Power Filter Vs. Canister
 

Power Filter Vs. Canister

So I am putting together my 72G (272L) setup and I already have a small canister filter (450l/hr aka 116G/hr) and I am looking to either add another canister filter or buy a large power filter (like a 350G/hr , 1350L/hr model).

I am using the Eheim on my 30G and it just rocks, for some reason I have this hesitancy to depend on a power filter... Is this silly?

Effectively speaking, how much more of an advantage is a canister over a power filter?

Re: Power Filter Vs. Canister
 

I am unable to answer your question (as I have no experience with power filters [also commonly referred to as Hang On Back filters]) but I believe that I can provide some input

The literature indicates that for HOB and cannister filters the tank water should be cycled through the filter a minimum of ten times per hour.

TR

Canister>power

Canister all the way! I just got mine 2 weeks ago and LOVE it. I'll never go back to the powerfilter.

I have had problems with the wheels on the biowheel filters stopping on 75% of the marineland filters i've owned. I've also had impellers stop on me with the topfin power filters. I think the biggest advantages of a canister filter is the ability to
1) choose the media that you put in it- I made the mistake of not rincing off flourite gravel, and packed my canister filter full of floss, and the water was 100% clear in two days. You can also choose to pack it full of bio media once your tank has been set up.(i'm not big on carbon, it's kinda old school)
2) You don't have an ugly filter hanging on the back of your tank making it look all tacky.

How many times did you replace the filter packing? After only a month, my eHeim prefilter disintigrated and that was after spending HOURS rinsing the flourite. I've already had to replace both prefilters in my eheim (the white prefilter twice) and the tank isn't even two months old. Almost tempted to dump the flourite for river rock as I'm still getting tons of stuff generated off the flourite.

I went to petsmart and just got the big bag of generic filter floss(less than five bucks). I think I rinsed off the filter after the first day though.

For me I want something that I can see what is going on. I like Power filters; I have 2 AC Power HOB filters and they have served me well for 2 years. Only once did one of them stop and that was because I was not taking proper care and cleaning the chamber every month. Even if I was to get a rather large tank, 55 or larger I would likely still use a HOB filter, actually likely 2 of them rated for the size of tank I am putting them on. Redundancy in case of an unforseen failure or just from lack of remembering to clean then right.

They do have a limit to how much you can customize them but I can fit two sponges and a full carbon bag in my AC 20 HOB without a problem. I would think you could layer Biochem stars on top with 2 sponges underneath and have a really good filter system to handle pretty much any bioload. Also with 2 filters you can out one at each end to prevent dead spots. A canister can do this with a spray bar but you suck water from one end.

I honestly don't think you can go wrong with either one. As long you maintain them and keep the media changed properly both should do what you need and keep your tank pretty clean.

Don't get me wrong, Canisters do have the advantage of being able to install inline heaters, UV sterilizers and if needed later a CO2 diffusor so they do have their distinct advantages, aside from just filtering and cleaning the water.