which power filter should i purchase ?

[bert]

I need to restart my 100 gal. tank and i need to replace the old 12 year old whisper 3 i had, and restart it without the undergravel filter and power heads after moving and having to start over. i have been looking at the tetra-tech 500 power filter which says it is for 100 gal. aquariums. How good do these filters work when NOT using and undergravel filter ? and the optional heating element that is available ? would this be a good filter choice ? or is there another filter [ not canister type] that would work better ?
thanks in advance.

 

[Matt W]

Personally, unless you are going with a co2 injected tank, I would go with a wet dry...

 

[bert]

thanks !!

Thanks matt, my old whisper has seen it's better days, and the undergravel filter after 12 years, i don't want to put it back in this time. the tank will be fresh water, still deciding what species i will go with, since the water here is very hard, i was thinking african chichlids i just want to make sure i will be getting a power filter that will do it's job, plus handle what the undergravel filter did too. wet/ dry ? which brand is good or should i say,which brands should i avoid ?
thanks

 

[JSchmidt]

HOBs have the advantage of being inexpensive, compared to most other types of filters. The downside is that they're more visible and/or noisiy.

If you're set on HOBs, I'd go with 2 of any of these: HOT Magnum (prefiltered with a sponge and packed with ceramic noodles); Emperor 400; or Aquaclear 500. I wouldn't entrust filtration for such a large tank to any single filter. I've not hear much good about TetraTec filters.

If you want ideas for canisters or sump filters, I'm sure we could give you some ideas.

HTH,
Jim

 

[bert]

filters

Thank you for the reply, i haven't had to buy any filters for 12 years so whats out there now is all new to me. what about these canister filters ? they LOOK simple enough but i have known a couple of people who during routine maintenance, have accidently broken parts during re assembly and they had to send away for those parts. Not sure what kind they had, but they went back to outside filters. any tips on these canister filters would be much appreciated, on what to buy and what kind to stay away from.
thanks

 

[chefkeith]

Filstar xp3 Canister Filters are my favorite. The only problem I have with them is that the hoses need to be cleaned every 4-6 weeks. Kind of a pain to disassemble the entire set-up to clean the hoses. I haven't had anything break on it yet though, so I'd say its pretty durable. I will expect to have to order some replacement parts in the future though. I plan on buying 2 more Filstar xp3's for a 90 gal tank that I'll be setting up.

 

[bert]

thanks

thank you, i know very little about canister type filters, but the idea of having them hidden under the cabinet and not visible on the outside i like how are fluvals ? that is what seems to be available around here

 

[Grassguy]

I've had a Fluval for about 4 yrs and have never hada problem with it. It took me a coupla tries to prime it the first time, but I haven't had a problem with that since the initial prime.

 

[demon_surfer]

you can make your own wet dry filter for dirt cheap and they are excellent filters. I can find multiple articles on how to make them if you would like.

other than that I suggest two aquaclear 500 with double sponges in both .

 

[superjohnny]

Canisters are nice because you just set them up and forget about them. Maintenance is done every 2-3 months if that. I think once you try these types of filters you'll see why they are the best. Bigalsonline has the XP3 with media for $90. That's tough to beat IMO.