# What external filter for a 180litre tank?



## adamhawk (9 Apr 2014)

As the title says, of course price the lower the better, but something decent is also important.


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## Sacha (9 Apr 2014)

Personally I would go for an APS 2000. 
They are considerably cheaper than the alternatives in the long run, and very reliable IME. 
The downsides: 
Power- hungry. They cost more to run over the course of a year in terms of electricity. 
Sometimes annoying to prime. 
The media that comes with them isn't great. 

But apart from that, the filters themselves work very well.


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## ian_m (9 Apr 2014)

JBL e1501 @ at only 20W power and 1400litre/hour.


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## adamhawk (9 Apr 2014)

ian_m said:


> JBL e1501 @ at only 20W power and 1400litre/hour.


Don't ideally want to pay £120 on one.


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## ian_m (9 Apr 2014)

The APS2000 has £10 off at the moment to £69.

One thing to watch with APS filters is non standard hose sizes, which can make hooking up to standard other equipment ie a 16/22mm diffuser a slightly interesting challenge.

The APS2000 is 25/18mm connection.
The APS1400 is 20/15mm connection.

There is also the reasonably prices Aquamanta range from Maidenhead Aquatics.


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## adamhawk (9 Apr 2014)

Of course what i do want in return is something that is easy, low maintenance and not to much a bother.


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## ian_m (9 Apr 2014)

The APS1400 is 35W (for 1400litres/hour) @ at £70 and JBL e1501 is 20W (for 1400litres/hour)  @ £130.

15W difference is 15/1000 * 24 * 365 * £0.15 = £20 a year cheaper to run.

You need to work out if superior German engineering, cheaper running costs and standard pipe sizes are worth paying for


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## dw1305 (9 Apr 2014)

Hi all, 





adamhawk said:


> but something decent is also important.


Pre-owned Eheim 2217.

cheers Darrel


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## MikeG747 (9 Apr 2014)

In my opinion it is worth spending the money on a decent filter. I have an APS model in the garage that was supposedly rated at 1000l/h, I think it would be more accurate to say this is about 100l/h. Certainly it can't compete with either of my eheims for output, even though they have roughly the same output ratings. The build quality of APS is not good, and this is really reflected in the price. Eheims all the way for me...


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## Sacha (9 Apr 2014)

Although remember that the Eheim Pro range has bad problems with leakage. Much more prone to leaks than APS...


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## ian_m (9 Apr 2014)

Also what space have you got for your filter ? I chose JBL e1501 as it was the biggest that would fit in my cabinet. My mate chose Eheim as best suited the space in his tank cabinet (and used existing pipework).


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## adamhawk (9 Apr 2014)

ian_m said:


> Also what space have you got for your filter ? I chose JBL e1501 as it was the biggest that would fit in my cabinet. My mate chose Eheim as best suited the space in his tank cabinet (and used existing pipework).



juwel vision 180 cabinet


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## Lindy (9 Apr 2014)

I have a tetratec 1200 and very happy with it. You may have to boost your flow with a power head though. I think zoo plus is doing them for £89.


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## ian_m (9 Apr 2014)

adamhawk said:


> juwel vision 180 cabinet


Well its the Jbl e1501 then, which I have in my left hand Juwel Vision 180 cabinet, being the highest flow filter you can get in the cabinet. Other people got bigger flow filters with Vision 180 but need to take door off to get filter out or removed all the wood in the stand and had no doors.

To clean filter, open door, unclip pipes, lift out e1501, unclip lid, fiddle with it, clip lid on, lift back into cabinet, clip back pipes, turn on and shut door. Job done.


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## adamhawk (9 Apr 2014)

What I forgot to say is that I want this filter to run along side the in house one or would there be one that would be better on its own?


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## ian_m (9 Apr 2014)

I run the e1501 @1400l/hr as well as the Vision 180 with 600l/hr head.


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