best canister filter?

[Hanson77]

Re: best canister filter?

I can see this debate going on for days.....LOL!!!!

[geoff_tropheus]

Re: best canister filter?

Reliability = EHEIM

Ease of Maintenance = Any canister with baskets, if not use media bags.

I would get any of the Eheims that come with baskets for media.

Which one to buy depends on your tank size, and budget.

I still believe the Rena series is the best bang for the buck, but...there is no beating Eheim at this point for reliabilty and performance.

[finfan]

Re: best canister filter?

no wonder i could not make up my mind, even you guys with experience don't have a consensus!

but it seems that eheim is the clear front runner in this race  

appreciate all the feedback, my tank is a 65gallon, my pocketbook is empty (but i would still get eheim if it is worth it and saves me hassle in the long run)

[geoff_tropheus]

Re: best canister filter?

If your wanting a Easy to maintain, cheap, effecient, and reliabile Canister for a 65 gallon aquarium, I would go with a Eheim 2217 if the tank is cichlids, if the tank is small tertra or livebearers Eheim 2215.

Rena XP2 or XP3 for cichlids would be my Second Choice.

Whichever you decided, I would make a purchase quickly because the pricing on all plastic made items is about to go up 20-30%.

Take it easy...

Geoff

[CichlidFan]

Re: best canister filter?

Oh sure......tell us about the upcoming hefty price hikes, and then leave with a casual "take it easy" ....your too much..... :)

CF

[imagirlgeek]

Re: best canister filter?

Okay guys, please don't show up with torches in my front yard, but I'm going to say it....  I have 2 negative Eheim stories that I'll share.  I am in no way saying that Eheim filters are bad because they are obviously one of the leaders in the hobby.  I may have just gotten a hold of a dud.

A couple of years ago, I bought a 2217.  At first, I loved it.  The flow was great, it was fairly easy to maintain, I had no complaints.  Then over time, it went from a strong flow to barely moving any water.  We jacked with it for months.  We went through all kinds of troubleshooting.  The impeller was fine, nothing was clogged.  We even talked to our friend at a LFS to see what he had to say about it.  He suggested a way of 'kick-starting' it, which involved a bucket, gravity, and a little water in the mouth.  No big deal, but it didn't ever get back to the way it had been brand new.  We just ended up not using it anymore.  

And a couple of weeks ago, I got a phone call from my cousin's girlfriend.  She was in a panic because he was at work and the room was flooded!!  The 210 gallon was only 1/4 full of water!!  Long story short, the clips had broken on his Eheim and it pumped most of the water out of the tank and onto the floor.  

Having said all that, I don't think Eheim is to blame.  I've also got a Magnum 350 that has to babied and still isn't great.  And we've got an Odyssea that popped a hose and pumped about 1/4 of the water from our 135 onto the living room floor before we caught it.  So, it can happen on any of them.  BUT I've never had those problems with the Rena filters.    (knock on wood)

[CichlidFan]

Re: best canister filter?

Yeah, your going to get a few bad testimonials with all the good ones, no matter what brand you are talking about, the chances are good though, that your going to get a great product from any of the manufacturers mentioned here, and hopefully you will never get a bad one.

CF

[Hanson77]

Re: best canister filter?

How much are you looking to spend?

[wesleydnunder]

Re: best canister filter?

I've owned Eheims for the past twenty years, and never had a single issue with these filters. I've used fluval and the renas and wasn't happy. As to priming the Eheim 2217, 2215 and 2213, I've worked out a method that involves no water in the mouth at all.

When I first set up a new one, I install the quick-connect/valves 12-18" from the body of the canister. This gives me some flexibility and ease in maintaining and priming the filter. The intake port on the filter is on the bottom, the return to tank is at the top. For those of you who already know this, please bear with me. After loading the media and pads into the filter and clipping the top on (the filter has no water in it at this point) I connect the intake hose quick-connect at the bottom of the filter--all valves are closed at this time, and intake tube and spray bar are plumbed in and set in their final locations in the tank. I place a short 2-3 gal. bucket next to the filter and make sure the part of the return hose from the canister top to the quick-connect will reach into the bucket. The hoses and the filter contain no water at this point. I open the valves on the bottom intake hose and open the valve on the filter side of the return hose. I apply a little suction to the end of the return hose at the filter top as if I'm trying to suck water out of the filter. This starts the syphon from the tank into the intake hose and begins to fill the filter from the bottom, purging the air as it fills. I hold the return hose over the bucket and when water runs out with few bubbles, I close the valve. Now the filter and the intake hose are full. I then connect the return hose quick-connect and open the valves. Plug in the filter and it purges what little air is left inside after a few minutes.

For maintenance I do something similar. Unplug the filter, close all valves, release the quick-connects and clean the filter( making sure to open the top valve on the filter so I can get the top off without having to fight a vaccuum seal). When I put the filter back in service I start with the filter dry and in stead of sucking on the top hose to get it started, I simply open both bottom valves on the intake hose(after the quick-connects have been connected, of course), open the valve on the filter portion of the return hose(the quick-connect to the rest of the return hose is NOT connected at this point) and let the filter fill with tank water from the bottom up like before, holding the end of the hose over my trusty bucket. When the filter's full, close the return valve, connect the return hose quick-connect, open both return valves and plug in the filter. No priming problems ever. Hope this is understandable.

Mark

[CichlidFan]

Re: best canister filter?

yep.....pretty much the same way I do it, my quick dis-connects are shorter, but the rest is pretty much the same.

CF

[edmlfc]

Re: best canister filter?

I traded my eheim's for rena xp3. I have one eheim left and if given the chance I would change that one to a rena also.  I love my rena.

[spyke1969]

Re: best canister filter?

I love my Renas also, Very easy

[geoff_tropheus]

Re: best canister filter?

Rena Series are very easy to clean.  They are reliable, I still think Eheim has the edge on reliability.  One issue I know for sure is that the Eheim Professional Series II, are prone to leaking.

Classic Eheims, I have never had a problem with.

[jklntx]

Re: best canister filter?

Why suck at all...gravity will do it for you...

[Lucy]

Re: best canister filter?

I have the eheim 2217 and the 2213 and so far I am happy with them but I haven't really tried any other cannister types so I guess my opinion is biased  :)