Fish Tank Filter Showdown: Hang on Back Filter vs Canister Filter!

ADVERTISING

LuxoGear Emergency Whistles with Lanyard

Shop now »

NOCO Genius GEN5X2, 2-Bank, 10A (5A/Bank) Smart Marine Battery Charger

Shop now »

RHINO USA Boat Trailer Transom Straps (2PK)

Shop now »

LUCKY Kayak Portable Fish Depth Finder

Shop now »

Seaview 180 V3 Full Face Snorkel Mask

Shop now »

Most popular comments
for Fish Tank Filter Showdown: Hang on Back Filter vs Canister Filter!

Live comments
Comments on YouTube

John M - 6 years ago

My small tanks all have sponge filters but my medium size tanks have both sponge and HOB. The show tank has a canister. My favorite is the HOB. Loved both filter presentations!

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Thank you!

Jacob Streiff - 6 years ago

Pond Guru was saying alot pf us habe undersized canister filters, if thats the case then HOB are not even an option. I suppose it depends on the bio load

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

It does depend on bioload. I have never had a filter of any kind fail to handle the load (ammonia/nitrite issues). That includes temporarily growing out 100 BN plecos in a 20 long with a single hydro II sponge filter as the only filtration source. Now, mechanical filtration is a whole different story. I do keep up with water changes though.

Curry View - 6 years ago

What's your favorite fish prime time aquatics

Shari Bice - 6 years ago

Canisters.... if you don’t want to do as much maintenance than get a filter booster added on to it. This will be filled with mechanical filtration three different grades of sponges that will filter out heavy,medium and fine mulm. These filter boosters are smaller and easier to clean than the big canister filters and you can just every 6 months do maintenance on the bigger main filter if you need to. While you mechanical in the filter booster the main canister will be for biological filtration.

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Nice idea!

E. J. Brinegar - 6 years ago

Dear Jason:
Over ten years ago I found a Marineland canister filter on sale at Feeders Supply and purchased it. I set it (unopened) under my 75-gallon tank, thinking I would eventually switch from hang-on-the-back filters. I failed to do so, purchasing more hang-on-the-back filters, rather than go through the trouble of the change-over. Now, the unopened, Marineland canister filter is obsolete, since Marineland changed the design of this model. I unable to get store credit for it in any pet store.
Thank you for another very informative and enjoyable video.
Sincerely,
E. J. Brinegar

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

At least you have a nice back-up if something goes down. : -)

BTDarters Channel - 6 years ago

Nice video! Liked it a lot!!

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Thank you!

Hobo Aquatics - 6 years ago

I use both on a single tank. HOB I use mainly for water flow in the tank and mechanical filtration as well as the ease of use for adding a bag of charcoal etc on the fly.

Longbranch Outdoors - 6 years ago

Just found your channel love your content.

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Appreciate you watching!

Triple 10 Tanks - 6 years ago

I like both types depending on needs

10. comment for Fish Tank Filter Showdown: Hang on Back Filter vs Canister Filter!

Anthony Ragan - 6 years ago

I think canisters and HOBs come out about even, overall. I'm a big fan of Aquaclears, but I will note you can still get water all over if you don't maintain the O-ring that provides the seal between the motor and the filter body. As for canisters, I plan to put mine in a bucket, just in case of leaks.

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

That is exactly what I was thinking when I mentioned it's possible on some brands of HOBs. I've had the o-rings leak on Aquaclears after removing the motor

redjack56 - 6 years ago

All of these filters have their place in the hobby, as for choice I choose all of them. My big tank is a 210 and I currently run all of the types of filters you mentioned on it. My tank is stocked with African cichlids and they can be messy. I run 2 x lg sponge filters hidden behind my rocks, 2 x AquaClear 110's, 1 x Aquatop CF 400 and last is my monster Eheim 2262. I love all of these filters for different reasons, however as for canisters being a pain to clean I disagree. It takes me about 30 minutes to clean my monster Eheim Classic 2262, the thing is I only have to really clean it once every 2-4 months so it's worth it.

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

I do the same on my mbuna tank - combo of sponge and HOB.

Railway City Tanks St. Thomas - 6 years ago

All depends on what you have in the tank and the size of the tanks

jbond1957 - 6 years ago

Thank you for a sensible and balanced review.
Our Aqua One HOB’s (not Aqua clear) are totally silent. As a person with disabilities I find them so easy to clean even when I take to whole system apart to clean out the pipes. I have looked at canister and I know it is too difficult. I have ‘0’ Ammonia & Nitrites. We turn them off at night, fill with water, open top and Pothos in the media. The aquarium water is healthy, fish happy. Jane Sth Australia

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Thanks for sharing your perspective.

Michael Piccirillo - 6 years ago

Also you speak of brand name products.

I built a custom HOB using a large plastic bin that can hold 10 gallons of bio media connected to a 275 gph power head.

Best of both worlds. No leaks when power outs & its cheap, priceless

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Nice!

Michael Piccirillo - 6 years ago

People overlook that canisters have "head pressure" loss that reduces flow.

A canister rates at 900 gph flow rate will suffer 45-60% reduced flow rates from both head pressure when canister sits on floor then needs to pump water up 4 - 5 feet away into tank. Thats why many people need 2 canisters to regain flow for larger tanks.

Hang on the back filters do not loose head pressure loss. HOB rated at 250 gph is 95% there.

Thats again why you'll see experienced hobbyist use a canister with just coarse sponge & bio media they only service every 3-6 months & have a HOB to just handle fine filtering, water polishing with carbon added.

Makes the job simple & easy.

"Keep your fins wet!"

V. Stag - 6 years ago

Awesome Video Thanks for sharing #FishFam #NJAE18

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Thank you!

Jeffrey Lei - 6 years ago

thank you for the info and the comparison, you have an excellent channel and please keep making these videos! subbed and shared!

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Thank you Jeffrey - appreciate it!

DaDonBossMan - 6 years ago

Easy of maintenance for me is big
Anyone with 3 or more set ups would agree

Peter Pham - 6 years ago

I go with HOB due to convenience of cleaning, basically no risk of leaks, and the risk of losing bacteria due to a power loss is smaller. Also, it’s a lot cheaper to buy something like 2 Aqueon 75s, 2 Marineland 350Bs for $70 or so. This would provide more biomedia and mechanical filtration than say a Fluval 206 which costs 2x as much as the dual filter setups I mentioned earlier. Anyway, your video is very thorough and hits the pros and cons of both!

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

You also get redundancy in your set-up in case one goes out, you still have the other running. Thanks for sharing!

20. comment for Fish Tank Filter Showdown: Hang on Back Filter vs Canister Filter!

Cichlidscape • - 6 years ago

Canisters will definitely give you a cleaner look for a show tank but as you say they can be a pain to maintain/clean. Love the simplicity of sponge filters

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

For sure - thanks for sharing!

Esteban - 6 years ago

I like running an oversized HOB with sponges and fine filters to polish the water and a spongefilter as a backup to keep everything alive if the HOB were to fail and the water oxygenated. I have a small HOB that I switch between tanks to polish the water on my smaller tanks because a spongefilter doesn’t do that for me.

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Nice idea!

Rudy Briskar - 6 years ago

I am about to set up my first canister filter. I have a 20H so I went with a Cobalt Aquatics EXT Canister filter. It's relatively compact and I will be mounting the pump in the tank. That way if I have a power outage the filter WILL restart whether I am there or not.

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Very cool!

Eric Fialkowski - 6 years ago

I use all 3 for different reasons. Canister on my 75, sponges on my shrimp & Betta tanks, HOBs on the others. Although I'm probably not going to be buying any more HOBs because I'll just use sponges or be building a sump for my 125.

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

There is a place for them all. : -)

Guppy Gal & Tanzie the Ragdoll - 6 years ago

I’m still a box filter fan for my guppys

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Those were the first filters I used back in the early 80s. I still remember putting carbon in the bottom and filter floss on top and snapping it back together. : -)

The Budget Aquarist - 6 years ago

Hobs are great for smaller tanks. You get into huge tanks and you need bigger filtration. My largest tank is a 100 gallon and I still use 2, 75-gallon hob filters rather than a canister. My water is clean and my fish are healthy. But I do it because I can easily check the HOB filter media, and easily change it. Sometimes I go nuts and feed my fish some excess...just because they are my babies...and I like that I can change out the filter media in a few minutes. Good video!

The Budget Aquarist - 6 years ago

Prime Time Aquatics. Nice. I run 10 in my fish room....but it's all my stuff....no sales or anything. Good deal. Thanks for the quick reply....take care.

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Right now we have 45 running. I am adding five more in the next few weeks.

The Budget Aquarist - 6 years ago

Michael Piccirillo. I replace the filter pads in the hobs once a week at the same time I do a 30% water change....works great. My 55 and smaller tanks have supplemental sponge filters in the tanks, and I will be getting a sponge filter for the big tank after Christmas...if I don't get one as a gift from one of my kids since they know it's in my cart on Amazon! Lol
Good tip...thanks.

Michael Piccirillo - 6 years ago

You could just use a coarse sponge & bio media in canister & only service them every 3 - 6 months & use HOB to replace filter floss & carbon weekly, biweekly or monthly,

The Budget Aquarist - 6 years ago

Prime Time Aquatics. How many tanks do you have?

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

I hear you - there's something about a two-minute media change that makes life a little easier. : -)

Kekistani Freedom Fighter 01 - 6 years ago

Sponge filters can't go in an aquascape their so ugly and take so much space. HOB all the way babie!

Michael Piccirillo - 6 years ago

Matten sponge filters are great.

Or you can be creative, create a rock wall around any sponge filter or use a wall of plants to hide sponge filters. Be creative

HarrisonCountyStudio - 6 years ago

Not your standard (round) sponge filter, but I’m trying a “matten sponge” filter on a 29 gal and it’s awesome! The sponge blends right in with the decor and seems to be doing an incredible job at keeping the water clean. Four months into this experiment and I’ve grown so confident in this sponges abilities. No cleaning yet, just a 5gallon water change every two weeks.

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Although you have to admit, it would be pretty cool if someone won an aquascape contest using sponge filters - that should be a whole new category! : -)

George Calderon - 6 years ago

great,great video as always you really help allot of hobbies that's 4 sure HAPPY HOLIDAYS

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Thank you - happy holidays to you as well!

Green Thumb Aquariums - 6 years ago

Who makes that small canister filter you showed? I've been looking for a small one like that where the tubes are close enough to fit through a small opening.

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

It's a Kollercraft TOM C30 canister filter. I would say it's been ok, but not great.

Andy's Angels - 6 years ago

Sponge filters are taking over the hobby

30. comment for Fish Tank Filter Showdown: Hang on Back Filter vs Canister Filter!

AQUA FUNK W/ ANGEL FREAK - 6 years ago

I hate cleaning canister also in fact I've been procrastinating on my. im ganna do it now. Thanks for the guilt trip. LOL

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Glad I could help. Haha

T m.t - 6 years ago

Great job ..very useful video ....thanks

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Thank you!

Alpha Aquarium - 6 years ago

You gotta use the fluval formally aqua clear hob’s they are by far the best, they have the most room for customization as far as media goes. Love the videos!

Prime Time Aquatics - 6 years ago

Thank you - appreciate you watching!

About Fish Tank Filter Showdown: Hang on Back Filter vs Canister Filter!

The "Fish Tank Filter Showdown: Hang on Back Filter vs Canister Filter!" video is part of the Betta aquarium category, which contains similar videos like this one.