# Canister filter for 20L?



## Ulan (Oct 2, 2006)

I'm currently using 2 Aquaclear HOBs on my 20L, but I think I lose too much CO2 from the surface movement. I thought about trying out a canister filter. I never had one before, and I'm unsure of which one to try.

As a second point, I might get an unused PennPlax Cascade 500 from a friend. That filter is nominally suited for aquariums up to 30 gallons. Does anyone have experience with this one on a 20L?


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## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

Don't have any experience with the Penn Plax, but I can say from experience that the second smallest Ecco Eheim does a perfect job for my 20 gallon long. Quiet, good flow for a 20 gallon long, and helps keep the baby shrimp alive!


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## eklikewhoa (Jul 24, 2006)

Eheim classic 2213 works perfect for mine.


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## GlitcH (Aug 21, 2006)

I too have no experience with the pennplax brand.
I've got an Eheim 2215 on my 20L and I love it.
But if the PennPlax Cascade 500 is rated for a 30 then I'm sure it will be fine on your 20.


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## Blacksunshine (Aug 11, 2006)

XP1 works great on my 20L. I do have to adjust the output down a tad tho. but even at full blast its not uprooting anything.


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## trenac (Jul 16, 2004)

I second the Rena Filstar Xp1. Very easy filter to set up and to maintain. I run one on my 20G long.


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## Left C (Jun 14, 2005)

Ulan said:


> I'm currently using 2 Aquaclear HOBs on my 20L, but I think I lose too much CO2 from the surface movement.


Here's what I do with my AquaClears. I grind the little nub off of the grey piece of plastic inside the case that keeps the intake "U" tube from swinging all the way to the right. This is right above the motor. This mod lowers the surface movement.


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## Ulan (Oct 2, 2006)

Thanks guys . Looks as if nobody uses the PennPlax brand. That is probably not a good sign . I might get it for free, though, so I'm tempted to give it a try. It claims to pump 115 gph. But I wouldn't have any means to compare it against other filters, just to look for gasping fish.

The filters you all recommended are not too expensive at the moment, either. Hmm.



Left C said:


> Here's what I do with my AquaClears. I grind the little nub off of the grey piece of plastic inside the case that keeps the intake "U" tube from swinging all the way to the right. This is right above the motor. This mod lowers the surface movement.


Do they still filter anything after that mod? Sounds as if you turned the tube completely away from the impeller intake?


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## Left C (Jun 14, 2005)

Ulan said:


> Do they still filter anything after that mod? Sounds as if you turned the tube completely away from the impeller intake?


They work fine with less turbulance. The nub is about ⅜" long and when removed it lets the U tube swing a little further to the right. The intake for the motor is closed a little more and that's what slows it down. It's not completely closed. The next time that you clean your AC's; take a look at the grey piece of plastic with the nub on it and you'll see what I mean. It causes no permanent damage that will not keep it from running wide open or anything in between. Take a look at picture 4 on page 6 of 9. You can see the grey piece of plastic and the U tube but it doesn't show the nub. http://www.hagen.com/pdf/aquatic/Aquaclear_English.pdf


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## eklikewhoa (Jul 24, 2006)

You could also use the impellar from a smaller AC to get less flow.


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## Blacksunshine (Aug 11, 2006)

Ulan said:


> Thanks guys . Looks as if nobody uses the PennPlax brand. That is probably not a good sign . I might get it for free, though, so I'm tempted to give it a try. It claims to pump 115 gph. But I wouldn't have any means to compare it against other filters, just to look for gasping fish.
> 
> The filters you all recommended are not too expensive at the moment, either. Hmm.
> 
> Do they still filter anything after that mod? Sounds as if you turned the tube completely away from the impeller intake?


Hey man a free filter is better then anything being suggested. lol If its free then I guess that solves the question. If it dosen't work out for ya. well there are some suggestions here that might work well for ya.


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## Ulan (Oct 2, 2006)

Heh, sure, free is great . I'm just a tad bit worried because the Cascade 500 has a lower flow rate than even one of my Aquaclear 30's that I run at the moment.

I'm not sure about the media, either. It's two different foam inserts in the first media basket and a bag with charcoal in the second. Would you change the charcoal to anything different?


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## Blacksunshine (Aug 11, 2006)

I hear ya. but keep in mind generally a cannister is 2x as efficent as a hob. the massive amount of media compared to what you can stuff in most hob's makes a huge diff.


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## Ulan (Oct 2, 2006)

So, what would you stuff in instead of the charcoal?


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## eklikewhoa (Jul 24, 2006)

Regular Bio-media like ceramic rings, you could just use another sponge or just leave the area empty.

I like to replace the carbon with a bag of purigen.


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