I am looking for opinions and experiences on ease of maintenance for the following filters in a moderately planted 75gallon tank with cardinals and discus. Should be based on length of time between filter cleaning, ease of cleaning, reliability of filter, filter cost, noise level of filter, customization of filtration media and cost of media replacement. The filters in question are the filstar xp3 and the ehiem pro II series. Feedback is greatly appreciated!
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Which is easier to maintain?
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Re: Which is easier to maintain?
Both are good and the Eheim will probably need to be clean before the xp3 due to its superior filtration capabilities.
In all honesty though two of either should be used for that tank and fish....discus like warmer waters and warmer water holds less oxygen.700g Mini-Monster tank
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Re: Which is easier to maintain?
and for cost and ease, i would say Rena, but both are very good filters. Ehiem pros just look complicated to me , but i have not used them personally , hey im being honest. 8) .Never fear I is here
David Abeles
Vice President
Greater Houston Aquarium Club
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Re: Which is easier to maintain?
They are both very similar in breakdown and cleaning.....Both utilize the trays which are identical in design, they both use clamps to hold the motor housing to the media tray housing, they both use the quick disconnect for hose removal and they both can hold whichever media you plan on using.
Rena recommends breaking down every month but I think every manu. makes up their suggested time frame. I clean mine whenever I noticed a decent decrease in power or when I decide to look into them and see how dirty they are.700g Mini-Monster tank
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Re: Which is easier to maintain?
My Enheim I would only clean once every 2 to 3 months.
With discus they will tell you when the canister needs to be clean.Board Member of Houston Aquarium Society
Mod OF Marshreef
Breeder of Discus, Angels, Bristle nose & Sail fin Mollies
Coming soon Daphnia
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Re: Which is easier to maintain?
Maybe it depends on what fish you are keeping, how often you do water changes, and how many fish you have that determines how often you clean out the filter. I would think that a goldfish tank with minimal water changing would dirty the filter faster than other species with frequent changes...
Rebekah
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Re: Which is easier to maintain?
goldfish are just nasty no matter what you do. of course your larger southamerican ciclids are almost as bad, oscars are nasty too, but i think Walter said discus because that is what is planned for the tank :wink:Never fear I is here
David Abeles
Vice President
Greater Houston Aquarium Club
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Re: Which is easier to maintain?
Yeah, I know, but if you don't do the proper maintenance on your tank (water changes, vacuuming gravel, etc.), won't the filter get dirty faster? Like, I think Mike said that Walter changes a certain percentage of his water in his discus tanks everyday... Also, over feeding would factor into how quickly a filter gets dirty... LOL! Maybe I don't even know what I'm talking about though...
Rebekah
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Re: Which is easier to maintain?
In my grow out tanks I change water as often as possible. In my planted tank I change water once a week, twice a week if I have time.
Discus will let you know when you need to change thw water as well as clean out the canisters.
If you start out with good healthy discus.
If you are going to buy them from a LFS. Watch them for over a week to see how they are doing. Breeders on the other hand will keep their discus in a lot better shape.
As far as canisters goes Use at least twice the amount. Like for a 75 get one that is rated for a 150 or higher. But remember that discus like low flow. so you will have to figure out to put the return to not cause a lot of rip tide.
Doing this it helps cut down on maintains. If you use two you can keep the bio load at all times.
I would suggest using two canisters. For you & the fish.
Allways remember all fish like stability in their water. With discus this is more so.Board Member of Houston Aquarium Society
Mod OF Marshreef
Breeder of Discus, Angels, Bristle nose & Sail fin Mollies
Coming soon Daphnia
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