Canister Filters

[goldenboy]

Does anyone use or know if the Rena filstar XP2 canister filter is worth using? I don't really have room for a full "wet-dry" system in the traditional sense and I was curious if a canister filter is an acceptable alternative. I currently have a 65gal reef that I am just now setting up and curing LR in. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Ziggy953]

WELCOME TO AA!!!!!!

I don't know the filter very well but if you have enough LR and a HOB skimmer you will be fine. You will need a skimmer if you are going to have a reef with corals...

 

[chase33]

I agree with Ziggy. The canister is not required. Skimmer and LR will do the job.

 

[goldenboy]

Thanks for your help and for the welcome. I do have a HOB skimmer with approx 75 lbs of LR as well as a HOB biowheel 400 filter.
I've been viewing this site for some time now and now that I'm up and running, I wanted to join. You have a great site and offer excellent advice. Thanks again.

 

[Ziggy953]

The HOB biowheel is probably going to create more problems then it will help solve. I would suggest not using it unless you need to run GAC for some reason and then just have it at the ready when that time comes.

 

[melosu58]

I also agree with LR and a skimmer. As far as the bio wheel I would remove the wheel and just use it to run GAC and extra water flow at the surface. Welcome to AA. We are glad you are here.

 

[MT79]

Mechanical filtration generally is not good for reef setups. But, as the others have pointed out, it is always a good idea to have somewhere to run a chemical medium such as GAC or a PO4 reducer.

 

[jwburleson97]

Hi, I'm new to this site and I had the exact question as goldenboy. Right now I'm curing 70 lbs of fiji LR in a 55 gal new tank. I have a protein skimmer running full blast and a skilter filter with carbon and a polyfilter in it. So would this be ok to keep running? Thank you for your expertise!

 

[Ziggy953]

WELCOME TO AA!!!!!

Like we said with Goldenboy, if you have enough LR and a skimmer you don't need additional filtration. Add about 20-30 pounds of LR to what you have and keep the skimmer going in your tank. Use the skilter with GAC only when you need it.

 

[jwburleson97]

Thanks! You have no idea how happy you have made me and my wallet! (and I'm sure my husband will be happy). The LFS told me I had to have some sort of a filter (wet/dry, sump) so I bought one....why do they do that? Now I have to take it back. Thanks for all of your advice!

 

[Marc118]

IMO a wet/dry is still great to have on your 55g. Safe place to add some chaeto, pods, etc etc. As well as keep your skimmer out of your tank for more room.

 

[jwburleson97]

I was going to just turn it into a sump (keep carbon, skimmer, heater) but I have a fear of floods. I don't have a drilled tank so I bought a prefilter with a U tube. From everything I have read they are not reliable, losing the siphon or a power outage, it could result in a flood. So now I'm a little scared of using it due to living in Florida and we have tendency to lose power alot.

 

[Ziggy953]

FWIW I use a dual overflow with 2 U-tubes and have never had them fail on me. My tank has been running for over a year now. I've dealt with power outages and the like and have not had a problem. I even have a switch on my return pumps so I can turn them off and do what ever I need to with my sumps and not deal with water being pumped out and into the display. If you have your system setup correctly you shouldn't have problems!!

 

[jwburleson97]

Really.that sounds promising....do you have a pic of your set up in your gallery so I can get a better idea of what I would need to do? What about when you do water changes? Do you have a valve to shut off the prefilter? I don't want to have to deal with starting up a siphon every time I do a PWC.

 

[Ziggy953]

An overflow is set up so that it keeps its syphon. The U-Tube ends stay under water on either side of the tank so they don't loose syphon. When your pumps start back up water flows into the overflow portion that is inside the tank and then through the U-tube and then into the portion on the outside of the tank and down into your sump. I don't have pics of my overflows on the display but I do use one on my sump as well and I do have pics of that.

 

[jwburleson97]

Impressive!

The U-Tube ends stay under water on either side of the tank so they don't loose syphon

That's what I thought and logically it makes sense since both ends are under water at the same level, so why have other people said their siphons break?
Do you have a valve or something to shut off water flow in order to do maintenance (PWC)?