Which Eheim

[SueD]

Tank size would be 40 gal breeder. I only want to look at Eheim canisters and am looking for opinions on the few models listed below, setting aside for now the $$$. I am primarily interested in ease of use, including self-priming and media options, as well as ability to use a pre-filter if there are fry in the tank. And of course, the filtering ability itself.

Here's what I am trying to sort through:

Ultra G 90
Pro III E 2074 or 2076
2073 or 2075 - are these similar to the 2074/2076 without the electronics?
2215 or 2217

I'm leaning toward either the 2074/2076 or 2073/2075 at the moment and would love to hear from anyone who has actually used these.

Thanks for your help.

[~firefly~]

I'm a big fan of Eheim cannister filters, but I can warn you about the Pro 3. DO NOT touch it. The lever valve is well known for breaking (off inside the head) which is what happened to me and from what I've heard they tend to be a bit leaky.

I've heard good things about the Pro 2s if you can find one, but honestly - stick to the Classics. They're sturdy, reliable pieces of kit and I wish I had stuck with mine.

Here is my nightmare with a Pro 3 (thankfully no losses due to the help on this forum): http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/aqua...d.php?t=108982

There are pretty bad reviews of the Pro 3 here: http://www.amazon.com/Eheim-2075-Pro...ews/B002AQED9Q

[Rocksor]

I just had my eheim 2028 Pro2 leak on me last week, after owning it for 2 years. The leak was coming from the head. I had to open it up, take the head apart, and lube the primer button.

Eheim did acknowledge a problem with the Pro 3 series head, supposedly this was fixed in what they are calling the G160 model, which is the newer version of the 2075.

[Goes to 11!]

+ 1 to the classic series [I have 4 ].

They have FAR less bells and whistles than the pro series [I have 1] but that also means there is FAR less to go wrong.

Other than there being no media baskets, The initial priming is the only other PITA aspect of the classics IMO [& it's not that bad, Most of the issues I see are from people applying no common sense ] as they easily take off again after cleaning IME.

Unless you are going to be heavily stocked I would go with the 2215, It's unbeatable effectiveness & durability for the price.

[ScottishFish]

As the proud owner of a new 2215 I can finally chime into a canister thread

Easy to set up, seems to do the job, only had mine running for 2 weeks. No media baskets is a pain in the . . . .

I also have a Fluval 406, been running for nearly 4 weeks, that thing is awesome! Rated for 50l more than the 2215

[~firefly~]

I've got the 2213 classic (wish I'd bought the 2215 instead of the Pro 3 now).

The single basket (instead of mulitple media baskets) I never really found an issue. Just dump all your biomedia at the bottom, then sponges, then filter floss. The floss gets replaced every few months (when the sponges are also rinsed) and the media is just dunked (in the basket) in a bucket of siphoned off water. Stuff it all back in. Done.

The Pro 3 has separate baskets...which is a nice feature, except for the fact that they supply plastic rings for the bottom basket (which float!) Nightmare trying to get them back into a cannister that already has water in it.

[jeffs99dime]

Classics are the best route to go as far as Eheim goes. I've have several different ones over the years- 2215 and 2217's. No problems with them-ever.
They are super reliable and super efficient.

[dbosman]

I currently have several Eheim's.
I recommend the 2217 for your tank. It won't be over kill at all, if you use the spray bar. My largest problem is remembering when I last changed the filter floss.

[Goes to 11!]

The single basket (instead of mulitple media baskets) I never really found an issue.

That's only with the 2213s [& only the newer ones at that - My 2213 has no basket], The 2215 & 2217 have no basket whatsoever.

[ScottishFish]

I second 850R