Hang on filter vs. canister
 

I have a emporer 280 hang on power filter. I have also been looking at the fuval 204 or 304, as well as even eheim products. Is it worth it to switch from hang on to canister, and who makes the best products? remember, I only have a 38gal tank, so I dont need anything huge.

i posted fluval, becuase thats what my tank is running on :) well 2 of them, but adding sump soon :)

Filters
 

I have used both hang on and canister. The canister is a bit more of a pain in the rear compared to the hang on type, but it holds more filter media. I am still running an aquaclear 500 and 300 for the past 4-5 years and haven't had any problems, and cleaning was easy. It is all bout preference. You could also use a powerful Protein skimmer with high water flow instead of a canister or hang on filter.

Stan

When it comes to simplicity, hang on filters such as Aquaclears can't be beat. They're simple in design, but very good at what they do. I have run them on my tanks for years and will continue to do so. Canisters on the other hand also have their advantages. In freshwater and FO applications they are better at biological filtration (because of the larger media holding capacity), although they lack somewhat in the mechanical filtration area. By adding a prefilter over the intake of a canister, you can extend the cleaning period of a canister by a few months. They're also good for adding extra water volumn to your tank.

That said, what is my preference? I've run both Fluvals and Eheims and I know several people who've run Filstars. If you can afford it, get yourself an Eheim. The classic Eheims are a bit harder to get primed and ready to go, but once you master it, they will last you forever. If you want to spend a little bit more money, get the professional series Eheim. They're very easy to prime, much easier than a Fluval. The only downside to the Eheim is cost. IME, Fluvals perform pretty well. However, I don't like how the canister is designed. Looking at the canister's design, it seems like some of the water going through the canister could bypass the media storage area. Filters such as the Eheim and Filstar don't have this problem. From what I've read, Filstars are probably the best bang for your buck. Their design is simliar to that of the Eheim, and they are relatively reliable so far. They've been on the market for a relatively short amount of time compared to the Eheim and Fluval, so their problems may not have popped up yet.

-Rich

Hang on are much easier to do maintinence on. If you have a problem with doing regular maintinence, stick with the Hang on.

I have a couple of Fluvals, and they work good. However, they are a real pain in the backside (**insert much stronger word here, mabey even 2 or 3**) to get primed. I have never used the other 2 filters, but if there is one that is easier to prime, I would say go for that one.

I have a couple of Fluvals too and they are killing my tank. They collect nitrates like its nobody's business and for me its gotten to the point where its starting to impact my system and stress me out. Upsides though are they are easy to clean and maintain, and they work wonderfully for draining your tank for a water change!

Sometimes its rather hard to find particular medias though, seems like whenever I'm running low on something, everyone else is too!

I have a magnum 350 canister and an eheim canister and a AC 500 on my freshey tank. The AC moves lots of water and it is very easy to clean. I like it a lot.
The mag 350 is a great filter. I run it with floss and the carbon basket 98% of the time. You can also run the micron filter for some water polishing and I have heard some have used it as a diatom filter but I haven't yet. On this filter the pump is on the bottom so it doesn't need priming just fill it with water and plug it in :biggrin: I would buy this filter again.
The eheim is a little tricky to get running again and I did get rid of the eheim noodles and rocks and I replaced it with bio balls and a few sponges and is running great. But I would buy the mag 350 over the eheim.

I have a fluval 404 in conjunction with a uv sterilizer in my 130 gal and since I have about 250 lbs of live rock I let that do most of the work. I have only 1 tray about 1/2 full of media and all the others have only carbon. IME if you have a lot of rock it will filter quite well without being the nitrate factory the canister media becomes. I don't even have any foam in mine. This was suggested to me by some reefers here in Calgary and seems to be working quite well. (so far so good) I do a weekly or biweekly water change of about 10-15% add the regular alk/cal chems and my parameters seem to stay consistently in the range I am looking for. My personal thought is when in doubt add more live rock. For a complete list of what I am using I had a thread on the pictures forum called "my 130 gal tank shot"