Don`t let a canister aquarium filter intimidate you! These are great, especially for medium sized tanks and up. The Fluval canister filter is an excellent way to keep your aquarium sparkling and the water healthy for your fish.

I have been keeping fish for over 20 years. I have the new Fluval 304 canister filter on my 60 gallon cichlid tank and it is doing an excellent job. It is so incredibly quiet, which is great for a living room or bedroom. It keeps my tank in excellent condition, even with my large, messy mbuna cichlids. This filter has several media baskets, the quantity depends on the model, that will accomodate many types of filter media. In addition there are also foam inserts to catch debris. I recommend the foam inserts and the Biomax rings for everyone. Biomax rings provide an excellent place for beneficial bacteria to grow. I also use carbon to remove impurities and filter floss to polish my water crystal clear. My water is hard and my cichlids like it so I do not use peat. However, if you have fish that require softer water the peat is an excellent addition to your filter. Please note: never change all your filter media at the same time. You always want to preserve as many of the beneficial bacteria in your media as you possibly can. Also, never rinse your foam inserts, or other media you will not be replacing, in chlorinated water. This will also kill beneficial bacteria. Instead, rinse them in tank water you have removed for a water change, or in water treated with a conditioner.

This filter may look a little complicated at first but it really was not too difficult to set up. There`s more to it than just hanging a filter on the back, but it came with good directions and was very straightforward to get going. Take the time to read the book first and lay out the parts. It took me a little over an hour to install and is well worth it in my opinion. The most time-consuming task was placing and connecting the hoses for the water intake and output that run from the filter to inside the tank. This filter is also easy to clean and maintain and has a self-priming feature which makes it easy to start. Tip: always move the filter to a tub or sink to clean it and never lift it by the clamps on the sides. Those clamps could flip up and the top could come off, then wow, what a mess! Instead tip the canister only slightly and lift it from underneath.

If you`re looking for a fantastic canister filter this is the one to get. It comes in four sizes, so be sure to buy the proper sized one to accomodate your tank. It`s always better to go a little bigger than too small. Also, if you buy it on eBay you will usually save a ton of money over local fish store prices.

Thanks for reading!