canister filters any good for saltwater?

[goincrzy]

i got a 55 gallon tank that is already setup and has been running for awhile. with that said i have a canister filter on it, i only have fish and live rock as of now.. Well my canister filter that is a few years old has started to leak and i cant find parts (marineland c-160) i was looking to getting a wet dry setup but i would have to use an overflow box since my tank isnt drilled. Problem is tank is about 2" away from the wall and im worried about the loss of power, breaking siphon and then flooding my house when the power comes back on.. So is there any advise on what i should do in this situation cause i was thinking on just getting another canister filter since they are quite, small and if they dont leak themselves you don have to worry about anything... Please some good advise would be great
I was looking at the Fluval fx5 canister since it has good reviews, but if i was gonna get some corals would this work out at all???

 

[fibinotchi]

How about a hang on back skimmer? Your bio filtration is the live rock so if you plan on using other chemical filtration like phosphate removers and stuff, a canister filter would work fine for that. But it isn't your major source of bio filtration. You just need some good movement around the tank so multiple powerheads are needed.

 

[bizzmoneyb]

yea i would just go with a hang on skimmer and more powerheads. nothing wrong with the cannisters but they can cause problems if they get too funky.

 

[fibinotchi]

You just have to keep the organic material cleaned out regularly, but they work good like I said for nitraban and phosban, chemical filtration, and water movement.

 

[hawkfishman]

i got a rena Xp2 on my 55 gallon. it works good, just kinda messy to clean. im thinking of upgrading to one of those bio-ball filtration devices sometime soon. from what i hear at a few diffrent lfs, thats one of the best u can get. just wish they didnt cost like 2-300 bucks..

 

[goincrzy]

Well with a HOB filterskimmer i actually dont have room. My tank is about 2" max from my wall, that tank is setup and has been for awhile so moving it would be a project i was trying to avoid.. I need to get something and something soon since my filter decided to leak i have no filteration on my tank now.. I have all my powerheads on so the movement of water is still good but i can see the cloudiness in the water now.. Would a canister filter be able to handle corals if in time i wanna get some? all i have now is fish, but i would like to get coral in the future and would like to just get the right filteration now.. Thanks

 

[mrdc]

I have a fluval and I was wondering something. How often should you change the carbon and bio-media pellets (not exactly sure what they are called)? I clean the foam blocks every two weeks but I have not changed out any of the media.

 

[goincrzy]

Now ive had a canister filter on my tank all the time, and it works GREAT! but with that said i only have fish as of now.. After doing a search on here it seem alot of people use a canister filter with a reef setup so i guesss it might be ok assuming you still need a protein skimmer. this would be good for me cause my tank is in my tiny living room and i dont wanna hear it over the tv. I liked the canister i had but the problem is it leaked and i cant find parts at the LFS and ordering it will take weeks i was told. so i might as well get a Fluval filter since everyplace i went to has replacement parts for them... but will see which way i go..... THanks

 

[ibew41]

check your local cl and see if you can find used filters