Habitat - Indoor :: Which Filter? Filstgar Xp3 or Eheim 2215

[Mart396]

Hello everyone, I'm new in the aquatic turtle world and I'll buy 2 red eared sliders soon (once I get the habitat ready).
I'm going to buy a 40 gal aquarium, but haven't chosen the cannister filter yet.
I know Eheim is better but it's more expensive in my country (40 usd more than the Xp3).
Also I've read about leaking problems in the Xp3 and the pieces are made of cheap plastic.
Which one do you recommend?

Any advice is welcome .

Regards.

[devilduck]

I think it's great that your doing your research and planning your setup before hand. I would recommend that you only get one turtle to start out with. Two can be a handful later on if they do not get along.

I own two XP3's (now known as the XL), one is over 7 years old and still running like a champ. The XP3 is much more powerful and holds more bio media than the 2215. I think the Ehiem are excellent filters for fish tanks but fall a bit short with poop machines like turtles. The "cheap plastic" negative is a little bit of an overstatement. A slightly cheaper alternative are the SunSun type filters. I've never used one but they have decent reviews online.

Lastly I would suggest a 40 gallon breeder, it's shorter than a standard 40g but wider which is more important with a turtle.

[VeipaCray]

The other consideration is the growth of your turtle. Your turtle won't be in a 40gal breeder it's entire life... at some point you'll be into a full adult sized tank (75, 90, 120) for a single turtle. You might consider the XP4 or even the FX5. While they are overkill today, they represent a one time purchase that your turtle will grow into.

[Snowboi]

I have had one problem with my XP4, which is the same as the XP3, just more media baskets Not one part has broken, the hoses are kinda iffy, may get betters ones in a few months, but there fine. Had one leak, but it was user error, as in the I didnt latch the top down right.

Eheim is a great brand, but expensive, pretty expensive for a 75-200G tank, which is prolly what you would move up to later on.

[n00bEmpty]

I've had the XP4 for almost 4 years now, still keeps going on and on. I would expect the XP3 will be just as good. I would suggest you either getting one RES or maybe 2 other types of turtles that don't grow as large comparatively (A male Mississippi map for example). They live in habitats that are completely identical to RES and are majority more gentle.

[steve]

I've had my two XP3s going for 5 years. They're starting to show their age, but I expect to get another couple of years out of them.