The Virtues of a Cannister Filter

Flow rate

Canister filters have a high flow rate which means water is recirculated several times per hour. This allows for superior aeration and filtering than most other filter types. Any aquarium 3 foot or over will be more manageable with a canister filter.

Capacity

The large capacity of the canister filter allows for a comparatively large amount of media, which enhances the efficiency of the filter. Compare the space for filter media in a aquaclear vs fluval 204.

Flexibility

Canister filters allow for flexibility of media. For example, new tanks should have more carbon in the filter to purify the water, established aquaria should have more biological media. There is flexibility to add scavenger resins such as phos zorb or green ex for algae control or bio chem zorb for removing discolouration from the water.

Investing in a canister filter is like an 'insurance policy' for the aquarium. It means that there is less worry about leaving the aquarium without water changes over holidays, fish stocking levels can be stretched somewhat and a few mistakes can be soaked up.

Smaller aquariums will also benefit from a canister filter, however other power filters will also do the job.

See our 'Filters' section for a range of cannister filters.