What are the Pros/Cons of a Canister Filter?

[double_g2k]

So yeah, Ive been reading on another site that Canisters are not neccessary. Is this true? Ive run one for years on my current setup and will be ugrading in the near future. If I can dodge the canister cost that would be great, but if I need it then I need it right? The argument is that enough LR eliminates the need for one (and I will have a fuge in my new setup) so what are your thoughts people?
Thanks for your input.
GG

 

[sfoister]

Originally Posted by double_g2k
So yeah, Ive been reading on another site that Canisters are not neccessary. Is this true? Ive run one for years on my current setup and will be ugrading in the near future. If I can dodge the canister cost that would be great, but if I need it then I need it right? The argument is that enough LR eliminates the need for one (and I will have a fuge in my new setup) so what are your thoughts people?
Thanks for your input.
GG
Get rid of the canister and get a skimmer instead. If you have tons of LR you're going to NEED a skimmer. You'll be surprised at how much nasty crap is pulled out of water that looks perfectly clear.
My dad ran a canister on his tank years ago and had nothing but problems. Algae blooms, disease, etc.. Added a skimmer and had about half of the problems he used to.

 

[watson3]

Depends on the tank also..Fish only would do great with an oversized canister..

 

[twobitt]

So you can use a skimmer in place of a canister filter?

 

[cowfishrule]

i run my 40g mini-reef (with heavy bioload) with a fluval 305
no problems here.

 

[scrapman]

Originally Posted by sfoister
Get rid of the canister and get a skimmer instead. If you have tons of LR you're going to NEED a skimmer. You'll be surprised at how much nasty crap is pulled out of water that looks perfectly clear.
My dad ran a canister on his tank years ago and had nothing but problems. Algae blooms, disease, etc.. Added a skimmer and had about half of the problems he used to.
Pls help...
I run 2 Fluval 405 on my 90 gal (LR/LS) because I originally thought that the more is better in term of filtration...
Now you tell me I'm wrong. (understand...I accept to be wrong).
Explans pls how can I tune down or eliminate my filtration system. I have of course a very goos protein skimmer whick pulls out a lot of crap.
Thank you

 

[krazekajin]

Here is my take. I have a 29g reef that I ran with a fluval 303. It did good, but I always had high nitrates. I then began to listen to those on this site and did my reading. You will find that many people used to run a berlin system. Which bassically was a system with lots of live rock, no filter, and very heavy skimming.
So I decided to give this a try. I now run with my fluval with nothing in it. I was too poor to get more powerheads, so I am using the fluval with no foam or anything in the baskets. Bascially I have a water mover. I then have an aqua C Remora with a maxijet 1200. My nitrates have dropped to zero. I am sold on this.
Also think of all of the systems that run a sump. There are no filters in sumps other than maybe a big block of foam to catch the large debris. In a sump, it is easy to grab that big piece of foam and wash it off. It becomes a pain in the fluval to take it apart and clean.
My recommendation is lose the canister, make sure you still have enough flow and run a good protein skimmer. You will be pleased.

 

[sfoister]

Originally Posted by scrapman
Pls help...
I run 2 Fluval 405 on my 90 gal (LR/LS) because I originally thought that the more is better in term of filtration...
Now you tell me I'm wrong. (understand...I accept to be wrong).
Explans pls how can I tune down or eliminate my filtration system. I have of course a very goos protein skimmer whick pulls out a lot of crap.
Thank you
If you have a skimmer you're fine. Having the two canisters are not going to hurt you, but in my opinion the skimmer is a must.
Right now I'm running a 90 gallon with nothing but an in sump skimmer for filtration. Of course the water goes through a sock first to filter out all of the larger particles.
2 canisters AND a skimmer might be overkill, you'd be just fine with a skimmer.
There are a lot of opinions on the subject but the opinion I have stated above seems to be the most agreed with currently.

 

[double_g2k]

We seem to have two schools of thought here...

 

[ol'salty]

Canisters don't cause nitrates. Not cleaning them regularly does though. They need to be cleaned out and rinsed at least once a month or so imo. I have known people that just filled them up with bio-balls or even better lr rubble so it maintains some biological filtration. It is nice though to have a way to run carbon or whatever you need if need be. I run a fluval 303 with no issues with trates. My filter (i bought a display tank from a lfs that was going out of business) hadn't been cleaned in years and my nitrates ran around 20 - 40. I rinsed it out and cleaned it good a month or so ago and haven't had any issues since. Remember that back in the day, canisters were the stuff to have. Yes there are better ways now, but they still are very effective imo if routine maintenance is done on them...