Penn-Plax Cascade Canisters -

[Jharris1385]

I have not seen much talk on here about Penn-Plax.

http://www.animalworldnetwork.com/ca15cafibype.html

I have recently bought a top of the line (their line) Cascade 1500.
It is LARGE!

The reason I bought this brand was our local pet shop deals directly with them. So I figured I would continue to support the local shop and purchase the canister and brand they have the most of due to the potential support behind it.

- Dumb question, but should my pre-filter media be the bottom tray or top tray. My goal is to block the most waste possible, prior to fine cleaning.

Thanks.

 

[Redearsunfish]

i have them and love them. can't remember about which media to stack where though... hmmm... if i remember correctly it works bottom to top (i think), just check the inlet and outlet spots under the motor head, and follow the path of the water flow. That should give you your answer.

 

[jclyde13]

I used a Cascade 500 for about a year, and I think it flowed from bottom to top, so the prefilter would be in the bottom tray. I think the reason why they aren't often discussed on here is because they really aren't on par with the quality of the filters that most MFK'ers use. They are built very cheaply and in my experience, the flow rate decreases dramatically over time. I used my 500 on a 3.5 gallon, then a 10 gallon (despite its supposed 30 gallon rating), but I had to trash it when the output valve broke and started leaking (there's nowhere to buy replacement parts around here).

 

[Redearsunfish]

I haven't had a single problem with flow or breakage, in my own personal experience. Having the choice i'd go with fluval or ehiem, but since money is an issue with me, i love my cascade canisters.

 

[jclyde13]

I haven't had a single problem with flow or breakage, in my own personal experience. Having the choice i'd go with fluval or ehiem, but since money is an issue with me, i love my cascade canisters.

Mine broke just from regular use... And as far as budget canisters go, I much prefer the Rena canisters (the XP4 is actually cheaper than the 1500). I guess I can't really do an accurate comparison since I have the high-end model of one and the low-end model of the other, but I can say that I've had far fewer issues with the XP4.