# Easiest/fastest to clean (canister) filter for large tank?



## Harry Muscle (Oct 17, 2007)

I'm in the planning stages of getting a large tank again and I'm doing research on which filter to get. Since this is going to be a fairly large tank (75G or 90G) I'm pretty sure I'll be getting a canister filter, however, I'm looking for opinions on which one would be considered easiest (ie: fastest) to clean. I'm limited on time, so spending extra on a better filter that will save some hassle and time every time it needs to be cleaned is worth it for me.

For example when I had my 55G tank I had a Filstar XP2. I liked the filter, but here's an example of something that I'd like to improve on with this new tank ... the foam filter media was located at the bottom of the filter (underneath the basket with the bio media) you had to take out the bio media basket and place it somewhere. It's soaking wet and my wife wouldn't allow me to place it on the bathroom counter while I clean the filter, so I always had to have a spare container of some sorts that was fish tank safe where I can put the wet parts of the filter while I get to the bottom to clean the foam media. The obvious fix to this would be a filter that has the opposite flow pattern so that the parts you clean most often (the foam) is at the top not at the bottom.

It's these kind of little annoyances and nuances that can either make cleaning the filter very fast or somewhat annoying. If you can share your opinions on which filter you loved the most when it came to cleaning that would be much appreciated.

Thanks,
Harry

P.S. The Eheim Professional 3 series seems to have a prefilter at the top of the filter which would help somewhat ... but are there other filters that you would recommend?


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## CRS Fan (Nov 25, 2008)

I would probably get the Eheim 2075 or 2078. The 2078 is considerably more money. Both are quiet, and easy to use and clean. Mind you... I only own Eheims now.

Best regards,

Stuart


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2


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## Neptune1937 (Apr 18, 2013)

Harry Muscle

I have two Eheim's the Pro3 and the Pro11

The Pro3 takes a little longer because of the Pre filter and it has three baskets.

You still have to take the Impeller out clean it and the housing in both filters.

If you want a quality filter and planted tank there are no short cuts.

Keith


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## vancat (Nov 5, 2004)

Another vote for Eheim.


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## maxwellag (Jun 1, 2012)

I also vote for Eheim. I have a 2211 and it is very quiet and takes me about 10 minutes to clean usually.


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## atomb (Jun 21, 2013)

I can clean my eheim ecco in less than 5 minutes... I love it.


Sponge filters topmost material when opened canister. Basket of Bioball and floss below it


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## Astex (Jun 10, 2009)

Have you considered running a sump instead? Easy access, easy to clean, hiding spot for heaters etc.... Since you don't have the new tank yet, you could get it drilled ahead of time. As long as you're not going for a super high light/high tech tank, it might be something to consider.


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## JeffyFunk (Apr 6, 2006)

Disclaimer - I only have Eheim filters. That said, i have used the Eheim Professional 3e and Classics (2213, 2215, 2217). I'm honestly not that impressed w/ the Professional. Yes, the course sponge is on the top, but quite frankly, i think that's not very important when looking at canister filters. I also don't think the course sponge collects that much mulm... 

To me, the most important consideration is how well they filter. To me, there is no comparison to the Eheim classics. I have mine set up with a course filter on the bottom, a container to hold the bio media (either ADA Bio Rio or Eheim Substrat Pro) and a course filter on top. The amount of mulm the sponges capture is amazing. And with a media container, cleaning the biological media is really easy - Just swoosh the media around in a bucket of water. 

I should also say that i clean my canister filters about once a month or so when the tubing gets nasty. I can't stand dirty tubing. I've gone longer without cleaning my canister filters and once i do that, i find that the sponges are filled and the biological media starts to accumulate mulm. If i stay on top of the cleaning, usually only the sponges need rinsed out well. And i've never torn or replaced an Eheim course sponge. 

I should also say that i've found that it's not a good idea to rinse mulm down the sink... it has a tendency to just collect in your pipes and then needed to be snaked out. As such, I rinse all of my sponges and media in a bucket of tank water and then use the dirty water to either water the plants or throw it away outside in the yard.


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## vancat (Nov 5, 2004)

Ditto on the Classic JeffyFunk. I have had all 3 models and am running a 2217 now.


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