Are Magnum Canister Filters Decent?
- Thread starter Riso-chan
- Start date
i had one and it always leaked from one of hte seals. replaced seal, still dripped. tried everything, even coating it. it still dripped on the floor. i never did figure it out. mine might have just been a fluke.
Well, the reason I(a she, BTW) ask is because I have a topfin 60 filter that is somewhat difficult to clean in certain areas, as well as being not much surface area for biofilter material. I've looked into the other power filters but I think a canister would be good alternative. I don't even use chemical media anymore, just some sponges for the biofiltration and mechanical. I'd be doing the same with a canister, but they just seem more effecient to me. I'm not really familiar with which brands/models are better or worse, so any advice is appreciated. Any suggestiions on my situation at all?
echoofformless
Peat Advocate & Defender Of Snails
Well when you ask about canister filters, you're basically going to get everyone telling you to buy the brand they prefer. It's like saying you want advice on a certain kind of car; everyone will have an opinion.
My opinion is that Fluval or Filstar offer the biggest bang for the buck, run silently, are easy to maintain, and even look kind of nice. Also consider that since they're very popular, finding any parts you might need will be easy. I use a Fluval 104 on my 20 gallon Asian blackwater. It does a great job with the peat filtration.
But of course, that's just my opinion. I can almost guarantee that others will swear by Eheim.
All canisters by these brands are great products, so it really just comes down to personal choice. Though I would avoid the Magnum canister (Not the HOT, the actual canister) as when compared to the others, it simply doesn't offer enough in flexibility, it's expensive, and it's a bit harder to maintenance. It's an older design and I've heard from the grapevine that Marineland doesn't plan on making it much longer.
My opinion is that Fluval or Filstar offer the biggest bang for the buck, run silently, are easy to maintain, and even look kind of nice. Also consider that since they're very popular, finding any parts you might need will be easy. I use a Fluval 104 on my 20 gallon Asian blackwater. It does a great job with the peat filtration.
But of course, that's just my opinion. I can almost guarantee that others will swear by Eheim.
All canisters by these brands are great products, so it really just comes down to personal choice. Though I would avoid the Magnum canister (Not the HOT, the actual canister) as when compared to the others, it simply doesn't offer enough in flexibility, it's expensive, and it's a bit harder to maintenance. It's an older design and I've heard from the grapevine that Marineland doesn't plan on making it much longer.
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I have the 350 Pro. It worked fine for about two months, but then the two rubber caps that cover the ends of the impeller shredded for no apparent reason, and the thing sounds like it is crushing boulders. You could hear it from outside my house. Magnum refuses to sell me replacement caps which are about 3 cents worth of rubber, they want me to replace the entire impeller assembly for fifty bucks. Now I have to custom make new ones out of electrical tape every three days before they too fall apart, major PITA. I don't think I'd buy another Magnum.
I found another filter that seems reasonable, but I'm unclear about which model to get because I forgot how many times a filter should turnover the tank's volume per hour.
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=3601&N=2004+22777
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=3601&N=2004+22777
Fluval vs HOT 250
Some people really hate the ribbed hoses the Fluval comes with. I had a Fluval 303, quite different than this one you are considering.
I can speak to the HOT 250, though. I found it to be a nice filter for a planted tank. The high flow gives you a good mechanical filter, which is what you need since the plants do the biofiltration for you. You can remove the nozzle from the outflow and tilt the output downward and it works great. For a long tank like a 55, that good flow is really nice, for many canisters do not have this great a flow rate, even though they claim to in the specs (which appear to be determined with an empty cansiter)
Another thing that is actually better about the HOT 250 vs any cansiter is that it does not have long tubings to go to below the tank, this means that you have a lot less cleaning to do. I only clean the tubings once or twice a year, because it is such a pain to do, a real mess.
I run mine with efisubstrat pro in the carbon canister, and the foam wrapper. Though cut up filter padding would work fine too, the substrat is bad to drop down the sink!
Some people really hate the ribbed hoses the Fluval comes with. I had a Fluval 303, quite different than this one you are considering.
I can speak to the HOT 250, though. I found it to be a nice filter for a planted tank. The high flow gives you a good mechanical filter, which is what you need since the plants do the biofiltration for you. You can remove the nozzle from the outflow and tilt the output downward and it works great. For a long tank like a 55, that good flow is really nice, for many canisters do not have this great a flow rate, even though they claim to in the specs (which appear to be determined with an empty cansiter)
Another thing that is actually better about the HOT 250 vs any cansiter is that it does not have long tubings to go to below the tank, this means that you have a lot less cleaning to do. I only clean the tubings once or twice a year, because it is such a pain to do, a real mess.
I run mine with efisubstrat pro in the carbon canister, and the foam wrapper. Though cut up filter padding would work fine too, the substrat is bad to drop down the sink!
Man, you cursed me. No sooner than i read then than the Magnum started making an awful noise.Templarum said:
Sure enough, the gasket over the impeller housing is shredded.
Curse you Aqua Scum . .. er, Templar-um! :joke:
Roan
echoofformless
Peat Advocate & Defender Of Snails
anonapersona said:
Those kinky hoses were designed by Satan himself. The only serious complaint I have about my Fluval.
