Choosing an Aquarium Filter is a very important decision you must make depending upon the type and size of aquarium you are going to maintain. With so many different Aquarium Filters on the market today, this can be a very confusing issue. There are three kinds of Aquarium Filtration: Mechanical (strains solid materials from the water), Chemical (removes impurities from the water) and Biological (provides growth of beneficial bacteria). Following are the different types of Aquarium Filters and their uses:
- Internal Filters are used mostly with smaller aquariums. They fit inside the tank with a pump that circulates the water through the media. They provide mechanical, chemical and biological filtering.
- Power Filters are filters that will hang on your tank. The water is drawn up into them and over the media and then overflows back into the tank. They are used with small to medium sized tanks. They provide mechanical, chemical and biological filtering.
- Canister Filters and Inline Filters both have a larger capacity than internal filters. Water is drawn into the canister, over the media and then pumped back into the tank. Used for tanks with a large amount of debris they are designed for better biological filtration. These models also include the Bio-Wheel.
- Wet/Dry Filters mix air with water as the water runs over the filter media. An extremely efficient filter for biological filtration because of the rapid oxidation of ammonia and nitrates.
- Undergravel Filters sits under the substrate and draws water and waste matter through the gravel allowing beneficial bacteria to grow to break down the waste. This filter only provides biological filtration and depending upon the type of fish you are keeping, you may need additional filtration to handle the chemical and mechanical filtering.
