Quote Originally Posted by nixer View Post
what works is what works.

anymore you really cannot go by a filters rated tank size or the gph rating of it. there is way too many that are rated way higher than they should be. heck the xp4 is nothing more than an xp 3 with an extra basket! there is no increase in flow. unfortunately they are not the only ones to do this. if you look at ehiems site they have the ratings with media, but this is also brand new media, so you have to leave a big margin of error.

for those with smaller tanks its more important to have perhaps a undergrave filter and a hob filter. try to say away from those bag types they do not allow for anything when you change the bag! i stick with aquaclears.
I completely agree. Which is why I have different types of media in both of my ehiems. I also did notics the flow is not as great as I would like it. I have a sizable pump that I believe was designed for ponds. Im thinking about rigging it to one or both of the canisters to relieve the stress on the canister motors while increasing my flow. My power heads seem pretty worthless for anything other than moving the water and taking up space. The reverse flow option is not powerful enough for true undergravel filtration either IMO.

But I bet it would work wonders on a smaller aquarium to have a reverse flow power head/undergravel filtration and an aquaclear. I have used aquaclear before and I like them.