How Do You Rate Them? Filters & Automatic Feeders

[samcatj]

Which filters do you think do the best job keeping a tank really clean? My choices are the Emperor Bio Wheel or the Aqua Tech? Also your experiences about ease of cleaning and min. amount of maintance.

Second, do automatic feeders really work that well? I'm thinking about getting a Eheim feeder but would like some feedback first on it's reliability.
What types of foods can you use in them?

As always thank you in advacne for taking the time to respond.

Samcatj

[LizStreithorst]

I like crystal clear water so I used Magnum HOBs as for mechanical filtration. They're a bit of a PITA. There's a D ring on the lid that likes to fall out as your putting the lid on. Also there's the cleaning, drying, and changing of cartriges. They're worth it though because they do a great job.

As for auto feeders, Eheim is the only way to go. I've tried others. You can use flake pellets or sticks in them. If there's a lot of humidity in your fish room they work best with pellets.

[Tropical Haven]

I have to agree about the Magnums, they do a wonderful job but the cleaning is a chore.

On the automatic feeder I would stick with the Eheim is the way to go, I have one that I use when I go on vacation and it has worked flawlessly.

[korbi_doc]

:D I love my AquaClears...have 2 on my 125g tank with my Heckels & they do a great job, along with 3 lg sponge filters....
As for feeders, the only worthwhile one is the Eheim as Liz suggested...do use pellets, no sticking there, & try not to get the "knock-offs" that are being sold, they are trouble.....JMO, Dottie ;)

[samcatj]

Do you use the Magnum HOB as your only source of filtration? If so I have a 125g tank with 8 med. - large disucs in it. Do you think the magnum would work on it by itself. Can you go into a little more detail about the maintance and upkeep on the Magnum?

My aim is to get crystal clear water as you mentioned.

Sounds like the Eheim is the only way to go in automatic feeders.

Thanks for the response.

Samcatj

[poconogal]

For an HOB filter, IMO you can't beat an Aqua Clear for the amount of sponges or media you can put in it and the amount of water they filter. Mine are 16 and 14 years old.

For an auto feeder, Eheim is number 1. Numbers 2 and 3 would be Eheim... get the picture? LOL!

[LizStreithorst]

Do you use the Magnum HOB as your only source of filtration? If so I have a 125g tank with 8 med. - large disucs in it. Do you think the magnum would work on it by itself. Can you go into a little more detail about the maintance and upkeep on the Magnum?

My aim is to get crystal clear water as you mentioned.

Sounds like the Eheim is the only way to go in automatic feeders.

Thanks for the response.

Samcatj

The Magnum is only for mechanical filtration. I use them in conjunction with sponges. If you want just one filter to do both jobs the AquaClear is the way to go. But if you want crystal clear get a Magnum.

The Magnum has a pleated cartrage which filters fine particles out the the water. Every several days the filter gets dirty and needs to be cleaned. You do this by soaking the filter in a clorox solution for several hours or overnight. It is IMPERATIVE that the cartrige be rinsed throughly and allowed to dry until all odor of clorine is gone. Get an extra filter or 2 so you can rotate.

[Cosmo]

Yep - Eheim autofeeders are the only autofeeders to consider buying. They work great and are very flexible.

I use Eheim cannisters for bio and a Magnum cannister for mechanical on my 90 and 180 gal tanks. As I recall from the days I had Magnum HOTs, the cannisters are easier to change out the micron cartridge than was the case with the HOTs

Jim

[FairyDiscus]

Do Eheim filters do a good job on cleaning the water?

[miko12]

Even with crystal clear water, how often do you do water changes? What magnum model do you guys use?

[samcatj]

That's a great question.

What is the Magnum model number? While using the magnum on your tank as your filtration does doing so lessen the days between your w/c?

[roclement]

Mechanical filtration via a magnun filter of any kind does not lessen the need for water changes. One is removing particles and solid waste from the water and collecting it in the filter element, therefore the need to clean it often.

Water changes remove chemical and biological waste, so you can't cut back on that either.

I always used a combination of canister filter and AQ on my 150gl, both filled with sponges so, as stated, I could clean one, while keeping the other running, made it easier on the fish and the overall balance of the tank.

I just started a 125gl on a Fluval FX5 filled only with sponges, my goal is to eliminate the AQ altogheter and see what happens so I will wait a couple of months to get the Fluval properly seeded, and then remove the AQ, will report then.

Sorry, no experience with auto feeders.

HTH Rod

[roclement]

Just a sidebar, I forgot who said this, maybe Al, but I am not sure...for non-breeder tanks, the look and smell practice always work, if it looks clean and smells clean, it must be clean! : )

Rod

[poconogal]

Do Eheim filters do a good job on cleaning the water?

Eheim filters do a very good job of filtration and are supposedly very long lived. Other filters do a good job too - the Rena XP canisters do an excellent job as well, I have the XP1 on a 20g community tank and the XP3 on my 75g tank. As for how long they will last, who knows? They are newer on the market, but the XP 3 costs far less than an Eheim 2028, which is a comparable model. Others use Fluval canisters and love them, as well.

[miko12]

With the canister filters, doesn't it produce too much current? .....like salmons going thru raging rivers to spawn... LOL....

[poconogal]

With the canister filters, doesn't it produce too much current? .....like salmons going thru raging rivers to spawn... LOL....

Not at all. In fact, I think its less than a HOB filter current since output is from a spraybar, which distributes the water flow. I also have my spray bar fully submerged with the holes pointing upward towards the water surface, which provides aeration.

[miko12]

Thanks Connie! I think I'll be getting an X1 for my 40. They're on sale now.

[roclement]

With the canister filters, doesn't it produce too much current? .....like salmons going thru raging rivers to spawn... LOL....

LOL, too funny! No...even with the mother of all canisters the FX5, as long as th outputs are directed correctly, you should have no problems, now, if I put the FX5 on a 55gl, there migh be an issue!
Rod

[pinkertd]

I've used Aqua Clears in the past and currently have Emporers on my 72 gallon bowfront display tank. I'm running two Emporers on that tank and one on my 29 gallon. I like sparkling clear water and ease of filter cleaning....and I prefer the Emporers over the Aqua Clear. At first the Emporer's are a bit nosier when the filtered water goes back into the tank, but after the first couple days, it just blends in with the rest of the house sounds! The Aqua Clears last, I still have them as spares. I'm not running sponge filters though in the display tanks, so Emporer I feel provides better biological filtration than the Aqua Clears.

[poconogal]

Thanks Connie! I think I'll be getting an X1 for my 40. They're on sale now.
Well... I have an XP1 on my 20... but I always go bigger with filters... My XP1 is great as well, and its actually quieter than my XP3, which isn't really noisy, just a little hum, but the XP1 is silent.

Before I went to the canisters, I always used Aqua Clears, and I had an AC500 (now AC110) on my 45 g tank, which is now 14 years old. I would still be using the AC500 except that I wanted to save some space behind my new 75 g tank. I don't think you can beat an Aqua Clear HOB, for the amount of material you can load in it... my AC500 holds almost as much media as my XP3! Its a little harder to clean that other HOBs, but IMO is far superior.