I am in complete agreement with
duanes
when it comes to canisters; the entire concept/philosophy of a sealed canister filter is simply not compatible with frequent, easy and effective cleaning of an aquarium filter. Literally any style of filter performs the same tasks of mechanical, biological and chemical filtration; but the more frequently the initial mechanical stages are cleaned, the less of the organic material has a chance to be broken down by bacteria and the slower the accumulation of nitrate in the aquarium water. Canisters simply cannot be as convenient to clean as sumps or HOB's, which results in less frequent cleaning, in turn resulting in more rapidly accumulating nitrates.
Read the marketing literature for canisters a few decades ago; the manufacturers would always trumpet how long one could go between cleanings, as though this were some huge benefit. Today there is a bit less emphasis placed upon this as a supposed benefit, likely because aquarists are a bit more aware of the processes going on in an aquarium, but there are still numerous instances of aquarists who are ecstatic that their canisters only "require" cleaning twice a year or even less.
But if a buyer has decided that they want or need a canister, for whatever reason, then there is still a lot to be considered.
...I do not agree with your "over priced" statement, there is a reason Ehime 2262, 2260, FX5 and FX6 are regarded as the absolute best canisters.......Earn more money and buy more expensive filters..... That's like saying a Ford can compete with a Lamborgini...
There are many reasons why particular products are considered to be "the best"...and one of the principle reasons is marketing. I firmly believe that, in general, you do "get what you pay for" in life...but that attitude must be tempered with research, critical thinking and a realistic assessment of the facts. Trusting that something is better because it's more expensive is utterly foolish. Many products are more expensive than their competition because an effective marketing campaign has elevated them in the eyes of the market to the point where a higher price simply adds to the cachet of owning them.
Ford vs. Lamborghini? Congrats, you may have just made the most ridiculous analogy on MFK today. You're right, a Ford can't compete with a Lamborghini...as a sports car, for occasional recreational driving. But, as a daily driver, for carrying groceries or driving the kids to school or taking the dog to the vet or going to the beach with the family, a Ford is infinitely superior to an Italian supercar...and an item like an aquarium filter, which is intended to operate 24/7 for years on end, is pretty much the definition of "daily driver". Selling the notion that "more expensive" automatically equates to "better" is quite often simply a case of putting your mouth where your money already is.
I'm quite certain that if paper money is shredded
just so...that it can probably function as an adequate filtration medium....but that certainly doesn't mean that it's the best.
