cannister power head suggetions for a 20 Long

[mstamper]

I have a 20g long tank that is between being moderatly to heavy planted. (If things keep growing like they are now, it will definately be a heavy planted tank)
I am currently using a Finnex PX-360 cannister on the tank and the flow rate has dropped enough that I feel that the water flow is so low that it is not good for the tank biology or plant growth.

I have 2 questions to pose to everyone;
1) should I just add a Koralia 240 power head to the tank to improve water flow as the tank is clear and the water tests are excellent?

OR

2) Should I get a CF300 SUNSUN for the tank and use the Finnex on my QT?

One condition for any cannister consideration is that it must be able to sit at the same level as the tank as I do not have a way to place it under the counter that the 20 Long tank sits currently and there is not another location in my apartment for me to move the tank.

Thanks in advance for your imput.

Mark

[Mk4Gti]

you can just clean out the canister and get all the gunk off the impeller.

[scapegoat]

when your flow rate is reduced, it's time to clean out the canister.

[JP55g]

If the flow is reduced because of plant mass, I would just add the powerhead. I would recommend the CF300 as I really like mine but cannot say if it would work at tank level as I have never tried it.

[mstamper]

Ok, for the guys who said that the units impeller was clogged, I took the cannister apart and checked the impeller, clean as a whistle. It is in a sealed champer and there is no way for plant matter to get into its blades.

I changed out the filter floss 2 days ago and when I pulled the cannister apart today, the floss was filled. The tank was not that dirty! This cannister is a two basket filter. It has the bio media on the bottom then the coarse sponge, then my purigen and a small THIN layer of filter floss.

I will shoot a new picture of the plant load and attach it to the thread.

JP55G, I was thinking the same about just adding a powerhead.

I would like to get more turn over in the water circulation through the filter to keep the bio load balanced in the column better. The Finnex filter is rated to work on tanks between 10 and 30 gallons. It is the only cannister, other than the zoomed's, that is designed, as far as my research can find, to work and lift at the tank level. All others have to be several feet below the tank. As that is really not an option for me, I purchased the Finnex unit. It had better reviews than the zoomed 511 and was half the cost.

If anyone has direct knowledge or can share a web article or review about using the CF300 at tank level I would like to read about that.

[JP55g]

If I have time today or tomorrow i will try putting mine on the shelf next to my tank and see what happens lol

[secuono]

I love my Sunsun, shoves water up 4ft w/o issues and never have any typical canister issues. Freaking love the ugly thing. =D
Actually; Sunsun canister, FX5 canister and the AquaClear hobs are the best filters. Never have issues with them, unless I messed something up.

Only power head I like is the Marineland Maxi-Jet, have the 1200, works like a dream. Had two others, but they wimped out on me and really didn't move much of anything...

Canisters need to be below the water level, so as long as water can just drain into it, it should be fine. But remember to cut the hoses short so there's no loops for air to get trapped.

[mstamper]

Here is a picutre of the tank as it is currently planted.

[Complexity]

Originally Posted by mstamper

I changed out the filter floss 2 days ago and when I pulled the cannister apart today, the floss was filled. The tank was not that dirty!

The tank won't be that dirty because the filter captured that dirt. If the filter wasn't doing its job, then all that stuff would be in the tank.

It sounds like your filter is too small to handle the load. If the floss is filled in only 2 days, then you need more filtration.

The Finnex PX-360 is rated at 95gph (gallons per hour). That may be your problem. The general rule of thumb for planted tanks is to have 10x gph. So for a 20g tank, that would be 200gph. Your current filter is less than half that.

You could add a powerhead to the tank, but all that will do is move the water around. It won't actually filter it. Given that your current filter is filling up in only 2 days (it should go at least a month), then circulation isn't your only problem. You need actual filtration.

So I would recommend either adding a second filter or getting a more powerful filter for the tank.

I'm not a fan of the sunsun filters so I can't in all honesty recommend it. I think a Rena XP2 would be perfect. You can pick one up at PetSolutions for $130 and free shipping: http://www.petsolutions.com/C/Aquari...r-Filters.aspx

Amazon has the XP2 for $100 with prime shipping: http://www.amazon.com/Rena-721-Filst...ds=filstar+xp2

[mstamper]

I was able to purchase 2 used rena filstar canister filters, an xp1 and an xp2. I will be using the xp1 on this tank and I am converting it over to a planted shrimp tank.
I purchased a 29 gallon tank at the petco 1.00 a gallon sale and I will be moving most of the plants and all of the fish from this tank over to the 29 and I will be using the xp2 on this tank.

Thanks for everyone's input and suggestions.

[Complexity]

Obviously, I think the Rena canisters will do a good job since that's my preferred brand of canister. I'm not as crazy about the XP1 (not much room for media), but the XP2 is a good choice. I run both on my 29g tanks. They are dependable canisters so buying them used was a good move.