coffeebean

i just bought this yesterday. I have to say, as a former fluval lover, this filter ROCKS.i will quote from a description of it

it has these 4 sided carbon cartridges that go in each compartment but i opted to stuff them with my old media. sponges, ceramic noodles, and fiberfill. i love that its got the access of a HOB but the compartments of a canister
its working great, looks cool, and i love the easy access to the compartments.

aquarist48

Thanks for the review CoffeeBean. I'm sure it will be very helpful to other members!
Ken

alicem

Neat looking filter.
Can you buy extensions for the intake tube?
It looks like it doesn't take up much room behind the tank...nice!
I'll have to watch for them in the stores and check it out up close and personal.

Thanks for the review!
alicem

dee34

that is a good filter great choice ..

coffeebean

it came with 3. mine goes right to the bottom of the 25 tall tank

ccb04

Thanks for the review. Keep us updated.

A cool thing about these filters, is that Rena's smart heater can connect to the unit and function as the intake. It can also do the same on the Filstar canisters.

Time

Wow sounds like a great filter. Sorely a good choice. Nice job finding it.

Matrk79

Hey all,
I purchased a Rena Smartfilter 55 about 6 months ago now for my 130 litre freshwater tropical tank. I'd read mixed reviews so I wasn't really too sure what to expect - quite a few people said that it was a noisy filter.

Mine was great for the first 2 or 3 months, working silently, and doing a fantastic job of keeping the tank clean. Slowly however, it started to develop a rattle in the motor which got worse over time. 6 months on and it now sounds like a jumbo jet. I have trouble sleeping with it sometimes and I'm 3 rooms away! I have no idea why this has happened and after some tinkering I actually managed to get it working silently again, but over a few weeks it developed the rattle/buzz again. It's incredibly aggravating.

A couple of other things about it. The filter media is quite expensive - I pay about $30 (Australian) to change the 3 cartridges that the filter requires. And it recommends that they be changed every 4 weeks, so it gets pretty pricey.
Also, the filter is very long. I actually had to cut out the top brace of my tank and move it about 3 inches to accommodate the filter.

Other than those things though, it'd be a great filter. If it wasn't so ****ed noisy and expensive to maintain, I'd be very happy with it...

coffeebean

sounds like it may need some maintenance. every filter i have ever owned gets a rattle over time and requires cleaning or work on the impeller.

i have no intention of using the cartridges that are made for it. waste of money and its not good to throw out your media. i use my own media. as for size, it fits perfectly on my 25 gallon tank.

GMCMaxx

I am running two Rena Smartfilters on my 55 gal tank. I haven't owned a lot of different filters, so I cannot give an accurate comparison to other brands. What I can say is that these filters are extremely easy to maintain. Every two or three water changes I will pull out the cartridges and rinse them off in the old tank water. Not a messy job at all. Rena reccomends changing the filters every four weeks. It's about $20 for me to purchase filter cartridges for both filters. I however have only changed my cartridges once in the last 10 months. I just rinse and reuse. Each filter compartment can be stuffed with whatever media you want to use, so I don't see the point in paying so much money for Rena's cartridges every four weeks.
Also, the filter does begin to develope a rattle/vibration every few weeks. I tracked the sound to the lid not fitting tightly on the Smartfilter. Simple fix though- just tap on the lid. If that doesn't fix it i'll clean the calcium deposits off of it and then it usually runs quiet. I haven't noticed any unusual noises from the motor or impeller.



EDIT: for grammar

GMCMaxx

The main reason I bought the Rena Smartfilter was because I could attach the Rena Smartfilter to it and keep the tank less cluttered. A big plus in my book.