Which Is Better? A Canister or Hang-on The Back Filters?
- Thread starter GentleGiantsCichlidKeeper
- Start date
Having bought a lot of new and used AC filters between 2001 and about 2012, I can state unequivocally that they are not made as well in terms of the thickness of the plastic, Most of this is the result of consolidation of the industry. Conglomerates with pet divisions have bought up many of the manufacturers. What they then did was try to figure out how to make more money from them. So they lowered the quality and raised the price. I used to buy the smallest of the linem the 100 gph (model 20 these days) for $9.99. A good price for that today is more than double that.
As far as I know Hagen has remained independent. However, they have to compete, so when other companies changed their quality, AquaClears was forced to follow along. There are products I had used for a decade or more which I gave up because of this trend. ACs are now a bit less well made, but they are still a good choice compared to many of the alternatives, imo.
One of the things I learned over time is that any filter that relies on a constant replacement of new cartridges/inserts to run is something I do not use. The greatest advantage of the AC design is you can choose a variety of media to use and it does not have to be anything made by Hagen if you do not want to use it. AC prices rose when they began adding the bio-media. I was still adding new ACs at that time and I always threw out this media or gave it away. I also initially used to set up new Eheim canisters using their media. That too has changed. The last new one I set up was filled only with Poret foam. It took over three years before it needed to be cleaned. My others Eheims get cleaned every 6 months.
My first tank used an Emperor 400 and an UGF/RUGF. I had to replace that after about 6 months and I chose an AC 200. that was in 2001. The EMperor died after 10 years and I never replaced it, I stikk gave that AC 200 running in another tank. I bought a replacment for the 400 and after putting it on the tank for 10 minutes, I took it off, dried it out and returned it. I put an second AC, a 300, on the tank instead.
As far as I know Hagen has remained independent. However, they have to compete, so when other companies changed their quality, AquaClears was forced to follow along. There are products I had used for a decade or more which I gave up because of this trend. ACs are now a bit less well made, but they are still a good choice compared to many of the alternatives, imo.
One of the things I learned over time is that any filter that relies on a constant replacement of new cartridges/inserts to run is something I do not use. The greatest advantage of the AC design is you can choose a variety of media to use and it does not have to be anything made by Hagen if you do not want to use it. AC prices rose when they began adding the bio-media. I was still adding new ACs at that time and I always threw out this media or gave it away. I also initially used to set up new Eheim canisters using their media. That too has changed. The last new one I set up was filled only with Poret foam. It took over three years before it needed to be cleaned. My others Eheims get cleaned every 6 months.
My first tank used an Emperor 400 and an UGF/RUGF. I had to replace that after about 6 months and I chose an AC 200. that was in 2001. The EMperor died after 10 years and I never replaced it, I stikk gave that AC 200 running in another tank. I bought a replacment for the 400 and after putting it on the tank for 10 minutes, I took it off, dried it out and returned it. I put an second AC, a 300, on the tank instead.
I use Penguin cartridge style filters for all my tanks. There is no need to buyi expensive cartridges from vendor as I cut my own filter pads from polyester batting which I bought in yards from Joanne Fabric. It amounts to less than 5c each so it’s not worth to get my hand dirty to rinse pooped up foam. Marineland sells filter media cages for Penguin 350 and 200 which I use to clamp DIY filter pads, and there is another slot one can insert Poret foam as needed. I run Penguins for mechanical polishing only and don’t even bother to install the biowheels.
Emperor is a bad HOB because of the complicated spray bar biowheel design. The simpler Penguin line is quieter and more reliable. More sophistication is not necessarily better as there are more parts to fail.
I only used AC briefly and trashed it. AC is noisy, pumps too much water, and a clogged up foam can pop up and drip over. Worst is the impeller house design one has to remove the motor to clean the impeller. Repeated unscrewing the AC motor can damage the O ring seal leading to leak. If high flow is what one needs, it’s cheaper and more effective to install a dedicated circulation pump as I did in my 125 and 75 gal show tanks.
I hate canister because it it PIA to clean and vulnerable to leak due to many O rings and clamps. I do not trust any filters vulnerable to leak in my living room where my show tanks are located. I prefer filters with media easy to access to clean, not one that hides dirt out of sight and hard to clean.
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I have used both. My first "large" aquarium was a 50 breeder bought from an LFS. It came with a ugf and an emperor bio-wheel. I ditched the bio-wheel because of the throw away filter pads and upgraded to a fluval 405. I appreciated the media options that came with the multiple baskets but did not like the hoses. I did run an Eheim canister on a 40g for a few years and like the design better that the Fluval for looks. The latches on the Eheim tend to be fragile. I currently run AC20, 50, 70 or 110s on all my tanks even the 220g. My 90g was running an AC50 and 70 and a ugf. I ran uplift tubes from the ugf to the AC intakes on both. I recently removed the ugf because I dirted the substrate and planted the tank. My filter cleaning routine is to pull up the intake tube so that the filter is no longer circulating place a container next to the filter and remove the media. I then rinse the media in tank water and re-install. I leave the intake tube up until I have finished draining water from the tank. Once I am ready to refill I push the intake tubes back down and the AC reprimes itself. I no longer run prefilter sponges on the intakes due to clogging. I do find that intakes on planted tanks need to be pulled regularly to remove plant matter that clogs the strainer.
Everybody has their own reasons for what they like and use and what they do not. I have ACs running for almost 2 decades w/o any issues, thy have flow control so cannot run too fast. I have never had one overflow onto the floor. But then I know how to set them up properly. I rarely need to clean impellors. But they tell me when. I live where it is not uncommon to have power outages but we have whole house back-up. So the filters only stop for the 20seconds between when power is lost and then generator comes on.
If the impeller needs cleaning, the filter wont restart. At that poitn I have one of two choices, Cleane it or shift the intake to the low flow setting and use the tip is a tank dedicated scissors as quick tick and it restarts. Fileters running a while build up slime. This helps keep them quiet as they are run for years. Clean them and they can get noisy until they build up some slime again.
However, it took me many years to understand how to "filter effectively. The first and hardest thing to learn is that a filter does not filter anything. What it does is to hold media and to pump water through it. The water return, when it roils the surface, helps to promote gas exchange and also to create some amount of current.
The key to effective filtration is the design and the volume of media. For that reason over time I have been switching to Hamburg Mattenfilters and Poret Foam Cubes. In such tanks most of the so-called mechanical filtration is performed biologically. Moat of it is organic and a lot of it gets broken down and consumed by microorganisms.
I am in my early 70s, what motivated me most of all to begin converting filters was the desire not to have to clean them so often. I do weekly maint. and water changes. Rinsing media is not something I want to have to do if possible.
If your water is clean and as clear as you want it, if your fish are thriving and living to or beyond their live expectancies, if you keep live plants and they do well then the odds are good that your filtration is adequate whatever it is. This presumes that your filter and/or something more keep an adequate level of dissolved oxygen in the water.
If the impeller needs cleaning, the filter wont restart. At that poitn I have one of two choices, Cleane it or shift the intake to the low flow setting and use the tip is a tank dedicated scissors as quick tick and it restarts. Fileters running a while build up slime. This helps keep them quiet as they are run for years. Clean them and they can get noisy until they build up some slime again.
However, it took me many years to understand how to "filter effectively. The first and hardest thing to learn is that a filter does not filter anything. What it does is to hold media and to pump water through it. The water return, when it roils the surface, helps to promote gas exchange and also to create some amount of current.
The key to effective filtration is the design and the volume of media. For that reason over time I have been switching to Hamburg Mattenfilters and Poret Foam Cubes. In such tanks most of the so-called mechanical filtration is performed biologically. Moat of it is organic and a lot of it gets broken down and consumed by microorganisms.
I am in my early 70s, what motivated me most of all to begin converting filters was the desire not to have to clean them so often. I do weekly maint. and water changes. Rinsing media is not something I want to have to do if possible.
If your water is clean and as clear as you want it, if your fish are thriving and living to or beyond their live expectancies, if you keep live plants and they do well then the odds are good that your filtration is adequate whatever it is. This presumes that your filter and/or something more keep an adequate level of dissolved oxygen in the water.
