 tank the other day as well.

Anyone have experience with Rena Filstar Canisters?

So what kind of filters do you have and what do you have to say about them? Hopefully people will use this thread when searching for their own.

feederfish

I have a cassade canister filter . I prefer canister over HOBs . The biggest reason is noise and 2nd water movement . I don't use anything in my canister now just for flow . when I used it on my old fresh water setup it was mostly about the noise ( My tank is in my living room)

Tommy Gun

I actually prefer some HOB filters over cans myself...dlee you know my situation right now and I am still having the same issue with my fluval 404 right now. It 'behaved' for a couple days and is back to the same old same old with blowing bubbles into the tank all day. I am 99% sure that I have addressed any potential air leaks to the best of my ability, but still no dice on that one.

Anyways, usually you can find differing filter media for a HOB filter just like you can for a cannister filter. It may not seem that way because there are different shaped biomedia for cans, but other than that, there is still carbon, peat moss, filter floss, ammonia pillows, etc..etc...etc... However, I feel the benifit of the cans is that water is being forced through the media and cannot pass throught the filter without going through it. However, that is why it is much more important to maintain cans becuase if they get plugged up, very bad things can happen...or so I hear.

ryeen98

I Like a canister better they tend to be a bit more quiet and you have the ability to add an inline heater which also proves very convenient.

jamesR

I'd like to second tommygun's statement that cans rule by making sure the water has nowhere to go but through the media. What could compare to that? And as for the Rena Filstar, I'd say that you get more for your money in comparison to a fluval, as a Rena will pump more water than a Fluval of the same price. Only thing is the Fluvals are easier to work with in my opinion. I love the hose disconnect features. Also, I'm not real familiar with the 404, but I've used a 205 for almost a year, and never a single problem with it. It's super quiet. Has never clogged. So maybe you just need to swap your 404 for a 405, as Hagen addressed a lot of problems with the older models with their new series. Especially the issue with priming. This 205 is super easy to prime. Anyways, if you're able to shell out 150 bucks or so for a 405, I would.

BJP

"What could compare to that?"

http://www.sortprice.com/reviews/Hyd...ilter_(300_gph)

The company making them seems to have changed names several times. The original product was placed on the market by the original Whisper employees that set up manufacturing in the original Whisper plant in Italy after Tetra bought the Whisper company and moved manufacturing to Asia.

It was an amazingly powerful impeller design that forced the water up into a spongy type material wrapped in a Whisper style white wrap. The spongy part could be rinsed for long periods and reused, the white wraps could be rinsed and reused many times. In terms of bio and mechanical there was no bypass like the Hagen's AC design which allows stuff around the outside edges. There was also room for some hotdog shaped carbon or media inserts between the sponge and the wrap. That allowed some bypass of the carbon but little boxes you could refill with whatever you want were added that could go on the front outflow portion that clean water had to flow through on the way back to the tank. Once the company went under the first time I lost access to replacement wraps but the design was simple enough that I could make my own DIY alternatives.

The new API HOB seems to be trying for something similar in design but I haven't had the opportunity to try one yet to get more technical.

SparkyGT

So far in my 190 i have used the Aquaclear HOB and 1 fluval 404, now use 2 404 fluvals with waterbar, and surface scrubber. for priming the fluvals i usually fill them up first, make sure the hoses have water in them to siphon, then it usually starts ok, the little primer thing takes forever

mbunabum

I guess I have to take the middle road.... on my 90 and 55... I use a combination of both... on my smaller tanks just hobs. I can't say a lot of good about the 2 magnum's I have... so I'll skip them. The XP3 on my 90 is great... easy setup and maintainence, pretty darn quiet (cant even hear it w/ 4 aquaclears running in the same room ), good flow and adequate room for mucho media. I would highly reccomend them to anyone. Decent product for decent price.... not everyone can or is willing to pay the price of an E! I have always been a believer in the superior biological function of a canister. The AC's do a fine job of providing mechanical and chemical (as needed) filtration, w/ exellent flow rates and good capacities for various medias. Just mho.

THEFORDMAN00

this is what I use and it works gret for me (see signature below)
never had a problem priming the fluval's
the only reason I use the aquaclears is to add water movent at the top of the surface--also i turn one of them off when filling my tank after water changes and put the end of my python in the back of the aqua clear and let it trickle real slow--i mean 10 gallons an hour slow?--(that is just a guestimate)My tank stays crystal clear even with frequent feedings-and nitrite and ammonia are always 0--my nitrate ranges about 5-10 ppm

TetrasRMe

I use 3 Rena XP3 cannisters abd I like them very much. I do not have any experience with any other cannisters just the Renas.

I think water clarity is better with the cannisters. I have used many HOBs over the years and they work great but overall I like the Renas.