Great video! I used them all except sump. And canister filters are winning it for me. Adding volume of water to my tanks, quiet, working great and not too much obstruction inside the aquariums. Love these!
Totally agree, sponge filters aren't filters in my opinion. They have their place in the hobby but not for larger populated tanks where you want some water movement. The new sicce pro looks great but it's massive and a total eye sore imo. Sumps and canisters all day for me!
When I started fishkeeping, it was confusing because a lot of folks used pump and filter as same terminology and clearly different. It took longer than it should to understand and this broke things down nicely. Thank you!
I custome built my sponge filter and made it a Lil special 😁 It's freaking epic and easy to do. And increases the efficiency 100 fold. Also, you can attach plants by the roots to the sponge to hide them. The roots love all the nutrients they pull in. 100% will always use my custom filters over anything else on the market.
John says for those who are constantly worried about leaks. Yep that me. That is exactly why I have 5 tanks with sponge filters or internal filters. I worry a lot about everything.
Same here. I love my small internal filters. And I would probably prefer having two of them in different corners of a tank instead of having an canister filter for a bigger tank. Mostly because I'm worried about leaks. And yes, I do think it's extremely scary to fill up new aquariums with water as well... Luckily, once they're up running, I can relax. Most of the time...
Carl stole the show 🤣🤣🤣 great breakdown of filters in one video ... genius! The only leak I've ever had happened while I was at work when my cats kicked the return of my eheim 2215 over the top of the tank😬came home to about 3 inches of water left in the tank and a ton of water through to the basement😫 amazingly all fish survived! 😅
My first fish tank was given to my by a friend (sold) and it came with a pretty old hang in the back cascade 300 filter. it has the WORST cartridge slide filter media things. I once bought a replacement to see if I liked them but I hated everything about them so removed it and made my own with sponges, ceramic rings, carbon and a very fine wool type of material. Now it catches absolutely everything, is VERY easy to clean as you can just disconnect the filter, pick it up and drop everything on a bucket which helps avoid the internal/sponge filter problem where removing it will inevitably make a cloud of fish poop. I also have an internal filter to help move water around and help with filtration as I introduced it when I had driftwood in it but I hate how it gets clogged up SO quickly. I recently got a 120 gallon tank with a canister and it's currently cycling and so far it's been great, so much room for filter media, UV light on a timer, great setup, has a skimmer and has everything you would need. It was expensive and so far I love it. I haven't cleaned it yet but I can avoid getting the floor and myself wet by putting it inside of a bucket when opening it up for cleaning.
I do maintenance on my canister filters about once a year ... I have prefiler sponges on the intakes that get squeezed out in water that I have just taken out of the tank for a partial water change every two weeks ;)
Lol , you are so funny and so honest. I just about spit my tea all over myself at the end of your video when you said you just did not want to hear from people about it because you hate them so bad and it was the underground filters ! That was the very question that was in my head because I had one like you said way back in the 60s and I hadn't heard anything about him lately so when you said that I just about rolled laughing. You are the greatest I love your honesty My favorite hang on filter used to be the aqua clear but for some reason which I do not know I had two and both of them would get mad at me and overflow and push the filter out and running the floor and almost empty my tanks. Especially when I was away from home working so then I switched over to canister filters my son had a fluid he gave to me and that thing kept me in tears trying to get it back together when I would do maintenance on it I mean I would be actually crying and praying for God to help me get that thing back together. That was when I decided to go back to hang on so because like you said the canisters are so heavy and I'm in my 70s now so that was a problem. Then I saw your video about the tribal filters and that's what I have switched over to. Thank you Lisa both for all of the effort you put into helping us enjoy your hobby, and also interacting with you guys you are so much fun
I absolutely love my canister filters. It's so satisfying to take everything out and clean it. 😅 I also run sponge filters in all of my tanks as backups/just extra biofiltration.
I like the hang on the back. I like the current it puts in my tank, and as the water lowers, it goes from quiet to noisier. I like having parts of my tank have a water flow and parts where it does not. I think this gives the fish exercise time and rest time, which I think is healthy. One of my tanks is a 55, and I have a blue side and a white side. It is very interesting which fish prefer which side. When the lights and air toys go off, I see some fish leave their daytime hiding place and move around.
Have used all except the sump. Have also used corner box filters (still do). For the latter , started with one back in 1971 with bone charcoal and glass wool. Also , with a powerhead , am a fan of undergravel filters. Still using one I bought 30+ years ago.
I love my canister filters, and in my opinion priming is only an issue if you don't know how to do it. You can prime the filter manually by filling up the hoses with water right to the top.
Thanks John, I ended up buying a large air pump and using sponge filters in my fish room when my electrical bill went over $500.00! One pump and a bunch of noisy sponge filters is well worth the savings!
I love my Sicce Whale canisters. I have them on a 40 gallon and a 29 gallon. Yes, it is overkill, but I don’t care. I actually needed one on my 40 because it is overstocked and it made all the difference in my water quality and the water is beautiful. The 29 gallon is in my entryway in my house and I wanted the filter out of site, so it was an easy choice another canister. As for servicing, I have tested and I clean them every 6 months and could go longer. The Whale is also silent and super easy to service. The Sicce is super easy to prime too. I just added the tiny Oase to my 10 gallon (you can hang it on the tank like an HOB) and I am super happy with it. I replaced a HOB that was noisy and the little Oase is quiet and really simple to setup. To prime you just fill it with water and plug it in. I astill have some tiny HOBs on my 5 gallon Betta tanks, but everything else gets a canister now. I highly recommend them too.
I agree, best HOB on the market but they can leak too if not maintained and leaning forward. When they clog, water has to go somewhere and if it's not even or leaning towards the tank they can leak behind the tank. I use them in combination with my canisters as a backup and extra filtration.
For my sicce canister to prime it i just have a 5 gallon bucket and i put the output hose lower than the height of my canister and it is up and running in seconds. Just make sure you bring the hose back up and into the bucket to catch the water so it wont spill everywhere 😅if you are fast enough you can go straight up to the tank if you like to play roulette.
I run five sponge filters off one air pump and i love the efficiency, also one of my tanks doesnt get water changes just top ups and i have moss algae and monte carlo growing out of it and i think it looks great
In what size tanks? Are they planted and heavily stocked? I am so tired of noise in my living room. I would love to disconnet the canister hooked to my 100 gallon. The air pumps are noisy too, but not as bad.
@@grabbaghosts the biggest tank i run a sponge filter on is a 30G, they all heavily planted and a few of them are heavily stocked, for a 100G id run two sponge filters with one really powerful air pump or one sponge filter and one HOB
I have 2, 40 gallon whisper filters that I rigged up to an underground filter system and it works perfect for me. I love it it’s quiet I get the aeration from the spill. I get some current and my perimeters are near perfect with a few water changes.
My go-to filters are always internal. The fish I keep are small, so I just add more substrate, as opposed to stronger filtration. To me, unless you’re keeping monster fish, sump and canister filters just seem like fish keeping with extra steps.😅
My canister filter next to my bin & both filter and bin are roughly the same height, round and black . When a friend crashed over for the first time, she said a few things that i still remeber ▪︎why have i got 2 bins in my room. ▪︎why cant she open the lid to my bin ▪︎why has one of the bins got tubs attached to it. She was pointing to my canister
I personally moved from HOB filters to cannister . I use a Penn Plax Cascade 1000 for my 36 gallon bowfront... I have been using it for 9 months now and have no complaints.. It works extremely well , is silent and comes at a fraction of the cost of some of the other options (FLUVAL I am talking to you) . They are simple and effective, and actually simpler then the F luvals as well. I loved my Tidal 55 , but the cannister filter makes fish keeping life so much easier.
HOBs are great with mods. Replace the cartridges with poly foam and other sponges. Best for mods are Marineland bio wheel that you’re showing and AquaClear. Both are great but I’ve had issue with noisy impellers on AquaClear my Marineland is barely audible.
I use sunsun 304b's and fx6's. I've only ever primed it the first time I bought it. The trick is to just fill it most of the way up with tank water, enough to be able to close the lid without Splashing. Canisters and internal canister are the only filters I use. As far as internals go marinelands internal are definitely my favorite. Most powerful and largest amount if space for media especially of you modify it the way I do mine
I have an under gravel on my 75 with two power-heads (50 GPH each) combined with my Eheim canister and Marineland 400 hang on filters, I'll never have a large tank as part of my system, I totally respect and understand your different of opinion, but I still love your shared opinions and knowledge that I do learn from. (you can't teach an old dog new tricks, but YOU DO add to them).
for my filters that had cartridges, I just bought a $5 bag of poly-fil and just use that. works great and lasts for probly over a year :) 23:51 just heard you say pretty much the same thing lol, thank you for this video I'm tired of my sponge filters
when i started fish keeping 25 years ago, the most available filter system in my country was trickle filters, using a powerhead + trickle system. I still use it this system today... While I acknowledge the benefits the sump system, as a person who has back problems, I prefer the overhead trickle for easier maintenance...
Thank you for your Channel I'm a rookie who recently decided to get a fish tank again and of course I made all the wrong mistakes right off the bat there were a lot of TH-camrs out there and it was quite confusing then I came across your Channel Channel and it helped me sort everything out now I have a beautiful tank Happy Fish and a schedule for taking care of my tank doing water changes and keeping a happy environment and yes I do have live plants and I'm trying to create a healthy biosphere. I got a 20 gallon tank and I'm so loving it with the natural plants the wonderful fish I'm really excited about my future with tanks and now I feel adequately prepared to take care of it thanks to you guys. ❤
I love the setup I'm using. Seachem Tidal 75 hanging on the side of my 75-gallon tank. 1 course and 1 fine sponge filter. My parameters are usually perfect and i don't fight algae. Some might say it's excessive, but it works.
In Europe the most common starter filter is internal filter in every starter kit. Hang on backs are very rare and the first time I heard about them was in fishkeeping videos..
I will take my under gravel filter (plenum set up) any day over all the filters you talked about. set up once and no other costs. no parts to replace, even continues to work if the power goes out.
I’ve seen a zillion filter videos but this kept my interest and was very informative. I’d like to share my experience with sponge filters; I had a near catastrophe/flood when the air pump power cord somehow disconnected, and water was pouring from the hose rather quickly but luckily I was home. I had not yet learned about safety valves!!! I now have them on all air pump hoses and I feel much more relaxed about the possibility of a line disconnect or power outage. Ps: Hi Carl 🐈⬛
Tried sponge, hob, internal (pump and air driven). Sump for the main 300 fallon, sponge pump driven for axolotl, internal for daughter's guppies 50 gall. Nice vid, enjoying the channel from belgium
Only one missing is the All-in One Tanks. Essentially a built in sump. Most often seen in the salt water side of the hobby, but I run a big acrylic all in one freshwater. Easiest to maintain tank I've ever had. Also...dead silent.
I haven't had an aquarium since the early 80's, do people still use under gravel filters? Ok you answered my question at the end of the video, I decided to leave it up anyway. I can't imagine people not using under gravel filters they were pretty much standard in my time, there were some fish that they were not recommended for, but they were pretty standard back in the day. Wow! It sounds like things have really improved, I have really enjoyed your videos. It has inspired me to get back into keeping fish. Of course I have a lot of catching up to do. I will be watching a lot more of your videos as well as others besides reading, doing research and visiting nearby aquarium and pet stores. I plan on buying an aquarium in June. A hundred gallon is the size I'm thinking of. I'm going to put in it 9 Platies, 6 Sunset groumies, 20 Cardinal tetras, 6 Pencil fish, 10 cherry barbs, 6 hatchet fish, 3 Hillstream loaches, 6 kuhla loaches, 8 green Corydoras catfish, 10 Hariquin rasboras, 10 Otocinclus and maybe some shrimp and mystery snails. And of course live plants, rocks and drift wood. A Sunset groumie is similar to a honey groumie it's smaller than a dwarf. Well this is my plan, but like I said I have a lot of catching up to do.
Very thorough pros and cons of various types of filters. So far I’m happy with my sponge filter - easy and cheap, and its green finish blends in with the plants!
Great video! I have kept fish 30 years. Started with HOB filters. I’ve also used internal and sponge filters. Then I discovered canisters. They are awesome. I have considered trying a sump but my 2 - 125 gallon tanks are in my living room. The noise would not work for me. Plus they are not drilled.
As not having anything above 55 gallons currently I still use HOB Filters and I don’t use anything but Seachem Tidal series and I won’t ever use anything else because I agree with you after using them that they are the best!
Loved the video !!! Ive got 7 Aquariums 3 small ones run sponge filters.. 3 have Cannisters and 1 has a HOb... By far the lowest maintenance are the sponge filters... But i love cannisters for the amount of water they add and they just work for the big tanks and fishes.. ( i use them for my 2 turtle and 1 oscar tanks...) And i have an internal filter in each one of the 3 tanks for the debris. Loved this video and how it went through each filter type. Shared it quite a bit ...
Another great video. Bulk Reef Supply has an excellent video difference between cheap or expensive sumps. The automatic roller Matt filters to all types of baffles, trays, etc.
The noise that comes from a sump and overflow box i used to run a reef tank and I went to canister filters and have not looked but what I do like is you can put your heaters in there and if you use filter socks they are really easy to replace you could reduce your return pump outage to quite your tank down
If you want a very good internal filter already build in (black, in the corner) and at a very good price you should take a look at the Juwel aquarium series if they are available in your country. German build and quality for more than 50 years. My oldest Juwel is from 1975, still going strong! The internal filter makes no noise, has different cartridges and is very easy to clean. It made me leave my external filters except for my tank with very big fish. If you make the background black you will not see the inside filter in your aquarium.
Thanks for this, especially as I consider what to get to start cycling a tank or 2 that'll be in my bedroom, I'm seeing the shark or similar as the only decent option. For the much larger setup that I'll be spending another 4 months minimally to build in my basement (2 floors down)- it's also obvious, that I'm getting a sump, as there it'll just be my chickens steadily hearing it & at this point I just expect my basement to periodically get "flooded", even if that's just my hosing down the floor.
I use pretty much only Aquaclear HOB filters. I have an occasional leak (once a decade or so) but I set them to lean towards the 5 tanks they are running on, from 10 to 90 gallons. I sometimes use in-tank powerhead in a bottle with some floss to take out debris after a water change, but since I got the 90 running a couple fo years ago, I use a pump for water changes and it disturbs the tank much less than pouring in a bucket of water.
A wonderful and very informative video. I was wondering if you should almost included plant life as another natural filter. And you could have list the pros. And cons of that as well.
Great video! I LOVED my Eheim, but now I think they're being phased out. My Fluval is great as well. I just think the impeller on my old Eheim was better.
I use ehiem for years,with no leeks ,they sale in the uk,,but you can find on the internet, a little pricey but worth it ,so won't hear utubers promoting it cause ehiem don't need to use utube to sele or pay and give free stuff ,to utubers ,but it a work horse
You are so right, sumps and canister filters scare the hell out of me, I have my canister filter sitting in a 5 gallon Loew's bucket, and 3 battery water alarms surrounding the back and under the cabinet of my 75 gallon Marine tank.
Team KG tropicals awesome video John love all the content the channel puts out I myself run the hang on the back with the pump in the water which like you said works awesome if you ever have a power failure but I do run them on the side of the tank so I’m able to put it right up against the wall just another way around it see you on the next one
Sumps are the best. Customize it to however you want. Create a rack system so you only need one sump for 20+ tanks. Can create backup mechanisms in case of leakage. Only con is the initial knowledge about how they work
Why not cover Under Gravel Filters? These are very cheap and can be pimped with power heads (albeit with gentle flows) and you can include floss or sponge beneath. I have used Under Gravel filters as the only filtration in a deep subrate fully planted 250 litre for five (5) years straight. Great plant growth and crystal clear water.❤
What about under gravel filter power head on each tube, I used them in my 55 gal tank , I also used a back filter. My water was clear & the plant grew like crazy. If I get another tank someday I will use them again ❤
the set up i have that i like the most in a 29 gallon is a under gravel with a hang on the back loaded with live plants been running for many years and no problems and no problem finding them around here
Under gravel and an Aqua Clear (now Fluval) HOB is the absolute optimum price and efficiency point for filtration from 29 to 90. People who do not like under gravel do not understand the the nitrite, nitrate cycle and the advantage of 5 trillion bacteria on the gravel. One of my LFS has been in business about 40 years and they are exclusively under gravel...and they have the cleanest water of any of my LFS. I was 9 years old when I got in the hobby and had a somewhat crude UGF and a tiny box filter...tank was set up 9 years with zero trouble and water I would have drank if the tap stopped working.
If I recall, you had a leak on the big tank sump after ww set it up when you moved to NC, right? I don't recall what the issue was, though. Fitting went bad? Hose developed a pin hole?
Canister filters are not dead silent by any mean unless you are deaf, there is always a hum, always and this hum might change in frequency and level depending on mileage and dirtyness. The worst I ever had was a fluval fx that was rattling for no reason.
Anyone else love their hang on the back filter/canister filter making the flow noise to sleep? I also wholeheartedly felt that sigh at the thought of electric cars
Great video👍😃😃 But what about HMF filters🤔 Have 2 of them in a 185 gallon. 4 inches thick and 10 inches wide with 2 Eheim 6500 Streamon pumps - 1 in each filterand my water is crystal clear 😃😃😃 kind regards Jesper from Frederikshavn in Denmark🇩🇰🇩🇰🇩🇰😉😃😃 PS: And I filter 13000 ltr pr hour using only 12 watts per hour😳😉😃
I run the original shark series internal filters on my 55 gallon for my axolotls and they are awesome let me correct myself they are my grandsons axolotls and he is 9 years old
If you want to use a hang on the back filter for a large aquarium, I suggest two smaller units rather than one large unit, that way the aquarium does not have to be so far away from the wall, the two individual filters are each not as deep as a single very large HOB filter ;)
You are so right. When I set up my last 75G, and I always over filter, I bought 2 Aqua Clear 70's instead of 1 Aqua Clear 110. I got it at Pet Smart online when they had a "spend $100 and save $30 sale". My 2 70's came to $98 bucks so I bought an extra sponge for $2 so it cost me $70 for 2 Aqua Clear 70's instead of $60 for one Aqua Clear 110. Just a little bit more, but I had 2 filters...that share parts with the AQ 20, 30 and 50...which I run...and so much easier to rotate maintenance. Did research on both...2 70's use less electric than 1 110.
1) I HAVE to know what a "dead nut" is???😂 2) Sumps terrify me - Noah's Ark flooding! Power goes out (no battery on yer pump), tank is all over the floor! 3) all my cannisters sit in totes or 5 gallon buckets w/plant trays w/casters underneath 😅
I love sumps and canister filters. Sumps can hold more water than your display tank if you wanted. Sumps are typically hard plumbed(pvc with chemically melted connections, no leaks) sumps easy to service as media is visible as well as socks. Canister filter unable to See if media or sponges are dirty. Disassembly of a canister a little bit of a pain and they can be heavy. Sometimes priming and leaks may need to be checked after servicing. Remember with any type of filter just because the filth is not visible in the display tank does not mean filth is gone. The filth is just somewhere else but still in contact with water column polluting the tank. Canister filter should be cleaned every month or sooner depending on fish population and feeding routine. Sump is easy to see filth. I typically clean socks every 5-7 days before food begins to really decompose and foul the water. I use a nozzle on a garden hose to rinse off socks and return. Less than 5 minutes.
There is no worries of lifting with sumps vs canister filters. You can have your sump in a different part of the house Or in your basement. Drilling a tank is so easy. I drill when fish are in the tank just lower the water level and make sure the glass is not tempered. If edges of glass panels irregular probably cut glass not tempered glued glass. Tempered typically just floor of tank. Use pvc pipes or different types of plastic flex tubes but pvc bullet proof
All my sumps 3 pipe overflow, one emergency with the other 2 fine tune to minimal noise leaving certain amount water level overflow box. Pipes are submerged in filter socks in sumps no noise. DC return pump, no noise. Make sure you have calculated amount of water backflow into sump when you switch off the power. Multiply the height of the water above overflow intake times length and depth. This will give you an idea how much water will drain into sump with power outage. Again, hard plumb pvc system. It seems all saltwater systems are hard plumbed. Freshwater seems to be a mismatched system. I have colored pvc on my main salt tank with multicolored sump. I show off my beautiful multicolored sump system on my saltwater tank not so much for fresh. It is more expensive but my salt tank is my number 1 fancy tank
John, in my own humble opinion!! Just a suggestion, it would have been very informative for you to point out the price range of all the filters that you reviewed!! 😊
Love the cat in the background pawing at the fish that are the same size as the cat. 😂😂
Yay fur fish!! ❤
Great video! I used them all except sump. And canister filters are winning it for me. Adding volume of water to my tanks, quiet, working great and not too much obstruction inside the aquariums. Love these!
Totally agree, sponge filters aren't filters in my opinion. They have their place in the hobby but not for larger populated tanks where you want some water movement. The new sicce pro looks great but it's massive and a total eye sore imo. Sumps and canisters all day for me!
When I started fishkeeping, it was confusing because a lot of folks used pump and filter as same terminology and clearly different. It took longer than it should to understand and this broke things down nicely. Thank you!
I custome built my sponge filter and made it a Lil special 😁 It's freaking epic and easy to do. And increases the efficiency 100 fold. Also, you can attach plants by the roots to the sponge to hide them. The roots love all the nutrients they pull in.
100% will always use my custom filters over anything else on the market.
Did you make a video of your customs? I would like to check them out.
John says for those who are constantly worried about leaks. Yep that me. That is exactly why I have 5 tanks with sponge filters or internal filters. I worry a lot about everything.
I once had a Fluval canister explode on me where the hoses meet the canister(luckily I was nearby) and I live in earthquake country so I feel ya.
@@DavidDavis311😳😳😳 I would actually die. That very moment my soul would leave this world.
Same here. I love my small internal filters. And I would probably prefer having two of them in different corners of a tank instead of having an canister filter for a bigger tank. Mostly because I'm worried about leaks. And yes, I do think it's extremely scary to fill up new aquariums with water as well... Luckily, once they're up running, I can relax. Most of the time...
@@NinniAquariumslol we are twins
Lol, leaks are a no go.. my philosophy is "Keep the water in the tank!"
Carl stole the show 🤣🤣🤣 great breakdown of filters in one video ... genius! The only leak I've ever had happened while I was at work when my cats kicked the return of my eheim 2215 over the top of the tank😬came home to about 3 inches of water left in the tank and a ton of water through to the basement😫 amazingly all fish survived! 😅
My first fish tank was given to my by a friend (sold) and it came with a pretty old hang in the back cascade 300 filter. it has the WORST cartridge slide filter media things. I once bought a replacement to see if I liked them but I hated everything about them so removed it and made my own with sponges, ceramic rings, carbon and a very fine wool type of material. Now it catches absolutely everything, is VERY easy to clean as you can just disconnect the filter, pick it up and drop everything on a bucket which helps avoid the internal/sponge filter problem where removing it will inevitably make a cloud of fish poop. I also have an internal filter to help move water around and help with filtration as I introduced it when I had driftwood in it but I hate how it gets clogged up SO quickly. I recently got a 120 gallon tank with a canister and it's currently cycling and so far it's been great, so much room for filter media, UV light on a timer, great setup, has a skimmer and has everything you would need. It was expensive and so far I love it. I haven't cleaned it yet but I can avoid getting the floor and myself wet by putting it inside of a bucket when opening it up for cleaning.
I do maintenance on my canister filters about once a year ... I have prefiler sponges on the intakes that get squeezed out in water that I have just taken out of the tank for a partial water change every two weeks ;)
Lol , you are so funny and so honest. I just about spit my tea all over myself at the end of your video when you said you just did not want to hear from people about it because you hate them so bad and it was the underground filters ! That was the very question that was in my head because I had one like you said way back in the 60s and I hadn't heard anything about him lately so when you said that I just about rolled laughing. You are the greatest I love your honesty
My favorite hang on filter used to be the aqua clear but for some reason which I do not know I had two and both of them would get mad at me and overflow and push the filter out and running the floor and almost empty my tanks. Especially when I was away from home working so then I switched over to canister filters my son had a fluid he gave to me and that thing kept me in tears trying to get it back together when I would do maintenance on it I mean I would be actually crying and praying for God to help me get that thing back together. That was when I decided to go back to hang on so because like you said the canisters are so heavy and I'm in my 70s now so that was a problem. Then I saw your video about the tribal filters and that's what I have switched over to. Thank you Lisa both for all of the effort you put into helping us enjoy your hobby, and also interacting with you guys you are so much fun
I absolutely love my canister filters. It's so satisfying to take everything out and clean it. 😅 I also run sponge filters in all of my tanks as backups/just extra biofiltration.
I like the hang on the back. I like the current it puts in my tank, and as the water lowers, it goes from quiet to noisier.
I like having parts of my tank have a water flow and parts where it does not. I think this gives the fish exercise time and rest time, which I think is healthy. One of my tanks is a 55, and I have a blue side and a white side. It is very interesting which fish prefer which side. When the lights and air toys go off, I see some fish leave their daytime hiding place and move around.
Have used all except the sump. Have also used corner box filters (still do). For the latter , started with one back in 1971 with bone charcoal and glass wool. Also , with a powerhead , am a fan of undergravel filters. Still using one I bought 30+ years ago.
Me too. Thank goodness for nylon wool. Those glass spicules got everywhere.
Love the video good and valuable information talking about ugly sponges I have a brother who comes over every week for a BBQ and never brings beer 😄
I love my canister filters, and in my opinion priming is only an issue if you don't know how to do it. You can prime the filter manually by filling up the hoses with water right to the top.
I have 2 eheim 2262, priming is the least of my concerns when doing maintenance.
Thanks John, I ended up buying a large air pump and using sponge filters in my fish room when my electrical bill went over $500.00! One pump and a bunch of noisy sponge filters is well worth the savings!
I love my Sicce Whale canisters. I have them on a 40 gallon and a 29 gallon. Yes, it is overkill, but I don’t care. I actually needed one on my 40 because it is overstocked and it made all the difference in my water quality and the water is beautiful. The 29 gallon is in my entryway in my house and I wanted the filter out of site, so it was an easy choice another canister. As for servicing, I have tested and I clean them every 6 months and could go longer. The Whale is also silent and super easy to service. The Sicce is super easy to prime too.
I just added the tiny Oase to my 10 gallon (you can hang it on the tank like an HOB) and I am super happy with it. I replaced a HOB that was noisy and the little Oase is quiet and really simple to setup. To prime you just fill it with water and plug it in.
I astill have some tiny HOBs on my 5 gallon Betta tanks, but everything else gets a canister now. I highly recommend them too.
I've used seachem products for quite the while and I advocate for the Tidal series filters, definitely one of the better HOB setups out there.
I second this. I have 2 and they are the only hobs I've had that haven't leaked or had the motor burn out.
I agree, best HOB on the market but they can leak too if not maintained and leaning forward. When they clog, water has to go somewhere and if it's not even or leaning towards the tank they can leak behind the tank. I use them in combination with my canisters as a backup and extra filtration.
For my sicce canister to prime it i just have a 5 gallon bucket and i put the output hose lower than the height of my canister and it is up and running in seconds. Just make sure you bring the hose back up and into the bucket to catch the water so it wont spill everywhere 😅if you are fast enough you can go straight up to the tank if you like to play roulette.
I run five sponge filters off one air pump and i love the efficiency, also one of my tanks doesnt get water changes just top ups and i have moss algae and monte carlo growing out of it and i think it looks great
In what size tanks? Are they planted and heavily stocked? I am so tired of noise in my living room. I would love to disconnet the canister hooked to my 100 gallon. The air pumps are noisy too, but not as bad.
@@grabbaghosts the biggest tank i run a sponge filter on is a 30G, they all heavily planted and a few of them are heavily stocked, for a 100G id run two sponge filters with one really powerful air pump or one sponge filter and one HOB
@@lruddy8820 Thanks. I will give it a try once it is more stable.
Another thing to consider with canisters and up, you can add inline heaters or cO2 infusers to minimize intank items
Sidenote; love the cat on top of the tank 🥰 That's very familiar (10 cats, 6 tanks), greets from Finland 😅
I have 2, 40 gallon whisper filters that I rigged up to an underground filter system and it works perfect for me. I love it it’s quiet I get the aeration from the spill. I get some current and my perimeters are near perfect with a few water changes.
My go-to filters are always internal. The fish I keep are small, so I just add more substrate, as opposed to stronger filtration. To me, unless you’re keeping monster fish, sump and canister filters just seem like fish keeping with extra steps.😅
I had a 55 gallon tank with a hang on the back filter and I love it
😂 love the cat in the background with perfect timing! And appreciate all of this helpful information.
My canister filter next to my bin & both filter and bin are roughly the same height, round and black .
When a friend crashed over for the first time, she said a few things that i still remeber
▪︎why have i got 2 bins in my room.
▪︎why cant she open the lid to my bin
▪︎why has one of the bins got tubs attached to it.
She was pointing to my canister
I personally moved from HOB filters to cannister . I use a Penn Plax Cascade 1000 for my 36 gallon bowfront... I have been using it for 9 months now and have no complaints.. It works extremely well , is silent and comes at a fraction of the cost of some of the other options (FLUVAL I am talking to you) . They are simple and effective, and actually simpler then the F luvals as well. I loved my Tidal 55 , but the cannister filter makes fish keeping life so much easier.
Yessssss!!!! I have 4 Penn Plax Cascade 1000’s and I agree it’s an absolute amazing canister!
HOBs are great with mods. Replace the cartridges with poly foam and other sponges. Best for mods are Marineland bio wheel that you’re showing and AquaClear. Both are great but I’ve had issue with noisy impellers on AquaClear my Marineland is barely audible.
I use sunsun 304b's and fx6's. I've only ever primed it the first time I bought it. The trick is to just fill it most of the way up with tank water, enough to be able to close the lid without Splashing. Canisters and internal canister are the only filters I use. As far as internals go marinelands internal are definitely my favorite. Most powerful and largest amount if space for media especially of you modify it the way I do mine
I have an under gravel on my 75 with two power-heads (50 GPH each) combined with my Eheim canister and Marineland 400 hang on filters, I'll never have a large tank as part of my system, I totally respect and understand your different of opinion, but I still love your shared opinions and knowledge that I do learn from. (you can't teach an old dog new tricks, but YOU DO add to them).
for my filters that had cartridges, I just bought a $5 bag of poly-fil and just use that. works great and lasts for probly over a year :)
23:51 just heard you say pretty much the same thing lol, thank you for this video I'm tired of my sponge filters
when i started fish keeping 25 years ago, the most available filter system in my country was trickle filters, using a powerhead + trickle system. I still use it this system today... While I acknowledge the benefits the sump system, as a person who has back problems, I prefer the overhead trickle for easier maintenance...
Thank you for your Channel I'm a rookie who recently decided to get a fish tank again and of course I made all the wrong mistakes right off the bat there were a lot of TH-camrs out there and it was quite confusing then I came across your Channel Channel and it helped me sort everything out now I have a beautiful tank Happy Fish and a schedule for taking care of my tank doing water changes and keeping a happy environment and yes I do have live plants and I'm trying to create a healthy biosphere. I got a 20 gallon tank and I'm so loving it with the natural plants the wonderful fish I'm really excited about my future with tanks and now I feel adequately prepared to take care of it thanks to you guys. ❤
I love the setup I'm using. Seachem Tidal 75 hanging on the side of my 75-gallon tank. 1 course and 1 fine sponge filter. My parameters are usually perfect and i don't fight algae. Some might say it's excessive, but it works.
You could even go with the 110. Can never have too much filtration.
In Europe the most common starter filter is internal filter in every starter kit. Hang on backs are very rare and the first time I heard about them was in fishkeeping videos..
I will take my under gravel filter (plenum set up) any day over all the filters you talked about. set up once and no other costs. no parts to replace, even continues to work if the power goes out.
I’ve seen a zillion filter videos but this kept my interest and was very informative. I’d like to share my experience with sponge filters; I had a near catastrophe/flood when the air pump power cord somehow disconnected, and water was pouring from the hose rather quickly but luckily I was home. I had not yet learned about safety valves!!! I now have them on all air pump hoses and I feel much more relaxed about the possibility of a line disconnect or power outage. Ps: Hi Carl 🐈⬛
Tried sponge, hob, internal (pump and air driven). Sump for the main 300 fallon, sponge pump driven for axolotl, internal for daughter's guppies 50 gall. Nice vid, enjoying the channel from belgium
Only one missing is the All-in One Tanks. Essentially a built in sump. Most often seen in the salt water side of the hobby, but I run a big acrylic all in one freshwater. Easiest to maintain tank I've ever had. Also...dead silent.
I haven't had an aquarium since the early 80's, do people still use under gravel filters? Ok you answered my question at the end of the video, I decided to leave it up anyway. I can't imagine people not using under gravel filters they were pretty much standard in my time, there were some fish that they were not recommended for, but they were pretty standard back in the day. Wow! It sounds like things have really improved, I have really enjoyed your videos. It has inspired me to get back into keeping fish. Of course I have a lot of catching up to do. I will be watching a lot more of your videos as well as others besides reading, doing research and visiting nearby aquarium and pet stores. I plan on buying an aquarium in June. A hundred gallon is the size I'm thinking of. I'm going to put in it 9 Platies, 6 Sunset groumies, 20 Cardinal tetras, 6 Pencil fish, 10 cherry barbs, 6 hatchet fish, 3 Hillstream loaches, 6 kuhla loaches, 8 green Corydoras catfish, 10 Hariquin rasboras, 10 Otocinclus and maybe some shrimp and mystery snails. And of course live plants, rocks and drift wood. A Sunset groumie is similar to a honey groumie it's smaller than a dwarf. Well this is my plan, but like I said I have a lot of catching up to do.
Hey John, good to see you doing well! Been out of the loop for a few years, the moustache really suits you, love you guys 😁
Very thorough pros and cons of various types of filters. So far I’m happy with my sponge filter - easy and cheap, and its green finish blends in with the plants!
I affixed a spongueBob pineapple right on top of my spongue filter = beautiful.
Pefect fit - they kinda clip together
Great video! I have kept fish 30 years. Started with HOB filters. I’ve also used internal and sponge filters. Then I discovered canisters. They are awesome. I have considered trying a sump but my 2 - 125 gallon tanks are in my living room. The noise would not work for me. Plus they are not drilled.
As not having anything above 55 gallons currently I still use HOB Filters and I don’t use anything but Seachem Tidal series and I won’t ever use anything else because I agree with you after using them that they are the best!
Loved the video !!!
Ive got 7 Aquariums 3 small ones run sponge filters..
3 have Cannisters and 1 has a HOb...
By far the lowest maintenance are the sponge filters...
But i love cannisters for the amount of water they add and they just work for the big tanks and fishes.. ( i use them for my 2 turtle and 1 oscar tanks...) And i have an internal filter in each one of the 3 tanks for the debris.
Loved this video and how it went through each filter type. Shared it quite a bit ...
When plumping any kind of sump system you should add a one way valve on the pump return in case of power outages.
Thank you guys for the great and consistent content over the years
Another great video. Bulk Reef Supply has an excellent video difference between cheap or expensive sumps. The automatic roller Matt filters to all types of baffles, trays, etc.
I just run multiple AquaClear 110s on my 125 and 180 gallon tanks. Been doing it for years with no issues.
Hold up. We need a video about why you don’t like bio media
Agreed.
@@Ingoivaldehe said he does. I think you heard it wrong
The noise that comes from a sump and overflow box i used to run a reef tank and I went to canister filters and have not looked but what I do like is you can put your heaters in there and if you use filter socks they are really easy to replace you could reduce your return pump outage to quite your tank down
If you want a very good internal filter already build in (black, in the corner) and at a very good price you should take a look at the Juwel aquarium series if they are available in your country. German build and quality for more than 50 years. My oldest Juwel is from 1975, still going strong! The internal filter makes no noise, has different cartridges and is very easy to clean. It made me leave my external filters except for my tank with very big fish. If you make the background black you will not see the inside filter in your aquarium.
Thanks for this, especially as I consider what to get to start cycling a tank or 2 that'll be in my bedroom, I'm seeing the shark or similar as the only decent option. For the much larger setup that I'll be spending another 4 months minimally to build in my basement (2 floors down)- it's also obvious, that I'm getting a sump, as there it'll just be my chickens steadily hearing it & at this point I just expect my basement to periodically get "flooded", even if that's just my hosing down the floor.
I have to agree with you John on Sump filters. By far my favorite to use.
Thanks! Saving this for reference. Still researching my options for the 5 gal I’m setting up.
Do hang on the back filters add stress to the glass ?
I use pretty much only Aquaclear HOB filters. I have an occasional leak (once a decade or so) but I set them to lean towards the 5 tanks they are running on, from 10 to 90 gallons. I sometimes use in-tank powerhead in a bottle with some floss to take out debris after a water change, but since I got the 90 running a couple fo years ago, I use a pump for water changes and it disturbs the tank much less than pouring in a bucket of water.
A wonderful and very informative video. I was wondering if you should almost included plant life as another natural filter. And you could have list the pros. And cons of that as well.
i find using HOB filters the best and if ur cartridge wears off, just add filter floss
I love the saying "Dead Nutz!" Haha yall are awesome, keep making great videos. 👍
A pro for canister filters, you can connect an in-line hang on the back U.V Sterilizer to the same out put line to the tank.
Great video! I LOVED my Eheim, but now I think they're being phased out. My Fluval is great as well. I just think the impeller on my old Eheim was better.
I use ehiem for years,with no leeks ,they sale in the uk,,but you can find on the internet, a little pricey but worth it ,so won't hear utubers promoting it cause ehiem don't need to use utube to sele or pay and give free stuff ,to utubers ,but it a work horse
Looking forward to the Brand Filter video.
Ordered the Beta fish shirt today , looks pretty cool ! 😊
You are so right, sumps and canister filters scare the hell out of me, I have my canister filter sitting in a 5 gallon Loew's bucket, and 3 battery water alarms surrounding the back and under the cabinet of my 75 gallon Marine tank.
It look like your cat love the fish keeping too the way he walks on top of the tank 😂😂 love your videos by the way
I love the sump conversion kits for the 40 breeders and 20 longs.
Everyone should be scared of leaks if they own a home. Water damage is no joke and costs a lot to remedy.
Hmmmm then we just be careful or.....prepare properly 🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️
4:20 😂 the cat showing up, what timing.
FX series cannister filters are my favourite I hated my sump filter on my 6ft tank would never get a sump again
Team KG tropicals awesome video John love all the content the channel puts out I myself run the hang on the back with the pump in the water which like you said works awesome if you ever have a power failure but I do run them on the side of the tank so I’m able to put it right up against the wall just another way around it see you on the next one
Sumps are the best. Customize it to however you want. Create a rack system so you only need one sump for 20+ tanks. Can create backup mechanisms in case of leakage. Only con is the initial knowledge about how they work
Awesome, can I do a water change with canister filter still running or do you need to turn it off?
15:30 is that a cloth towel in the cartridge section? Does that work? That seems like a really good idea
Why not cover Under Gravel Filters? These are very cheap and can be pimped with power heads (albeit with gentle flows) and you can include floss or sponge beneath. I have used Under Gravel filters as the only filtration in a deep subrate fully planted 250 litre for five (5) years straight. Great plant growth and crystal clear water.❤
I'll second that!
I have never tried them planted however, was told it wouldn't work. Did you literally use gravel or something else?
@@drea4195 Aquasoil and Gravel (3 inches deep)
I’ve only seen undergravel filters in myths and legends
What about under gravel filter power head on each tube, I used them in my 55 gal tank , I also used a back filter. My water was clear & the plant grew like crazy. If I get another tank someday I will use them again
❤
the set up i have that i like the most in a 29 gallon is a under gravel with a hang on the back loaded with live plants been running for many years and no problems and no problem finding them around here
Under gravel and an Aqua Clear (now Fluval) HOB is the absolute optimum price and efficiency point for filtration from 29 to 90. People who do not like under gravel do not understand the the nitrite, nitrate cycle and the advantage of 5 trillion bacteria on the gravel. One of my LFS has been in business about 40 years and they are exclusively under gravel...and they have the cleanest water of any of my LFS. I was 9 years old when I got in the hobby and had a somewhat crude UGF and a tiny box filter...tank was set up 9 years with zero trouble and water I would have drank if the tap stopped working.
If I recall, you had a leak on the big tank sump after ww set it up when you moved to NC, right? I don't recall what the issue was, though. Fitting went bad? Hose developed a pin hole?
Ordered the Oscar shirt!!! Awesome design
Canister filters are not dead silent by any mean unless you are deaf, there is always a hum, always and this hum might change in frequency and level depending on mileage and dirtyness. The worst I ever had was a fluval fx that was rattling for no reason.
Anyone else love their hang on the back filter/canister filter making the flow noise to sleep?
I also wholeheartedly felt that sigh at the thought of electric cars
Great video👍😃😃 But what about HMF filters🤔 Have 2 of them in a 185 gallon. 4 inches thick and 10 inches wide with 2 Eheim 6500 Streamon pumps - 1 in each filterand my water is crystal clear 😃😃😃 kind regards Jesper from Frederikshavn in Denmark🇩🇰🇩🇰🇩🇰😉😃😃 PS: And I filter 13000 ltr pr hour using only 12 watts per hour😳😉😃
What is a HMF?
So you have the corner HMF matten filter?
I rent a tiny space . Having past experience with HOB leaks when I owned a home with three tanks internal filters are my best option .
I run the original shark series internal filters on my 55 gallon for my axolotls and they are awesome let me correct myself they are my grandsons axolotls and he is 9 years old
John. Your beard is impeccably nice in this video. That is all.
I agree🤭🤭
If you want to use a hang on the back filter for a large aquarium, I suggest two smaller units rather than one large unit, that way the aquarium does not have to be so far away from the wall, the two individual filters are each not as deep as a single very large HOB filter ;)
You are so right. When I set up my last 75G, and I always over filter, I bought 2 Aqua Clear 70's instead of 1 Aqua Clear 110. I got it at Pet Smart online when they had a "spend $100 and save $30 sale". My 2 70's came to $98 bucks so I bought an extra sponge for $2 so it cost me $70 for 2 Aqua Clear 70's instead of $60 for one Aqua Clear 110. Just a little bit more, but I had 2 filters...that share parts with the AQ 20, 30 and 50...which I run...and so much easier to rotate maintenance. Did research on both...2 70's use less electric than 1 110.
Have you tried insulating under tanks with sound proofing on inside doors and walls to get lessen the sounds of your sumps? Love the shirt
I gotta get me one of those awesome T- shirts 👍😊
@KGTropicals you said your against bio media is there a reason why?
To bad he didn't answer, I wanna know to
Have you tried putting sound deadening in the stand to help with the noise?
What about a step below the sponge filter the small plastic box in the corner connected yo air pump with charcoal or media inside.$10 or less?
I run 2 aqueon 75 quiet flow HOB on my heavily stocked 75 gal tank. If they go out I'll probably switch to a canister filter.
Love the sponge filter
1) I HAVE to know what a "dead nut" is???😂
2) Sumps terrify me - Noah's Ark flooding! Power goes out (no battery on yer pump), tank is all over the floor!
3) all my cannisters sit in totes or 5 gallon buckets w/plant trays w/casters underneath 😅
I love sumps and canister filters. Sumps can hold more water than your display tank if you wanted. Sumps are typically hard plumbed(pvc with chemically melted connections, no leaks) sumps easy to service as media is visible as well as socks. Canister filter unable to
See if media or sponges are dirty. Disassembly of a canister a little bit of a pain and they can be heavy. Sometimes priming and leaks may need to be checked after servicing. Remember with any type of filter just because the filth is not visible in the display tank does not mean filth is gone. The filth is just somewhere else but still in contact with water column polluting the tank. Canister filter should be cleaned every month or sooner depending on fish population and feeding routine. Sump is easy to see filth. I typically clean socks every 5-7 days before food begins to really decompose and foul the water. I use a nozzle on a garden hose to rinse off socks and return. Less than 5 minutes.
There is no worries of lifting with sumps vs canister filters. You can have your sump in a different part of the house
Or in your basement. Drilling a tank is so easy. I drill when fish are in the tank just lower the water level and make sure the glass is not tempered. If edges of glass panels irregular probably cut glass not tempered glued glass. Tempered typically just floor of tank. Use pvc pipes or different types of plastic flex tubes but pvc bullet proof
All my sumps 3 pipe overflow, one emergency with the other 2 fine tune to minimal noise leaving certain amount water level overflow box. Pipes are submerged in filter socks in sumps no noise. DC return pump, no noise. Make sure you have calculated amount of water backflow into sump when you switch off the power. Multiply the height of the water above overflow intake times length and depth. This will give you an idea how much water will drain into sump with power outage. Again, hard plumb pvc system. It seems all saltwater systems are hard plumbed. Freshwater seems to be a mismatched system. I have colored pvc on my main salt tank with multicolored sump. I show off my beautiful multicolored sump system on my saltwater tank not so much for fresh. It is more expensive but my salt tank is my number 1 fancy tank
Love your cat! Mine do the same thing, always jumping on the tank lid 😂
You can easly put a plant in front sponge filter or rick you may use for decor
Nice review but there is one issue you could adress, that is the filter intake and small fry. Most filters will catch small fry exept sponge filters.
Just put sponge over the intake
John, in my own humble opinion!! Just a suggestion, it would have been very informative for you to point out the price range of all the filters that you reviewed!! 😊
Out of curiosity since I'm new to your channel, what is your objection to bio filtration that you mentioned early on?