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Aquarium canister filters are an excellent choice for your aquarium, they are cylindrical tightly sealed filters, some smaller ones are designed to hang on the side or back of the aquarium, most are more a bit large for this and are designed to sit inside the cabinet under the aquarium.
Aquarium Canister Filters Pros:
Because this filtration system is not inside the tank, and usually not hanging on the side, it is typically well hidden and thus not unsightly.
Often, they are quiet because the produce no column of bubbles, or cascade of water flowing out of the system into the tank.
Because canisters are tightly sealed, and water is forced through under pressure it is possible to insert a wide variety of media inside them, the water can be passed through the media at a high flow rate with little accidental by pass around the media.
Some common media types used in canister filters include but are not limited to:
Mechanical filtration media that trap food and dirt so that it can be removed from the filter and rinsed out occasionally.
Biological filtration media, such as porous rock like ceramic beads that house billions of bacterial cells that break down waste products.
Chemical filtration beads, granules, and pads, such as carbon filtration media, ammonia removal media, and phosphate or silica removal materials.
Because canister filters for aquariums are powerful they are often the choice for larger freshwater tanks.
Aquarium Canister Filters Cons:
They are not the best at oxygenating your filtered aquarium water.
The only other drawback is that they occasionally must be opened and the various media types inside must be rinsed or disposed of.
Media cleaning or replacement is also needed with hang on the back filters, but with canister filters it is a little more work.
Canister filter maintenance is not extremely difficult, but it is more than with some other filter types.
It may be easier to forget maintenance in canister filters than with hang on the back filters because canister filters are often hidden under the tank.
Maintenance has the potential to be a little messy if the canister filter is full of water when you open it.
Some of the most popular aquarium canister filters are:
Pen Plex
Fluval 205 and 306 canister filters
Fluval 406 external canister filter
Eheim
Cascade 1000 and other Cascade filters
Sun Sun
Aquatop
Marineland
The SunSun External Canister filter 302 3 uses high water pressure to force water through its dense filter. The unit has 3 media trays and adjustable spray bar for better control of the filter’s water output. The unit has a self-priming pump, single valve disconnect and is easy to maintain. The filter is quiet and efficient and as such can be used in an aquarium in any room. As an external rather than internal filter, the unit can eliminate a vast array of unwanted materials while the aquarium, thus maintains space inside for fish, and other aquatic livestock.
Satisfied customers rate it 4 out of 5 stars.
For aquariums of under 100 gallons, the Sun HW-303B aquarium canister filter is
an interesting choice. The unit filters up to 370 gallons of water every hour
and includes everything you need such as all filter pads and hoses. This filter
comes with a media tray so that you can add more filtration media as needed. A
unique feature of this particular unit is the built-in 9-Watt ultraviolet
sterilizer to stop the build-up of algae and other contaminants that can cloud
the water. The result is crystal-clear water. The filter is self-priming and that
is an added convenience. One satisfied customer said that the SunSun canister
filter matches and even outperforms other top brand name products making it an
excellent choice. Over 60% of their customers rate this canister aquarium filter
5 out of 5 stars.
Penn Plax Cascade 1000 Canister Aquarium Filter
The unit filters up to 265 gallons per hour and is rated for tanks up to 100 gallons.
If you are looking for a heavy duty canister aquarium filter the Penn Plax
Cascade 1000 should fit the bill. This canister filter features a well-
constructed external filter system and filters most mechanical, chemical and
biological debris. This unit is suitable for fresh or marine aquariums and
produces water that is pristine and crystal-clear. There is both a carbon media
to remove toxins and water impurities and a floss pad to remove fine particles.
The course sponge promotes bacterial growth removing fish waste such as ammonia
and nitrates. The filter has a “flow-rate” control and includes filter media.
The Penn Plax Cascade 1000 Aquarium canister filter with a bundle package is
rated with a high score by satisfied customers that have used the product.
Bundle package comes complete with the cascade 1000 canister filter and the generic pack of twelve bio floss and a four pack of bio sponges.
Marineland Magniflow 220 Canister Filter for Aquariums
One of the top-selling canister aquarium filters is the Marineland Magniflow 220
for aquariums up to 55 gallons.The Marineland features multi-stage filtration
and does so more quickly than others. Upgrades are available for this filter
to ensure your individual freshwater or marine aquarium achieves the success you expect.
The unit is self- priming saving you the time and hassle. The Marineland filter comes with tight-
fitting canister lids, a polishing filter pad, bio-filter balls, Black Diamond
Carbon and filter foam pads. Customers who use this product report being
impressed with the company’s customer service, and that it is quiet, easy to use
and very effective in producing crystal-clear water.
Fluval 106 Rated for aquariums up to 25 gallons
Fluval 206 Rated for aquariums up to 45 gallons
Fluval 306 Rated for aquariums up to 70 gallons
Fluval 406 Rated for aquariums up to 100 gallons
We are not going to discuss one specific model of Fluval canister filter here, but I just want to mention the fact that Fluval makes a very good line of canister filters all around, so if you are considering a canister filter consider Fluval. The Fluval external canister filters help maintain healthy aquarium environments via a multi-stage filtration system. This line of products works great in aquariums of all sizes from 25 to 100 gallons depending on the model you purchase. They are extremely quiet to operate. They come with a nice intake strainer design providing owners and tank inhabitants with added security as their is a much lower chance of clogs and of tank creatures being harmed.
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