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Internal vs External Filter Advice Please!


tukituki

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Our eheim filter in our 130L tank does not seem to be working so well these days so time for a new one. I'm after some advice on what is a good quality filter that we may be able to get as a replacement.

Tank is tropical with guppies and bristlenoses. We breed.

The drop down filters that sit on the side of the tank won't fit the shape of this particular tank.

We have been using internal filters for years (most of the time eheim) and only quite recently had problems with them with them sucking up bristlenose fry. I am seeing for sale aqua one external filters at what looks to be a decent price, what are these like (the aquis 700 etc)? We have an inbuilt filter in a different aqua one tank with a trickle filter and it is awesome, maybe these external ones are good too?

We'd love to hear any advice you all have. Cheers.

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a canister filter is external, eheim is a good brand just depends what model of eheim you get wheither its suitable for you or not.

To stop fry getting sucked into the filter try puting a mesh/net over the intake pipe.

aquaone 1200 seem to be the bench mark filter for tanks that size so could be a good option for you, depends how much flow you want in the tank

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Thanks I just edited it! I thought the Eheim style was called canister...

I'm keen for good quality and one that really does filter well since we have a lot of little gba's. I'm not keen for another Eheim due to it sucking up fry, we did cover it but it seemed to stop it working so well.

The external canisters are intriguing, I don't know a lot about them and have never used one before, so am keen to find out more about them.

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I use an Eheim 2217 classic canister and an Eheim 2212 Aquaball internal (sponges removed and using ehfisubstrat pro instead)on my 3' 130ltr GBA tank that usually has 200-300 GBA's of all sizes (at feeding time the bottom is literally covered in fish), they have been on there for 5+ yrs with no problems, the filters get a clean about every 4-6 mths (daily 30ltr water changes). If your intake is to low it can suck up fry, mine is about 200mm from the bottom. Some say they dont flow enough water which in my opinion is good, the water spends longer in the filter so the bacteria can do their job properly and clean the water, as opposed to those where the water flows through fast without being completly cleansed of ammonia etc, ( if your looking for water flow i use a sunsun magnetic or tunze pump designed for water flow). I also like the low power consumption of the Eheim's. I have always used the classic Eheims without trouble and currently run 5 x 2217 's and 1 x 2213 along with 3 x Aquaballs and 3 x sunsun pumps (for flow)on 4 tanks of up to 800 ltrs.

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Eheim filters last for years. If yours is not running as well as it used to you need to look and see why, then fix it, not spend money on a new filter. You may find it is an easy fix :wink:

What sort of maintenance have you been doing on the filter?

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the eheim we've been using we've had for years, i'd say it must be about 8 years old at a guess. we clean the sponges and have put new ones in recently too. its the noise of it, it used to be a steady hum but now its not making so much noise. i'm not sure how it could be fixed? any ideas?

if we do replace the external ones i've got my eye on are the aqua one cf700 or cf1000. or else eheim 2213 classic, or eheim 2224 professional. which would be the best? cheers.

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Do you run a brush through the hoses and spray bar when your cleaning them? Mine still flow like new after a clean out. A noisy filter can sometimes mean there is air trapped inside, i tilt mine from side to side slowly with the filter running to get any excess air out.

What model is your current filter?

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canisters have way more capacity int erms of bio filtration. internalsi find very good for mechanical but bio filtration can be weaker.

canisters are easier to clean - detach hoses, takeit out side, clean. Internals you gotta disturb the tank lots.

Also internals tend to take up inernal tank space, with a smallish tank, space is premium.

canisters are less intrusive.

go canister, the cost of canister vs a good internal isnt all that much

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the eheim we've been using we've had for years, i'd say it must be about 8 years old at a guess. we clean the sponges and have put new ones in recently too. its the noise of it, it used to be a steady hum but now its not making so much noise. i'm not sure how it could be fixed? any ideas?

if we do replace the external ones i've got my eye on are the aqua one cf700 or cf1000. or else eheim 2213 classic, or eheim 2224 professional. which would be the best? cheers.

id go for the 2213 aye, your tank water will turn over 3x an hour, the maintenance is easy as and it comes with far better media than what the aqua one's have plus there reliable. Ive got a 2213 on my 3 foot that's a tad bigger than what youve got and the water quality has always been really good and have never had even one issue with it so far.

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