Isabella

The filters I am referring to are for larger, non-fry, tanks (that's why you don't see sponge filters on the list). If you like a filter that is not on the above list, please list it and tell us more about it.

fish_r_friend

I have heard good things about the Eheims. Magnum 350 by marineland are suposed to be good too

Marc

I prefer my AquaClears over Marineland anyday.

chickadee

My tanks are the smaller size, not power filter models. The Eclipse Bio-Wheel filters are good. I like the Duetto filters by Marineland somehow better anymore. These are for 15 gallons and below so they may not qualify here, but they are GREAT filters for smaller tanks.

Rose

Jason

Eheims all the way!

Isabella

I only have experience with AquaClear power filter (in my 30G tank) and with a WhisperTetra power filter (in my 10G tank). AquaClear is definitely better because of the way it's designed: you never have to change all media at once in it (such as you have to do in a WhisperTetra filter) and thereby you keep the beneficial bacteria without any mini-cycles with one medium change (since there are 3 medium parts). I am willing to experiment with other filter types. Perhaps I will get a different filter for my next tank. I am thinking about a canister since my next tank will be 75G. Or is a canister a bit too much for a 75G and a power filter is better? I never had a canister but I hear it's very powerful? Can you adjust water flow in a canister? I can't have a terribly powerful filter, even in a 75G, because angelfish will be in there.

P.S. J-Man, I did some quick reading on Eheim Ecco canister filter (one of the many canister filter models that Eheim has). Sounds like it is excellent technology and not that much work with it at all. Here is the article I found about it: http://www.marinedepot.com/aquarium_...al.asp?CartId=
It costs about $100-120 and it looks like this is a cheap one for a 75G tank, compared to the prices of many other models of Eheim canister filters. But in itself I think it's very expensive, compared for example to $50-70 AquaClear power filter for a 75G tank. J-Man, which model of Eheim do you think would be best for a 75G tank, and why?

Osiris

I recently got a Rena Filstar XP2 and absolutely love it. I think my fish do too.

Isabella

Wow, Eheim's Wet/Dry filter for a tank around 75 gallons is $250-300!

fish_r_friend

yep ehim is pricey

Isabella

But if it's this expensive, it also must be "this good", right? Otherwise, why would it be so expensive? Well, unless ... Eheim uses a marketing strategy which uses "high price" as an indicator of best quality. In fact there are companies whose products are not very different or better from their standard counterparts but because they sell their products at high prices, people tend to think that they're better ("because they're more expensive"). I hope Eheim isn't doing that!

ncje

Eheim does have higher price because you know when you buy it, it will work... theres never any doubt with eheim. I would argue to choose a filter from any of these brands that will best suit the type of aquarium and fish you want. Some can almost make your tank spin like a whirlpool if set up that way.... good for river fish I guess, but a betta is going to have a hard time, as would an angel.

Isabella

So you wouldn't recommend an Eheim canister filter, or any canister filter for that matter, in a 75G tank with some angelfish? I've never had a canister filter and don't know how powerful they are. Is it possible to adjust the water flow on them?

ncje

75g ..... Go the eheim if you have the $$ for sure. put more holes into the output tube to distribute the outflow more... should be ok.

chickadee

Isabella -

I do not know exactly what the model of EHEIM filter you are looking for but they are now available at http://www.petsmart.com in canister models for less than the amount of money you are talking about for the 75 gallon size.

http://www.petsmart.com/global/produ...N=2030059&Ne=2

http://www.petsmart.com/global/produ...N=2030059&Ne=2

There are also models that cost more than you mentioned, but I thought you may not be aware of the ones above.

Rose

atmmachine816

Whatever you pick I would definately pick one that is powerful to handle the junk the angels make since they are big crappers. Personally I would go with a canister or bio-wheel. I like the bio-wheel's myself since I make my own filter cartridges for it and it costs pratically nothing and i can change as much as i want when i want and it keeps my tank very clean and I have a penguin bio-wheel200 on my tank and my angels are fine, they mate regularly too. Whatever you decide I would just get a one that can accomadate your fish's needs. Have you considered making a sump?

Gunnie

I have never used an Eheim, but they have been around a long time and that's part of the selling point for their filters. Some hobbyists have used the same filter for 30 years! I do have 2 of the Rena Filstar canister filters and think they are excellent. Of course I can't tell you if they will still be working in 30 years, but so far, I'd say the performance I've had with them (2 years) would be very comparable to the Eheim performance at a much smaller price tag.

Jason

The prices in America are very very cheap compared to hear even when I change American $ to Australian $. I spent $250 on my Ehiem Professional which is suited to my size tank, but for a 75g you'd be looking at probably Professional II/classic /ecco. Ecco are kinda the cheaper version of an ehiem, they're good and efficient, a tiny bit of noise compared to the zero noise of others, but a little less on quality. the classics are supposed to be good as they're been around for ages and are still one of the best around, but the professionals have newer technology etc. You could get a thermofilter if you want but thats big bucks

The Ecco 2236 around 80g - $95-$110 (ok you might need more output- 160gph)
The Classic 2217 around 160g - $120-140 (better more output - 264gph)
The Professional II 2026 92g - $200-220 (better quality 251gph)
The Professional II 2028 158g - $270 (more power again 277gph)
The Pro III 2028 - $350-400 (mental 450gph)

For you I'd say go classic, cheap price, reliability, fair amount of power. Unless you got more money.

Isabella

Thanks Gunnie for the suggestion

And thanks J-Man for the comprehensive list and suggestions

See? How can I not love this website?

Jason

Let us know when u get the tank!

Isabella

Most definitely J-Man! And not only that; I'll post pictures too as the process unfolds Right now I am just in a planning stage. Doing lots of research, et cetera. I don't want any problems, so I want to do my homework beforehand. Anyway, I'll get the tank probably in July or August. And like I said, it won't be anything fancy, just a simple average-looking tank. I am getting it because my fishies deserve better than a 30G; and now a 30G seems like a tiny tank to me. Not to mention my 10G! LOL! And most likely in the future, when I've had the 75G for a while, it will seem too small too, lol, and I'll be opting for a 125G (which I want already! just can't have it now).

fish_r_friend

That 30G is huge compared to my 5G! its like 6x bigger

Isabella

Have been thinking a lot, and decided to get a canister for my 75G. Thank you all for the input. I love ya all

Of course, but ... WHICH canister !? LOL Well ... I think when buying a filter, one has to take into consideration what will be in the tank, even the substrate kind. I will have this tank at least moderately planted (probably more). The substrate will be 2-3" of Seachem's Fluorite and/or CaribSea's Eco-Complete. These 2 factors (plants and substrate) should be especially taken into consideration since if plants are doing well, they also help purify the water and the substrate is not just a plain inert gravel, but a nutrient-rich one designed for plants so it may influence the water chemistry I suppose. The lighting will be 1.7 WPG (if the plants won't do well under this lighting, I will upgrade to a higher light later on). Oh, and the plants will be: swords, vals, anubias, java fern, java moss, and dwarf saggitaria. Perhaps I'll experiment with apongetons and some crypts too (see if they wouldn't die).

Taking all of the above into account, which model of Eheim would be best? Or perhaps XP?

Jason

Nice plant selection, I find it hard to find any crypts and apponogeton and saggitaria species. And also ground covering and surface plants. Amazingly Ive only ever one seen Java fern

Isabella

If I don't find a good aquatic plant store J-Man, I'll have to order online. So far, from the plants that I want, I saw only swords and java ferns at my LFS. And I saw them very rarely there. Plus, they were all rotting there and being charged $2-4 a piece! Haha ... they think people will buy that!?

Marc

I had good luck with aquariumplants.com

Keep in mind, though, they ship the plants in wet newspaper instead of in water to cut the shipping (drastically). As long as you get 1st or 2nd day air, though, they're perfectly fine.

Isabella

Thanks for the advice Marc I checked the website out and they seem like a decent plant website. They also seem very accountable. Not all plants are cheap there, and one would have to pay quite a sum for a heavily planted 75G tank when buying all plants from them, but if they have excellent plants then I suppose they're worth it. Maybe I'll order plants from them once I have bought the tank, the stand, the substrate, and all the technical equipment, and when everything is set up and ready, just waiting for the plants. I'll definitely place an overnight order if I order plants online - I don't want to risk them dying en route. The only problem would be that they'd charge me a lot for shipping to NY from where they are. It'd cost me $50-90 for shipping alone, andI estimate approximately $150-250 worth of plants for a 75G tank. But ... we'll see. I still have time and I am not rushing anything. Research is power, lol.

Isabella

One more question about canister filters: where are their intake and outflow tubes located? One tube at each end of the tank? Or two tubes next to each other? If they're next to each other, filtration does not make sense this way to me in a large tank.

Gunnie

With the XP's, intake and outflow are pretty close to each other. I have 2 xp's running, one on each sie of the tank.

Isabella

Gunnie, is it possible to position each tube on opposite ends of the tank? Could I get more and longer pipes and do that, somehow?

P.S. Gunnie, in another of your posts, you wrote that for HOB filters, those that pump 10 times the volume of the tank are best. And that for canister filters, those that pump 5 times the volume of your tank are best. Which XP or Eheim filter would do the job for a 75 gallon tank?

Here is also a copy of my post from PlantGeek on various canister filters. Please help me decide which would be best for me:
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"I have a few more questions about canister filters. I will either get Rena Filstar or Eheim. But I have a few concerns about which kind of Rena Filstar or Eheim to get. My tank will be 75 gallons (48x18x20) and planted (low-tech).

I have looked at Rena Filstar filters, and they have XP2 and XP3 that would be good for my tank. The XP2 is for up to 75 gallon tanks (pumps 300 GPH). The XP3 is for up to 175 gallon tanks (pumps 350gph). I have been advised to get an XP3 for my tank. Why do I need an XP3 for a 157 gallon tank, when an XP2 is for a 75 gallon tank?

As for the Eheims, they have Ecco, Classic, and Professional 2026 and 2028 that I have looked at and considered. Ecco is for up to 80 gallon tanks and pumps 159 gph. Classic is for up to 92 gallon tanks and pumps 164 gph. Professional 2026 is for up to 92 gallon tanks and pumps 251 gph. Lastly, Professional 2028 is for up to 158 gallon tanks and pumps 227 gph.

It was suggested that Eheim 2026 or 2028 would be best for my tank. So my question is why do I need a filter for 92 or 158 gallon tanks (2026 or 2028) when my tank will be 75 gallons? Or, why would I need 2028 over 2026?

Wouldn't filters too big as for a 75G tank create too much disturbance in the tank? The tank will also be very planted, so wouldn't such powerful filters remove the nutrients from the water which plants need?"
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atmmachine816

I want but don't have a canister but from the one's I'v seen the intake will be on one side and people will buy a spray bar and stick it on the opposite end of the tank.