I have 55 gallon tank with 10 adult and 4 babies. It seems there will be more babies very soon and tank is (probably) not done cycling. LFS tests my water and says everything is ok, buy I want to upgrade or add the filter anyway. Now I have Penguin 350 rated to 70 gal. So far I found:
Eheim Pro3 2073.
Good for up to 90 gal.
Flow rate is 275 gal/h
Power consumption is 16W
I found it brand new for $220 shipped on ebay (seller with very good score). Should I go for it or should I shop a little more?
Thanks.

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55 gal. freshwater,
Penguin 350 Bio
common natural gravel,
natural plants
cheesy background - will be removed when the tank is established
4 Silver Dollars
8 Tetras
29 gal. empty (should be used as quarantine or similar stuff)

You may want to look for a better price, but I couldn't tell you is that is a good price or not. All-in-all I have 7 Eheim canister filters. I think very highly of them. I think you will like it a lot.

Good morning Beg...

That $220.00 is a lot to spend on a power filter. The 70 you have is more than enough to filter the water in a 55G.

I have several 55s with a lot of plants and just use an Aqua Clear 50 HOB in each. The plants do most of the filtering work.

I'd invest the money in another tank.

Just one, very humble opinion.

B

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Low Tech Water Building Keeper

Seven
Yeah, I am reading all kinds of stories about filters and more I read it's harder to decide. 2215 or 2217 are probably my best bet and I couldn't find any bad review of them. The problem is that I think the convenience of newer designs is really important. I never had canister filter before and my opinion is based only on what I learned reading other people's opinions. Other filter I was looking is Marineland C-360. It seems like very smart design and with their very good customer support and the competitive price it may be good option. Too many bad reviews though . Well, I hope I will have decide soon because my Mollies are not planing to stop adding new members to the tank.

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55 gal. freshwater,
Penguin 350 Bio
common natural gravel,
natural plants
cheesy background - will be removed when the tank is established
4 Silver Dollars
8 Tetras
29 gal. empty (should be used as quarantine or similar stuff)

I have one.I did have another one in the past but I am thinking it my mess up as to why it never worked.I found it at a thrift store(dont kill me when you hear what I paid for it)It was an ECCO 2234 and had the disconnects,hoses,baskets and spraybar.It also had euro plugs,lol.I gave a whole seven bucks for it,but never got it to draw in water.So due to frustration I left it in the house when I moved 1200 miles away.

Now I have a pro,2222,and I love it.it was cheap too,but I had to scour around on ebay for it.The media baskets are good size,just like the ecco I had(still kicking myself,lol)and its easy to get setup.I think I would look around a little more to see if you cant get a better price.

I have a marineland 350,and I like it.Its rated much higher than my tank though(its on a 25 gallon,haha)I have to turn the spraybar to the back to keep from moving my bettas about.I am thinking of switching down to a smaller rated one for them though.But yeah nothing but praise for the magnum.

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http://bountifulbettas.blogspot.com/

"Come to the dark side....we have cookies...and filters/heaters/and water changes!"

The classic series is much more affordable. I would get the 2217 for that sized tank. I have one on my 29g and paid $130 shipped (brand new) from some guy who had over 10 on ebay. I have heard of them going for $100-110 brand new.

Thank you BBradbury. That's an interesting opinion. I would love more tanks and it seems like I would have to get at least one smaller tank soon, but I want to set this one first. I noticed that most fish keepers intentionally "over-filter" their tanks and they are never satisfied . If it helps getting better quality water and gives a more options, it's worth it imo. I am not sure what you mean by is a lot to spend on a power filter. The filter I am looking is actually canister 2073. Of course I don't want to spend too much, but that's why I am posting this. I would love if someone convince me to go with something cheaper, but better value. Or especially if someone know where to get 2073 cheaper . I actually really like my Penguin so far. It became little louder lately (probably time to clean), but as far as I know, water looks very clear and LFS water tests are good. The fish I have will grow and I am planning to get more fish so I want to be sure that I have sufficient filtration.

__________________
55 gal. freshwater,
Penguin 350 Bio
common natural gravel,
natural plants
cheesy background - will be removed when the tank is established
4 Silver Dollars
8 Tetras
29 gal. empty (should be used as quarantine or similar stuff)

It is a nice filter,but I think the main thing that it has is the prefilter.If thats the case(as my little 2222,basically has everything that has but less baskets as its for a smaller tank)you can get a prefilter and save some cash.

Like Ben mentioned the classics are rated just as high and are more cost effective.
The eccos are as well.If you are hunting on ebay heres a few other considerations for eheim:
ECCO:
Eheim ECCO Easy 80 External Canister Filter 2236 | eBay
Eheim 2236 80G Ecco External canister filter w/ Media | eBay
Classics:
Eheim Canister Filter Classic Plus - 2215 - NEW w/media | eBay
Eheim 2215 164G Classic w/ Bio Media Canister Filter | eBay
Eheim Canister Filter Classic Plus - 2215 - NEW w/media | eBay

They are rated about the same as the one you want,but a whole lot cheaper.They dont skimp on filtration either,and with the money you save you can use it for something else.

__________________
http://bountifulbettas.blogspot.com/

"Come to the dark side....we have cookies...and filters/heaters/and water changes!"

I didn't really pay too much attention to ecco series. They seem to be little weaker and probably more "green" oriented. Reviews are not the best. But after all they are Eheim and I believe they have decent build quality. It looks like I am going to spend even more time reading/shopping...
EDIT: Just found a bunch of posts about bad leaking problem on pro3 series...

__________________
55 gal. freshwater,
Penguin 350 Bio
common natural gravel,
natural plants
cheesy background - will be removed when the tank is established
4 Silver Dollars
8 Tetras
29 gal. empty (should be used as quarantine or similar stuff)

The thing that is cool about the Ecco series is they are available at Petsmart...if you have one close by. Not sure which models, but I know they carry them. Not recommending you buy there, however. Prices are much cheaper online. You can actually look at one though.

Hello again beg...

Sorry about the confusion. Not familiar w/ canister water filters. I'm "old school" and use strictly HOBs. Not sold on over filtering a tank. Am on a pretty strict budget, so my tanks tend to be more heavily planted so I can get away with using smaller filters. I really like letting the plants take care of the fish and visa versa. You know your situation better than anyone. I'm sure you'll go the right direction.

B

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Low Tech Water Building Keeper

Dear BBradbury Nothing to be sorry about. That is like I said, very interesting opinion. Your "old school" system is obviously working and that's all that matters. It's just that when I was 100% clueless (still very close to that) and didn't even buy aquarium kit yet everybody said I have to upgrade filter. Further reading here and other forums thought me that the flow rate should be at least 4 times the tank capacity. I found that as standard not only in this community, but everywhere else. Hard not to be sold on "over-filtering" . I have some plants (some full grown, some still very small) and my water is very clear but I am scared what will happen when I get more fish and it grows big. Cartridges for my HOB are kind of expensive too. canister should be more silent, not obtrusive, move and clean water more efficiently. On the other side it can make big mess if things go wrong.

__________________
55 gal. freshwater,
Penguin 350 Bio
common natural gravel,
natural plants
cheesy background - will be removed when the tank is established
4 Silver Dollars
8 Tetras
29 gal. empty (should be used as quarantine or similar stuff)

beg...

Nothing wrong with being safe when it comes to good water quality. The canister thing sounds expensive and a little technical for this old timer. Actually, I've used the Aqua Clear HOBs for a number of years and have yet to replace anything. The Aqua Clear filter media is a little pricey, but I don't use it much. I've found some less expensive alternatives and reuse them. That's the reason for the well planted tanks. The plants do a lot of the work filtering the water, so I've been able to use smaller filters and reuse the media.

Your post reads like you're getting the hang of things. Good for you. Keep pluggin' away.

B

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Low Tech Water Building Keeper