Tetratec 1200 Vs Eheim 2028 Pro 2

[George Farmer]

Simple. What's the best in your experience? Cost isn't an issue.

I'll probably be using two of either in a 560 l. (150 gal.) planted discus set up.

They both get excellent reports but the Eheim has the established reputation.

 

[The-Wolf]

it is a tough choice but i would go with the tetratec.
just because they haven't had the longevity on the market that eheim has
doesn't make the inferior in any way.

I remeber the tetra rep telling me the brief when designing these filters was
'make them better than Eheim and cheaper'
they may not be better but they are just as good IMO.

on a side note Tetratec out sell Eheim 4 to 1 in the Japanese market (source; the tetra rep)
possibly due to the high import tax levied on German products but also
possibly to the quality of the product.

 

[George Farmer]

Thanks for the info. It makes interesting reading. The rep is doing his job well..

Do you have personal experience of either filter?

I prefer the pipework aesthetics of the Tetratec (translucent grey instead of bright green), which is a big consideration for me, although one can purchase similar pipework kits for the Eheim.

 

[england]

ooh ive seen the 1200 tetratec external in my lfs...southern aquatics for £59.99.....
iam also thinking of getting one for my tank so i will be watching this thread with intrest...have heard there very good and so easy to use....idiot proof...hey its made for me

 

[The-Wolf]

I'm running a tetratec ex1200 on my 100G, alongside an eheim classic 2215
I have never used a pro 2 but do use a pro on my 42G.

having worked in the trade and having sold both (pro2 & tetra) I can say hand on heart they are as good as each other,
that is to say neither product came back with any faults.
in fact those that took the tetratec instead of an eheim (they would've gone for eheim but not in stock or someother factor)
absolutely loved it.

on a personal note I do think the tetra and its push button start is one, if not the, best designed self priming
mechanisms out there, it is far easier than the pro 2 which needs two hands where tetra only needs one


god I sound like the tetra rep now, so I'll stop.

 

[chuts]

I have been running the ex1200 for about 3 months now on my trigon 190, and am very happy with it.

Was very easy to set up, is silent and requires very little attention after set up, and is a piece of wee to prime. My water is crystal clear and as George said the clear pipework is more subtle than the eheim.

The cost was the biggest factor in choosing it, the cheepest I found on the net was from here, and arrived within a couple of days.

The only negative, and I am being picky, is its size, its pretty big and takes up half of my cabinet (please excuse the mess)

But all in all I am very impressed

 

[The-Wolf]

(please excuse the mess)

you call that messy!

you really don't want to see inside my cabinets then

 

[George Farmer]

Thanks guys.

Well, after more digging it seems the 1200 is a widely respected filter, although the output is more like 800lph after media etc. But that's the same sort of drop for the 2028 I understand.

Any idea of media volume, please? I can't seem to find it on the web.

Are the 16mm hoses the same as the 17mm Eheim? Sounds like a stupid question but the 14mm Fluval is the same... Why they can't standardise I don't know!

I'll be using inline heating and CO2 reactor so hose size is another important consideration.

Thanks again.

 

[neovector]

Any idea of media volume, please? I can't seem to find it on the web.

Are the 16mm hoses the same as the 17mm Eheim? Sounds like a stupid question but the 14mm Fluval is the same... Why they can't standardise I don't know!

I also have the Tetratec EX1200 on my Rio240, although my first external, I did some heavy research into which one to get. I am very very impressed with it , especially for the price!

Have looked in the instruction manual an specs are as follows:
Filter capacity: 12l
Filter media container: 1l x 4
Hose - Internal diameter: 15.2mm

I actually changed my hosing to Eheim 16/22mm hosing (thought the green tint might help stop algae building up in the hoses) and it fits perfectly, no leakes or side effects what so ever.

Hope this helps.

 

[George Farmer]

Thanks, neovector! Great help.

 

[SuperColey1]

I run an EX700 (12/13mm hose) and am very very impressed with it. Also running with an ETH200 inline heater and after
2 faulty heaters this one worked (fingers crossed for the future)

Looks better than the Eheims. Much cheaper. Comes with all the media (although of course I took the carbon bag out and replaced with media from my old filter)

I did replace the inlet & outlet with glass Lily pipes though from AM. Just aesthetics really as the grey transparent tubing was good but I liked the glass and they were cheap.

Andy

 

[George Farmer]

Hi Andy, and thanks.

Were the two previous faulty heaters also the Hydor in-line?

Who are AM?

 

[MojoDex]

i own the tetra tec 1200 and the eheim 2128 which is the 2028 with a heater built in so same animal really both are excellent filters make no mistake about it but i feel the eheim is the better filter it just cleans the water better IMHO

as george said cost is not the issue here and if that was the case id go for the eheim every time without a second thought

also on a side note the tetra tec 1200 is only rated for a 500 litre system the ehim is rated for a system up to 600 litres. i know you said your going to use 2 but the eheim obviously has the edge in power and in my opinion the edge in filtration

 

[Unseen]

teatra tec ex 1200 is superb for it's price. in terms of footballers, he would be a young prospect going for cheap, but will play football almost as good as a top player. perhaps an example would be pennant for liverpool. then if you want the best then you're gonna have to spend more for someone like henry.

 

[George Farmer]

Thanks MojoDex. Points noted.

Unseen - Not really into footie but I understand where you're coming from. Thanks.