Equipment Review and Discussion :: what's the best of the best?

[TheComputerGremlin]

I have a Rena XP3 and I wouldn't change a thing about it. I got it from a store on ebay for $120 shipped, not too shabby, but that was 1.5 years ago! Looks like a few are going for $130+shipping on ebay now, which is still pretty good. And you can always look for the bidding wars, there is one that is at $50 at the moment. An XP4 won't be too strong for a 40 gallon, you just might have to adjust the output to hit the tank wall to reduce the current.

[untsmurf]

I have two XP3's but I want something with a more powerful flow rate. It's just not cutting it right now.

[mikee]

u-smurf - If two XP3's are not cutting it you may consider a FX5. It puts out a lot of water and you can put in a lot of media. It will put out about 900 gph. If you do think about this unit make sure you can get it in you cabinet, as it is very large.

[untsmurf]

That's what I was thinking about getting. I've only heard good things about them. It'll be a long way off though. We have other things that need to be purchased first. Thanks for the tip though!

[theartbook35]

I have a Rena XP3 and I wouldn't change a thing about it. I got it from a store on ebay for $120 shipped, not too shabby, but that was 1.5 years ago! Looks like a few are going for $130+shipping on ebay now, which is still pretty good. And you can always look for the bidding wars, there is one that is at $50 at the moment. An XP4 won't be too strong for a 40 gallon, you just might have to adjust the output to hit the tank wall to reduce the current.

I'm going tomorrow to get a filter. I would've gone today but something came up. (I have very limited transportation).

Anyways, I'm gonna look for that XP3, even an XP4 if the price isn't much higher. The place we are going to is the same place where we got the new tank and stand. I haven't been in there, but my mother said a lot of the prices looked really good. Lets hope!

If worst comes to worst I'll order online.

[theartbook35]

Okay, I went, and I got a filter.

A Cascade 400 for 30 bucks. The other they had was a Fluval, but the Cascade actually pumps five more gallons per hour for a cheaper price, so, the Cascade obviously won that battle. It does about 110 gph, which is almost three times as much as what I have in there (between 35 and 40 gallons I'd guess). Which is fine in my opinion.

It has a spray nozzle, or an attachable air thing... I picked the spray nozzle for now. It sounds like a waterfall, and I can adjust the nozzle if it gets to noisy at night (after all, the filter is right next to my mother's bedroom door). The turtles have some interesting reactions to the sprayer... Hurricane loves hanging out under the water, getting I guess a massage, and Typhoon spent a good ten minutes trying to eat the sprayer.

The whole thing installed really easily, too.

I heart canister filters.

[mikee]

Sup-ck1 -- The Marinland 350 magnum is a good filter. The pump the 350 gph that is advertised. I have one that is about 15 years old. The only down side to the Magnum 350 is the noise. They are not that loud but you can tell the dfference between the Marineland and the Fluval. The only other thing you have to consider is the motor is on the bottom and does transfer some heat to the water. They are easy to clean I have never had a problem with them. Also make sure you have valves on both sides of the quick disconnects. m.