from the good old days...

[Magnum Man]

so I had been out of fish keeping for 15 years, but I had some of the best stuff back then... getting into it today, the most impressive is the new digital heaters... the thing I'm most disappointed with is new filters... I had MARINELAND MAGNUM 250 CONVERTIBLE CANISTER AQUARIUM FILTRATION SYSTEMS Hang On Tank. filters on all my aquariums... I don't know what happed to them, but filters seem to have taken a huge leap backwards... the closest replacements I can find go inside your tanks... how ugly!!! & they plug up with loose moss like right away...,

anyone that has been into fish all along, have a good recommendation??? I've bought 3-4 different filters & none of them holds a candle to my 15 year old filters I did find one new in box on E-Bay for $180.00 but not sure I'll be able to buy consumables in the following years, so am looking for something newer that is serviceable

NEW~MARINELAND MAGNUM 250 CONVERTIBLE CANISTER AQUARIUM FILTRATION SYSTEM H.O.T. 47431632509 | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for NEW~MARINELAND MAGNUM 250 CONVERTIBLE CANISTER AQUARIUM FILTRATION SYSTEM H.O.T. at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

 

[CaptainBarnicles]

I'm curious...what is it about the current canisters you find undesirable?

 

[FranciscoB]

I used to have several Magnum Hot 250s, and also the Pro version (same thing, with two biowheels attached). Excellent filters that I used mostly for 'polishing' my discus tanks. Then I quit the hobby due to moving and sold many tanks, fish and equipment, only to re-start again about 10 years later, and it has been quite a few years now.
I agree with that it is regrettable that those filters are not longer available. A Marineland screw-up IMHO.
There are several similar jobs available now, for example -


Odyssea Cfs 130 Hang On Aquarium Canister Filter External Nano Small
$59.99
eBay
https://www.googleadservices.com/pa...fjZoNX_AhVBjYkEHfNKDQ4Q9aACKAB6BAgBEDI&adurl=


Penn-plax Cascade Canistar Hang-on Canister Aquarium Filter – Great
$70.09
eBay

But they are nowhere as good as the Hot Magnum.
However, there are certainly a number of very good canister option around, just not Hang on Tank.
Aquaclear 110 (=500) HOBs are great! and have been since they started several decades ago. I don't think they offer less than a Hot Magnum did, and move more water.

 

[connorlindeman]

Aquaclear filters are some of the best in the game imo. They will last you many years if you take care of them. They are also very reasonably priced.

 

[Fishmanic]

so I had been out of fish keeping for 15 years, but I had some of the best stuff back then... getting into it today, the most impressive is the new digital heaters... the thing I'm most disappointed with is new filters... I had MARINELAND MAGNUM 250 CONVERTIBLE CANISTER AQUARIUM FILTRATION SYSTEMS Hang On Tank. filters on all my aquariums... I don't know what happed to them, but filters seem to have take a huge leap backwards... the closest replacements I can find go inside you tanks... how ugly!!! & they plug up with loose moss like right away...,

anyone that has been into fish all along, have a good recommendation??? I've bought 3-4 different filters & none of them holds a candle to my 15 year old filters I did find one new in box on E-Bay for $180.00 but not sure I'll be able to buy consumables in the following years

NEW~MARINELAND MAGNUM 250 CONVERTIBLE CANISTER AQUARIUM FILTRATION SYSTEM H.O.T. 47431632509 | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for NEW~MARINELAND MAGNUM 250 CONVERTIBLE CANISTER AQUARIUM FILTRATION SYSTEM H.O.T. at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

What size tank is the filter being used for.

 

[10 Tanks]

so I had been out of fish keeping for 15 years, but I had some of the best stuff back then... getting into it today, the most impressive is the new digital heaters... the thing I'm most disappointed with is new filters... I had MARINELAND MAGNUM 250 CONVERTIBLE CANISTER AQUARIUM FILTRATION SYSTEMS Hang On Tank. filters on all my aquariums... I don't know what happed to them, but filters seem to have take a huge leap backwards... the closest replacements I can find go inside you tanks... how ugly!!! & they plug up with loose moss like right away...,

anyone that has been into fish all along, have a good recommendation??? I've bought 3-4 different filters & none of them holds a candle to my 15 year old filters I did find one new in box on E-Bay for $180.00 but not sure I'll be able to buy consumables in the following years

NEW~MARINELAND MAGNUM 250 CONVERTIBLE CANISTER AQUARIUM FILTRATION SYSTEM H.O.T. 47431632509 | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for NEW~MARINELAND MAGNUM 250 CONVERTIBLE CANISTER AQUARIUM FILTRATION SYSTEM H.O.T. at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Hello Magnum. Whoa! That's a lot of money! I've been in the water keeping hobby for quite a few years and I have to admit I didn't realize how expensive it can be. But, I don't heat my tanks and just use basic sponge filters that cost around $10.00. My lighting is pretty cheap too. LEDs typically don't break the bank. You must keep a pretty technical type of tank. I'd be interested in the kind of fish you'll be keeping. Welcome back to the hobby and have some fun!

10 Tanks (Now 11)

 

[Colin_T]

AquaClear HOB style filters for me too. Simple design, come with everything you need, no need to buy replacement cartridges, and no wheel to stop working

 

[Magnum Man]

to answer some questions...

"I'm curious...what is it about the current canisters you find undesirable?"
I bought 2 of these...

Amazon.com

inlets plug easily, suction cups are marginal, they are ugly being inside my tanks... when I looked, I thought these would be the closest equivalent, actual filtering, yes, but the intake design is not good, the suction cups don't hold the filter in place very well, & they are ugly inside the tank, they also get really noisy, as the inlet begins to start to plug up... as far as "floor models" most of my tanks I'm starting right now are on the tops of double stacks, so they are 3-4 ft off the floor, & they are all built in to the walls with limited access for working behind them... the hoses would have to be long, & with the limited work space, I'd be tripping over the hoses & canisters if they were on the floor

"What size tank is the filter being used for."

I used the old filters on tanks 45 gallon & bigger


nothing wrong with sponge filters , but I'd admit, I used them mostly for breeding tanks, in the past I'd run one of the hang on tank filters, & a pair of sponge filters in opposite corners until egg or baby time, then turn off the hang on tank during the fry stages...

"I'd be interested in the kind of fish you'll be keeping."

when I was into fish before, they were all testosterone fish... Piranhas, I had a Pacu that went 24" until he made a leap of death one day, a Silver Arowana, that went to 20" before he met the same fate as the Pacu... even though all my tanks were covered... fish that big throw a lot of muscle around, & even a cover with some weight succumbed to the pacu ( he weighed just under 10 lbs. when he died )... back then, most were species tanks... today the tanks have a large bio load with the numbers of fish, rather than the weight of a single fish... I have a rainbow fish tank, an Angel & Tetra tank, a glo fish tank, & a barb tank ( the 5 Tin Foils have doubled in size since I bought them, & they are at 5" right now, but there is 15-18 fish total in a 55 gallon, & most fish are at half of what they will grow to ( that tank has 2 hang on tanks, because of the expected bio load in 6 months )... several more tanks to set up yet... ( 45-65 gallon )

 

[CaptainBarnicles]

What about an external canister?

 

[Magnum Man]

sorry, I was editing, I added that to my above post...

 

[Magnum Man]

I had a lot of the "traditional style" hang on the back of the tank filters ( in fact I used to buy cartridges by the case ) then slowly began to make my own, at 1st slitting the floss portion & replacing the carbon inside, later getting creative with live plants & such...

 

[Magnum Man]

FranciscoB... I like the 2 filters you linked... the 1st is just a bit too small, & the 2nd I have another filter with that style hanger, & they are not very durable ( there is a work around for that though... thanks for the suggestions ) ... I'll need to buy some new filters as I start up more tanks, & honestly the filters ( & time ) are the biggest limit to filling the rest of my tanks, right now​

 

[Slaphppy7]

I used to have several Magnum Hot 250s, and also the Pro version (same thing, with two biowheels attached). Excellent filters that I used mostly for 'polishing' my discus tanks. Then I quit the hobby due to moving and sold many tanks, fish and equipment, only to re-start again about 10 years later, and it has been quite a few years now.
I agree with that it is regrettable that those filters are not longer available. A Marineland screw-up IMHO.
There are several similar jobs available now, for example -
View attachment 321076

Odyssea Cfs 130 Hang On Aquarium Canister Filter External Nano Small
$59.99
eBay
https://www.googleadservices.com/pa...fjZoNX_AhVBjYkEHfNKDQ4Q9aACKAB6BAgBEDI&adurl=
View attachment 321077

Penn-plax Cascade Canistar Hang-on Canister Aquarium Filter – Great
$70.09
eBay
But they are nowhere as good as the Hot Magnum.
However, there are certainly a number of very good canister option around, just not Hang on Tank.
Aquaclear 110 (=500) HOBs are great! and have been since they started several decades ago. I don't think they offer less than a Hot Magnum did, and move more water.

Link doesn't work for me...

 

[FranciscoB]

Regarding the Oddysea - Yes, I agree. They do make at least one larger model, I have never seen it. However, the quality of the small one (I have one) is very low, and although available and usable, I don't really recommend it. That does not leave much hope for the larger models but I don't know for sure and don't want to spend just to find out. Hot Magnums were the cats IMO.