Tony
Alligator Snapping Turtle/Past Pres
After some discussion with Matt Chambers about this item, I figured I'd give it a review.
This was one of the items generously donated by Cobalt that served as one of the awards for the Aquarium Beautiful contest at this year's AquaMania. I ended up taking it home and as much of a naysayer I typically am regarding canisters, I will say that initial reports are very very good.
What do I hate most about canisters? Welp, cleaning can be a pain in the butt, but the number one item is the noise these can make. Cobalt has fixed this by doing something I wish I would have thought of... moving the pump from the canister housing and putting it into the tank! This makes the EXT canister the most quite filter I have ever played with. (FYI, you can locate the pump outside the canister if you please)
You simply slide on a strainer, cut and attach the hoses and fire it up (no priming if you you locate the pump in the tank). The outflow side comes with a rigid U-section and a diffuser to direct the flow and keep the outflow in place.
This configuration would come in handy for oddball applications, I think... perhaps a turtle tank or waterfall terrarium.
Media-wise, the canister has four baskets, preloaded with media - ceramic rings, carbon and a low-to-medium density sponge and fluff. I took out the carbon and added a coarse sponge (personal preference)
The coolest feature about it is the bypass for cleaning the filter. Instead of having to shut it down and disconnect the hoses, you simply flip a valve on the top of the canister and that creates a closed loop between the intake and outflow. This same lever disconnects that section and you can just walk the canister over the the bathroom/shop sink and clean it out (the lack of cord attached is an added bonus). Super easy.
It's rated for 210 gph, which Cobalt says works for a 55 gallon tank. I have it on my 45 Westy tank now in conjunction with an AC50 to get the bacteria jump-started. Will likely take off the AC in the next few days to enjoy a completely silent aquarium. With the flow reduction you typically get on a canister though, I wouldn't go much bigger than the 45 if it was rolling solo (or if you only cleaned it every 6 months).
Anyway, I knew a few people were looking at it and thought I'd share my experiences so far. Will post up in the future if I remember to do so or if anyone has questions.
They retail for about $120-$150, but can be found on the net for $105 or so. I am not sure that this package comes with the pump though.
[YT]uTX_JmR60Yk[/YT]
This was one of the items generously donated by Cobalt that served as one of the awards for the Aquarium Beautiful contest at this year's AquaMania. I ended up taking it home and as much of a naysayer I typically am regarding canisters, I will say that initial reports are very very good.
What do I hate most about canisters? Welp, cleaning can be a pain in the butt, but the number one item is the noise these can make. Cobalt has fixed this by doing something I wish I would have thought of... moving the pump from the canister housing and putting it into the tank! This makes the EXT canister the most quite filter I have ever played with. (FYI, you can locate the pump outside the canister if you please)
You simply slide on a strainer, cut and attach the hoses and fire it up (no priming if you you locate the pump in the tank). The outflow side comes with a rigid U-section and a diffuser to direct the flow and keep the outflow in place.
This configuration would come in handy for oddball applications, I think... perhaps a turtle tank or waterfall terrarium.
Media-wise, the canister has four baskets, preloaded with media - ceramic rings, carbon and a low-to-medium density sponge and fluff. I took out the carbon and added a coarse sponge (personal preference)
The coolest feature about it is the bypass for cleaning the filter. Instead of having to shut it down and disconnect the hoses, you simply flip a valve on the top of the canister and that creates a closed loop between the intake and outflow. This same lever disconnects that section and you can just walk the canister over the the bathroom/shop sink and clean it out (the lack of cord attached is an added bonus). Super easy.
It's rated for 210 gph, which Cobalt says works for a 55 gallon tank. I have it on my 45 Westy tank now in conjunction with an AC50 to get the bacteria jump-started. Will likely take off the AC in the next few days to enjoy a completely silent aquarium. With the flow reduction you typically get on a canister though, I wouldn't go much bigger than the 45 if it was rolling solo (or if you only cleaned it every 6 months).
Anyway, I knew a few people were looking at it and thought I'd share my experiences so far. Will post up in the future if I remember to do so or if anyone has questions.
They retail for about $120-$150, but can be found on the net for $105 or so. I am not sure that this package comes with the pump though.
[YT]uTX_JmR60Yk[/YT]
