Which company puts out the best canister filter?
- Thread starter ftech69
- Start date
Fluval is good, rena is good, eheim is good but by far the most expensive for what you get. A 2217 is around $150 for a mere 264 gph, when a fx5 is $200 for 607 gph. Not a hard decision imo unless spending the most on a filter matters to you.
Honostly there is no best. If it is reliable, has sufficient bio space and gph ur good. Again just my opinion but I cant justifu eheim prices.
Honostly there is no best. If it is reliable, has sufficient bio space and gph ur good. Again just my opinion but I cant justifu eheim prices.
A 27 isnt big enough to house 1 full grown goldfish.. imo your problem isnt the filter but the tank size. when you say the 280 isnt sufficent are you haveing water quality issues or just sedement issues?
and while Iam a hardcore emperor fan (atm running 4 400's and 4 penguins). the canisters ime are junk unless your running the Mag system for micron polishing..
and while Iam a hardcore emperor fan (atm running 4 400's and 4 penguins). the canisters ime are junk unless your running the Mag system for micron polishing..
I have an Eheim Pro III. It is the nicest canister I own but in my opinion it isn't that much better than my other canisters to justify its high price.
I have a Rena XP3. In my opinion it is the best bang for buck of all my canister filters. It filters just as well as my Eheim and is just as easy to maintain.
I have a Fluval 404. It filters well but reassembling it is quite a bit of a hassle until you get used to its quirks. The first 3 or 4 times I cleaned the Fluval I didn't get the baskets seated properly causing the lid to not seal properly. This was immediately apparent as it started leaking water immediately. I can now maintain the Fluval without having this issue as I know what to check for when sealing the lid onto the canister.
The Eheim does have a perceived nicer build quality than than the Rena and the Fluval. The Eheim seems to be the easiest to prime although the Rena is pretty good at priming. The Fluval is always a hassle to prime.
All 3 filters are very good biological filters. I use a DE filter for mechanical filtration so my mechanical filtration standards are Extremely High! Canisters simply don't come close to DE in mechanical filtration. My impression is that the Eheim and Rena are better mechanical filters than the Fluval 404 simply because they have a greater filter pad area which takes longer to plug up requiring the filter to be cleaned. I believe that the mechanical filtration capabilities is more dependent on the filtration media you use than the filter.
Pulling and cleaning all three filters take about the same effort. The Fluval is a little easier to pull out from under the tank because it is considerably smaller then the Eheim and Rena.
All 3 filters can have a bit of a problem with loose media getting stuck between the baskets causing the baskets to not seat properly. The easy answer for all three filters is to put your media into filter bags instead of just dumping it into the baskets.
To sum it up: Money is no issue = Eheim! Best bang for buck and comparable filtering capacity to the Eheim = Rena Xp3. My Fluval 404 does get the job done though.
Depending on your budget I would seriously look at the SunSun and other Chinese filters available on ebay. There have been many glowing reviews on the Chinese filters on this site.
I have a Rena XP3. In my opinion it is the best bang for buck of all my canister filters. It filters just as well as my Eheim and is just as easy to maintain.
I have a Fluval 404. It filters well but reassembling it is quite a bit of a hassle until you get used to its quirks. The first 3 or 4 times I cleaned the Fluval I didn't get the baskets seated properly causing the lid to not seal properly. This was immediately apparent as it started leaking water immediately. I can now maintain the Fluval without having this issue as I know what to check for when sealing the lid onto the canister.
The Eheim does have a perceived nicer build quality than than the Rena and the Fluval. The Eheim seems to be the easiest to prime although the Rena is pretty good at priming. The Fluval is always a hassle to prime.
All 3 filters are very good biological filters. I use a DE filter for mechanical filtration so my mechanical filtration standards are Extremely High! Canisters simply don't come close to DE in mechanical filtration. My impression is that the Eheim and Rena are better mechanical filters than the Fluval 404 simply because they have a greater filter pad area which takes longer to plug up requiring the filter to be cleaned. I believe that the mechanical filtration capabilities is more dependent on the filtration media you use than the filter.
Pulling and cleaning all three filters take about the same effort. The Fluval is a little easier to pull out from under the tank because it is considerably smaller then the Eheim and Rena.
All 3 filters can have a bit of a problem with loose media getting stuck between the baskets causing the baskets to not seat properly. The easy answer for all three filters is to put your media into filter bags instead of just dumping it into the baskets.
To sum it up: Money is no issue = Eheim! Best bang for buck and comparable filtering capacity to the Eheim = Rena Xp3. My Fluval 404 does get the job done though.
Depending on your budget I would seriously look at the SunSun and other Chinese filters available on ebay. There have been many glowing reviews on the Chinese filters on this site.
I have a soft spot for the Rena XP filters. Buying new is fine, I have been able to find some of these used and part them together to make a working filter for less than half of a new one. I replaced the hoses with new line from Lowes too, so I'm not stuck with old, dirty hoses either. Parts are generally available too if needed. If you buy used make sure to check the impeller, it should not look worn or uneven - they will run like that for awhile too but eventually will need replacing. Don't undersize the Rena either, it's a good filter but if you're going to buy one, new or used, go for the biggest you can. I have run a 10 gallon on an XP1 before and defused the outflow with a sponge. I do tend to agree that your goldfish would probably enjoy a bigger tank though, although you didn't mention its size either. Since they do tend to be messier fish, and especially if you think you might upgrade, I'd start looking at a XP4.
I agreed with Oughtsix. My only gripe with eheim is that their customer service is slow and parts are only available thru mail order.
Sent from my iPhone using MonsterAquariaNetwork app
Sent from my iPhone using MonsterAquariaNetwork app
I have had great success with the Rena XP, Eheims and I received a Marineland C530 for a Christmas gift 2 years ago and so far it has been trouble free as well.
I agree with many of the earlier comments that Eheim is probably the best....just a little on the pricey side.
I agree with many of the earlier comments that Eheim is probably the best....just a little on the pricey side.
