For a 55 gal. Freshy tank......cannister filter or the waterfall kind??

Hi there! new to the site so i hope i get some help.

Will be getting a 55 gal Freshy tank set up soon and plan to do cichlids "s/p"?? lol and i was wondering if it would be good to do the traditional "water fall" filter's that i am use to..."used 10 and 20 gallon tanks before" OR!!! should i venture into the cannister world??

I know nothing of cannister's, but what i do know is i had a 20 gallon tank with "2" 20 gallon waterfall filters filtering my water. I thought twice the power would mean twice the better condition my water would be in. All my levels stayed normal and my water was clear as crystal.

So!!! should i look into a powerfull cannister filter like a Fluval.."sp"?? lol....or would doubleing up the waterfall filter's again on my new 55'er be good enough? Kepp in mind they would be "new" more powerful waterfall filters since my new tank will be twice the size.

Also, if i got a cannister, would it be expensive for me to replace the materials it need's to keep it running at it's best so my water stays it's best??? Or would buying "disposable filter's to fit in my double waterfall idea end up costing me more money down the road??

Lastly, i do not have a local pet store...so buying replace products for ether ther cannister or waterfall filter's are kinda out of the question " gas is getting expensive when you are laied off" but a local pet'smart is about 25 minuets away from me. So...does let's say..."WalMart" have good filter's i can possibly buy if i had the same brand of filter that walmart carried? I think the only one i can remember is Tetra. Are they any good??

Thanks alot guys!

 

welcome to 3 reef asylum11

external cannister filters- I have used Fluval and Eheim brands of these types and for freshwater use, loaded with a biological media like sintered glass rings or ceramic rings etc
they dont need replacing at all, just rinsing monthly in old tank water to remove accumulated sediment - in the top tray there is a sponge or some filter floss material and again this can be rinsed often and lasts a very long time IME

the only media you may need to throw away and replace are the carbon pad type filters you use on those hang on back waterfall filters -

in a external cannister filter you can buy bulk bags of activated carbon should you decide to use carbon (always good IMO) and a coffee cup in a mesh bag used perdiodically in the external would be adequate to maintain water clarity (I used to use a bag full for 1 week and then throw away and then 3 weeks later use another bag for a week)
you could use it 24/7 , but IME with freshwater I never felt the need to



Steve

 

Hi! Welcome to 3reef!

For a 55g freshwater, I'd probably go with a canister filter. It is quieter and does a much better job than a HOB (waterfall) filter.

In terms of which one to use, most people recommend the Eheim brand. Eheims are excellent, but very expensive. Almost as good are the RENA canister filters, which get very good reviews and are considerably less expensive than Eheim.

As Steve said above, the biological filters in the canister seldom need replacing. However, the mechanical filters (foam/sponge/floss) will occasionally need replacing, or at least washing. Also, if you choose to run carbon, that will also need replacing - the same as for a waterfall filter.

So good luck with your set-up - although most of us here are running saltwater, many of us have freshwater experience. And a good freshwater tank can be breathtaking.

Oh, and by the way, if there is no local fish store (LFS) near you, you can order replacement filter materials online (usually cheaper than if you bought at a store).

 

I vote canister! HOBs are ugly and noisy. But they are very easy to clean and do maintenance on. I run 4 canisters on my 125 gallon freshwater catfish tank.

 

thank you all so much for you input. Yes i realize that this is a mostly saltwater forum, but i could not find another place with this ammount of member's that could possibly help me when i needed it. Saltwater has allways scared me...the thought of a saltwater tank seeem's amazing in my home...but i've always thought it would be much harder to maintain over a fresh water.

So, carbon would be a good idea inside a canister you say?? Well...how hard is it to take care of a canister?? As i mentioned before, i have NO experiance with canister's what so ever. So anything canister i should know...would be great. I'm guessing they are alot quiter from what a few member's here have already told me??

 

Many canisters are virtually silent. They are a good call for most freshwater aquariums. Wet/drys are nice too if you have a heavy biological load. This is what my routine with cannisters was:

 

Well, to the dismay of most saltwater hobbyist I use a canister on a reef tank with success (which I define as stable conditions, minimal to no algae blooms, etc.). My maintenance routine consist of; opening up the canister, rinsing the foam blocks, replacing the carbon, rinsing the bio-media once per month. I also incorporate a water change at the same time. This process from start to finish usually takes me roughly about 30 minutes. Adversely I've used a sumps and waterfalls on a 55g freshwater tank for years. I would imagine a canister be even easier with a freshwater setup as it would should require less maintenance.

 

I use one on my slaty too. Clean it regularly and its fine. Also look into Seachem Matrix for your bio media. It is very good, works way better than then stuff I had before.

 

excuse me, but i do not know what "bio-media" is...lol:

 

Bio media

means biological media

biological in that it is a substance that provides a great location for bacteria to colonise
you could do this with sponges - but they get worn out
so most people used something like sintered glass rings (Siporax TM or some other brand)
these offer an incredible amount of space for bacteria to live on - 1 litre of these rings, gives the same surface area of 3 football or soccer pitches ( maybe not exactly that but its a lot of surface area anyway)

Steve