They work just fine, so long as you understand the water flow within the filter and where to place to mechanical/biological filtration in the layers. The name brands are ridiculously expensive for what they do. My no-name Chinese canister filter has been running a 40 gallon tank for the last four years and I have never had a problem with it - no leaks, no broken o-rings, no noise issues. Best $50 I ever spent lol
After 9 years I managed to save up enough money to buy 2 x Oase Biomaster 350 Thermos and replace the 2 x SunSun 302s. The Biomasters are horrendously expensive, but I don't regret purchasing them and ditching the SunSuns. I love the inbuilt pre filter on the Biomasters, it makes the weekly water change and clean very quick. They are also quieter and the flow is improved. The filter cabinet is so much tidier now too due to the inbuilt heater in the Biomaster. I could remove the inline heaters. The SunSun's were cheap and fairly cheerful but I worried every time I opened them for a service as they were prone to leaks which could start anything like 24 hours later. I had to place them in a bucket, which saved me on a number of occasions when I came home to meet a bucket filling with water.
Ive been in the hobby for over 25 years. Listen people, dont cheap out on your filters. Everything works great new, its the long term usage that really shows itself. These Chinese canisters will crap themselves fairly quickly, the tubing goes hard and unusable, those cheap intake tubes will go brittle. I have a Filstar XP3 and Aquaclear 500s for about 20 years now, and besides changing the impeller, they still run perfectly, the plastic is still in excellent shape and not brittle. The tubing on my canister is still soft and usable. Youll be lucky to get 3 years of usage with these cheap canisters. Remember kids, buy it nice, or buy it twice.
while it is true not to cheap out on filters, your comments are not coming from experience with this brand of filter. it is just bias with Chinese brands even if your filter is likely madenin china or has components made in china.
@DJ-sp5vf first of all, China is not a singular company. Everything is made in China, but obviously quality varies. Which is why the company matters. I've had plenty of experiences with SunSun filters, my friends in the hobby owns them, I've seen them being sold second hand, and it suffers from all the issues I stated.
Im using Sun Sun product for 5 of my 60P tanks. Im using even more cheap canister, only USD 16/piece. It's rebrand with name Pumpa LW-602 B with capacity of 400L/hr, 6 watt only. It has power head outside of the canister and an on-off valve (ADA style filter canister) Amazingly it's works really great, good filtration, low power consumption and really silent. Overall, i really satisfied with this product. Compare with other brand with "funny price tag", this product really worth a penny
I have a SunSun 304b thats been in a few tanks since 2018, still running as good as new, I vaseline my O-rings and so far no replacement parts needed or any issues.
I've been using a SunSun 4-stage filter (w/ UV light) on my 20 gallon Axolotl tank for the last 5 years. This is the best filter made. This is a planted tank, and combines this filter. I have an float-valve water top-off. I have never cleaned the filter. I do not do water changes. I only compost floating plants. The water is kept at the same height with R/O water and float-valve. I do not clean up the axolotl waste. It's broken down by many shrimp & snails, then again by plants & bacteria. I only feed the tank sinking shrimp pellets. The water is perfect, always. I check it weekly.
I'm running several of these filters on my tanks BUT not on my Axolotl tank. I use a Fulval canister filter (which I have several of, too). But I agree, these Polar Arura filters are the best value on the market. My Axolotl is a big fella - about 5 years old, now. He eats worms, shrimp pellets and occasionally small feeders.
I've been using a small 603b Sunsun for my 10 gallon tank(cost me around 20 bucks), and the results are phenomenal. I just added 1 kilo of lava bits as additional bio media for housing beneficial bacteria.
my main worry with getting a no name canister is if you need to replace seals or replace the head unit if needed, just spares in general. I got my fluval 206 for £60 on ebay. yeah it was used and all the rubber had rotted but all were easy to find and replace.
When he said “cheap” dude wasn’t lying, I’ve got a 704b as a back up now that I bought last year, it was bought for primary use and is now a back up cause how crappy those are made. It’s loud and it leaked within the first few months, and at the time I couldn’t find replacement parts. They are great for the money if ur on a tight budget and want a bigger canister, but they do leak and after a while the motor does get a lot louder.
Good Review. My thoughts exactly regarding, a small pump and a bunch of sponge media in basically a bucket pushing water. Seems like 50 bucks should be the average cost, not the low end of the market. Good Review.
I have this exact filter (except mine has uv light). It has been running non stop for over 3 years in my 36 bowfront aquarium. Which will soon be swapped out for a 55 gallon. I LOVE this filter! Can't hear it at all. I like it so much that I bought a mini version of it for my 20 gal cube. It was like $20ish. Love that too. In my bedroom and I hear nothing. 😁
Mine is a little loud - but its in the basement so it doesn't bother me. But I did the same... I have the larger units running on my big tanks, and then just bought the smaller unit for my 40 gallon planted tank.
Other things to consider, UL, CE and RoHS ratings are important for the electrical components to ensure it doesn't burn down your house or shock you or your fish. Also, most cheap material over time can dissolve and mix into the water and become very toxic for the environment, that usually occurs with small or large leaks as the indicator. Longevity, i have seen high dollar pumps been running 15yrs without a break. And I bet the the quality of prop and motor inside the pump will definitely lack, in addition to post sales support/service. But great review, I am hoping it's still functional since the review.
It doesn’t seem bad. It isnt Fluval level. I use Fluval for most of my tanks, love them. But I have this polar unit (303-B I think it is) for my goldfish “pond”. As said in the video, the plastic. Be careful, I snapped the outtake nozzle on the quick disconnect while trying to put the hose on 🤦♀️. I got this thing a year ago and finding replacement parts was a pain. But I checked again today and there is now replacement parts on Amazon! So, if you snap something you can at least replace it fairly easily.
Another disadventage of these cheap filters is power consumption. It is more than your average good-brand canister filter. They are usually louder, too. But all in all, their price is so low that i can live with that. Aqua Nova filters are also a good option here.
Sun sun is great if you have lost about half of your hearing. 😮 I was given two for free. Used them both for 6 months and then threw them away and got better ones. Not going to drop brand names. But I will also say I would never use or buy a FX 6.
hot 303b for my 60 gal tank and it even has a UV light but here in Canada it's a $160 filter.. that is CAD$.. 320 gph and same goes for that filter. I took a spray extension off and increased flow tru my tank without powerhead. I run UV on weekends when home for a few hours, 3-5 and that's plenty. great filter
I had a Sunsun 304b it's a great cheap filter but the biggest drawbacks of that filter is that really cheaply made. The head of the canister filter in the primary mechanism after a while developed a crack and the head would get flooded and start leaking after a while.
@@cesarcastrojr4903 but it did work for me, mine is 4 year old filter and started getting leakage issue in the 3rd year and once fixed the pipe tape am using it for a year now without any issues.
Hi, great video -- I decided on the PA 265 model, but adapted to glass lily pipes. Any tips on adapting PA's 3/4" green tubes (or the PA hardware they connect to) to glass pipes of 3/8", 1/2" or 5/8"? I am leaning towards the 5/8"glass lily pipes as they are larger. Thanks!!!
So I got a 304b given to me by a friend a little bit ago and I just set it up on my indoor pond when I brought the fish in for the winter. So I've just been looking up videos to see what I've actually got here, mine has the sensen name on it but its the same filter as you've mentioned. Its been working well for the last few days and now that I know what they are and what they cost I am thinking about getting a few more slightly smaller ones for my 55 and 60 gallon tanks. But here is my reason for commenting it turns out that these are the same exact filter as the aquatop brand which you can get at either petco or petsmart...I am sorry I can't remember which one it is. They are more expensive there though, and it turns out the main reason for this besides possibly retailer mark up as that the aquatop ones actually have a UL rating whereas sensen and other clones do not. Which only matters if something goes seriously wrong for insurance reasons. I learned these things from another video I watched put out by Trafish aquatics here on youtube, another really good smaller channel you might want to check out some time.
I just bought a Polar Aurora 3-Stage External Aquarium Filter 265GPH. I can't seem to get the water flow thru the intake green hose. I tried pumping the prime button but it does not pull the water into canister. any idea why?
Reliability is the main issue with these units. It's well known online that they are very prone to leaking after the 1 year mark. Some people may get lucky and have them last longer without issue, but there's enough people reporting on it that it's real. As someone who had this filter leak all over hardwood flooring (thank god it wasn't carpet at least) I do not regret switching to a top brand and paying extra for build quality, reliability and a larger warranty.
I have run 2 of these on my 350 litre tank for 9 years with no major leaks (so far). The quality of plastic and clips is not the best but I only service mine every 6 months. I use cheap pre filters which I service weekly to capture the majority of junk. When I do service filter I rarely use primer preferring to fill canister to brim then put lid back on. I have spare O rings, PTFE tape and silicone lube (or vaseline). 9 years later all good.
@@tropicaltanklover2160 Yes, I support this too. I have several of these (as well as other expensive brands). I have replaced the O-ring and the UV light on the larger units - but I also replace items on my Fluval too.
I think marketers try to make us think we need a bunch of non-sense. Now I can see why there are so many DIY filter systems. We should think first what our aquatics need, then look at systems. Minimalist makes sense.
Interesting. The cheapest canister filter with me is the Eheim classic 250 (50€). Works for decades. Sunsun costs here 87€. I just know the prices as I need a spare canister filter.
Lol when I was looking at canister filters I was thinking "there's no way this is some secret or hidden technology..." It's simple to engineer these things
I agree with this comment! Mr. TryItAcqutics I have heard that home insurance won't cover any potential damage caused by a device that is not UL rated. Is this true? I think it's worth it to pay a few more bucks and not risk burning or flooding your house. However, if I am mistaken I take it back and would actually buy one. Please set us straight. Thank you for your time and channel, sub'd and liked!
🤔These filters wouldn’t be such garbage if they had at least the build quality of a Fluval. 👎🏽 I have purchased 8 of these filters and I’m now down to 1 HW-304B model left. That’s within 3 years mind you. The best thing about these filters are the green tubes and the motor. Although the green tubes should be smoke or black. The UV light will destroy the baskets. The lamp ( glass that covers the light ) UV light will leak and rust the light. And worst of all the latch on the intake/return will easily snap then the filter has to be scrapped. I do actually like these filters and if you do your part they will last a few years if you only clean it every 6 months and don’t tip the filter to empty out the air bubbles. Also, there’s six different companies marketing the same filter under different names ( SunSun, all ponds solutions, polar Aurora, ffxtw, flexzion and aquatop.
Everyone, by careful with these filters! They are not UL rated! If they were to cause a fire, your home insurance MAY not cover any damages caused by the fire
![Chino Pacas - Modo Capone (with Drake & JOP) [Video Visualizador Oficial]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Zoc75M8Swhc/mqdefault.jpg)
They work just fine, so long as you understand the water flow within the filter and where to place to mechanical/biological filtration in the layers. The name brands are ridiculously expensive for what they do. My no-name Chinese canister filter has been running a 40 gallon tank for the last four years and I have never had a problem with it - no leaks, no broken o-rings, no noise issues. Best $50 I ever spent lol
Really you never had any issues?
@@justin94431 Yeah. Still have the same filter, still fine.
@@bigbowlowrong4694 You say it is no-name, is there a way to find it?
@@bigbowlowrong4694 Hey dude! I'd love to know which one you're using
How do you only have 2 subscribers this some pretty good content
New channels are hard to grow this day and age... consistent and good videos he will take off. Was a great review...
After 9 years I managed to save up enough money to buy 2 x Oase Biomaster 350 Thermos and replace the 2 x SunSun 302s.
The Biomasters are horrendously expensive, but I don't regret purchasing them and ditching the SunSuns. I love the inbuilt pre filter on the Biomasters, it makes the weekly water change and clean very quick. They are also quieter and the flow is improved. The filter cabinet is so much tidier now too due to the inbuilt heater in the Biomaster. I could remove the inline heaters.
The SunSun's were cheap and fairly cheerful but I worried every time I opened them for a service as they were prone to leaks which could start anything like 24 hours later. I had to place them in a bucket, which saved me on a number of occasions when I came home to meet a bucket filling with water.
I have 4 of these, had them for over 5 years...never had any issues. Easy to maintain.
You definitely deserve more subscribers. This video was done exceptionally well. Thank you!
I agree. Excellent job on this video.
Ive been in the hobby for over 25 years. Listen people, dont cheap out on your filters. Everything works great new, its the long term usage that really shows itself. These Chinese canisters will crap themselves fairly quickly, the tubing goes hard and unusable, those cheap intake tubes will go brittle.
I have a Filstar XP3 and Aquaclear 500s for about 20 years now, and besides changing the impeller, they still run perfectly, the plastic is still in excellent shape and not brittle. The tubing on my canister is still soft and usable. Youll be lucky to get 3 years of usage with these cheap canisters.
Remember kids, buy it nice, or buy it twice.
while it is true not to cheap out on filters, your comments are not coming from experience with this brand of filter. it is just bias with Chinese brands even if your filter is likely madenin china or has components made in china.
@DJ-sp5vf first of all, China is not a singular company. Everything is made in China, but obviously quality varies. Which is why the company matters.
I've had plenty of experiences with SunSun filters, my friends in the hobby owns them, I've seen them being sold second hand, and it suffers from all the issues I stated.
Would love to hear an update on how long it lasted!
Im using Sun Sun product for 5 of my 60P tanks. Im using even more cheap canister, only USD 16/piece. It's rebrand with name Pumpa LW-602 B with capacity of 400L/hr, 6 watt only.
It has power head outside of the canister and an on-off valve (ADA style filter canister)
Amazingly it's works really great, good filtration, low power consumption and really silent.
Overall, i really satisfied with this product. Compare with other brand with "funny price tag", this product really worth a penny
Also the same as the protege line of canister filters. I reckon this guy has some quality vids and needs some more credit for it.
I'm more interested in that cabinet you are using. Where can I get one? lol
Excellent review. Well done! I enjoyed the contrast and comparisons, too. Yeah, this is a good video. You should be proud. Good work!
I have a SunSun 304b thats been in a few tanks since 2018, still running as good as new, I vaseline my O-rings and so far no replacement parts needed or any issues.
I've been using a SunSun 4-stage filter (w/ UV light) on my 20 gallon Axolotl tank for the last 5 years. This is the best filter made.
This is a planted tank, and combines this filter. I have an float-valve water top-off.
I have never cleaned the filter.
I do not do water changes. I only compost floating plants. The water is kept at the same height with R/O water and float-valve.
I do not clean up the axolotl waste. It's broken down by many shrimp & snails, then again by plants & bacteria.
I only feed the tank sinking shrimp pellets.
The water is perfect, always. I check it weekly.
I'm running several of these filters on my tanks BUT not on my Axolotl tank. I use a Fulval canister filter (which I have several of, too). But I agree, these Polar Arura filters are the best value on the market. My Axolotl is a big fella - about 5 years old, now. He eats worms, shrimp pellets and occasionally small feeders.
This is awesome! I'd love to see a video on that Axolotl tank!
I've had 1 for 3yrs no issues and still working well on a 400l tank. Do recommend
I've been using a small 603b Sunsun for my 10 gallon tank(cost me around 20 bucks), and the results are phenomenal. I just added 1 kilo of lava bits as additional bio media for housing beneficial bacteria.
my main worry with getting a no name canister is if you need to replace seals or replace the head unit if needed, just spares in general. I got my fluval 206 for £60 on ebay. yeah it was used and all the rubber had rotted but all were easy to find and replace.
When he said “cheap” dude wasn’t lying, I’ve got a 704b as a back up now that I bought last year, it was bought for primary use and is now a back up cause how crappy those are made. It’s loud and it leaked within the first few months, and at the time I couldn’t find replacement parts. They are great for the money if ur on a tight budget and want a bigger canister, but they do leak and after a while the motor does get a lot louder.
I have 4 of the 370g/hr units by PA and they all work perfectly. I did replace the plastic intake and outputs with glass lily tubes.
Now I have to look up glass lily tubes...
Is it suitable for 25 gallon, 2.5 feet gold fish tank? Will the current be quite high?
Great video. I have 2 SunSun 702b filters in one of my 55 gallon tanks and they are 6 years old. Only one is starting to show wear on the o-rings.
Good Review. My thoughts exactly regarding, a small pump and a bunch of sponge media in basically a bucket pushing water. Seems like 50 bucks should be the average cost, not the low end of the market. Good Review.
I have this exact filter (except mine has uv light). It has been running non stop for over 3 years in my 36 bowfront aquarium. Which will soon be swapped out for a 55 gallon. I LOVE this filter! Can't hear it at all. I like it so much that I bought a mini version of it for my 20 gal cube. It was like $20ish. Love that too. In my bedroom and I hear nothing. 😁
Mine is a little loud - but its in the basement so it doesn't bother me. But I did the same... I have the larger units running on my big tanks, and then just bought the smaller unit for my 40 gallon planted tank.
Other things to consider, UL, CE and RoHS ratings are important for the electrical components to ensure it doesn't burn down your house or shock you or your fish. Also, most cheap material over time can dissolve and mix into the water and become very toxic for the environment, that usually occurs with small or large leaks as the indicator. Longevity, i have seen high dollar pumps been running 15yrs without a break. And I bet the the quality of prop and motor inside the pump will definitely lack, in addition to post sales support/service. But great review, I am hoping it's still functional since the review.
It doesn’t seem bad. It isnt Fluval level. I use Fluval for most of my tanks, love them. But I have this polar unit (303-B I think it is) for my goldfish “pond”. As said in the video, the plastic. Be careful, I snapped the outtake nozzle on the quick disconnect while trying to put the hose on 🤦♀️. I got this thing a year ago and finding replacement parts was a pain. But I checked again today and there is now replacement parts on Amazon! So, if you snap something you can at least replace it fairly easily.
Another disadventage of these cheap filters is power consumption. It is more than your average good-brand canister filter. They are usually louder, too.
But all in all, their price is so low that i can live with that.
Aqua Nova filters are also a good option here.
I am told it leaks after some time or cleaning for 4-5 times. Do let e know. I plan to buy it in a day or two. Thank You.
Excellent review
Great video and amazing voice!!! Thank you very much for the review!
Random question: Where did you get the stand your aquarium is on?! Thanks in advance =)
After a year and a half my primer button oring started leaking. So do to no parts I moved on to brands with parts. But it worked
Can you adjust the flow rate on these? If so how.
Do you think this will work for a turtle?
Sun sun is great if you have lost about half of your hearing. 😮
I was given two for free. Used them both for 6 months and then threw them away and got better ones. Not going to drop brand names. But I will also say I would never use or buy a FX 6.
hot 303b for my 60 gal tank and it even has a UV light but here in Canada it's a $160 filter.. that is CAD$.. 320 gph and same goes for that filter. I took a spray extension off and increased flow tru my tank without powerhead. I run UV on weekends when home for a few hours, 3-5 and that's plenty. great filter
I had a Sunsun 304b it's a great cheap filter but the biggest drawbacks of that filter is that really cheaply made. The head of the canister filter in the primary mechanism after a while developed a crack and the head would get flooded and start leaking after a while.
Pipe tap will easily fix it
@@samanth_k_nanda Pipe tape won't do a thing to help stop the leak in this case
@@cesarcastrojr4903 but it did work for me, mine is 4 year old filter and started getting leakage issue in the 3rd year and once fixed the pipe tape am using it for a year now without any issues.
Hi, great video -- I decided on the PA 265 model, but adapted to glass lily pipes. Any tips on adapting PA's 3/4" green tubes (or the PA hardware they connect to) to glass pipes of 3/8", 1/2" or 5/8"? I am leaning towards the 5/8"glass lily pipes as they are larger. Thanks!!!
So I got a 304b given to me by a friend a little bit ago and I just set it up on my indoor pond when I brought the fish in for the winter. So I've just been looking up videos to see what I've actually got here, mine has the sensen name on it but its the same filter as you've mentioned. Its been working well for the last few days and now that I know what they are and what they cost I am thinking about getting a few more slightly smaller ones for my 55 and 60 gallon tanks. But here is my reason for commenting it turns out that these are the same exact filter as the aquatop brand which you can get at either petco or petsmart...I am sorry I can't remember which one it is. They are more expensive there though, and it turns out the main reason for this besides possibly retailer mark up as that the aquatop ones actually have a UL rating whereas sensen and other clones do not. Which only matters if something goes seriously wrong for insurance reasons. I learned these things from another video I watched put out by Trafish aquatics here on youtube, another really good smaller channel you might want to check out some time.
I've got a 304 b sun sun with the uv I've had for 3 years and it's outlast the expensive just you buy from petsmart
Those trays look like they have plenty of room for whatever media you want to use 👍
I just bought a Polar Aurora 3-Stage External Aquarium Filter 265GPH. I can't seem to get the water flow thru the intake green hose. I tried pumping the prime button but it does not pull the water into canister. any idea why?
What type of carpeting plant do you have ?
Great video, how’s it going now? New subscriber from Australia 🇦🇺❤️
Dude,may I know where did you get the aquarium stand? Thx
Reliability is the main issue with these units. It's well known online that they are very prone to leaking after the 1 year mark. Some people may get lucky and have them last longer without issue, but there's enough people reporting on it that it's real. As someone who had this filter leak all over hardwood flooring (thank god it wasn't carpet at least) I do not regret switching to a top brand and paying extra for build quality, reliability and a larger warranty.
I have run 2 of these on my 350 litre tank for 9 years with no major leaks (so far).
The quality of plastic and clips is not the best but I only service mine every 6 months. I use cheap pre filters which I service weekly to capture the majority of junk.
When I do service filter I rarely use primer preferring to fill canister to brim then put lid back on. I have spare O rings, PTFE tape and silicone lube (or vaseline).
9 years later all good.
@@tropicaltanklover2160 Yes, I support this too. I have several of these (as well as other expensive brands). I have replaced the O-ring and the UV light on the larger units - but I also replace items on my Fluval too.
Where can I find that dresser at?
I've had this filter, it didn't last more than a year. The seal broke, motor and uv light got flooded. It's terrible.
I think marketers try to make us think we need a bunch of non-sense. Now I can see why there are so many DIY filter systems. We should think first what our aquatics need, then look at systems. Minimalist makes sense.
What a great deal, but they're more expensive now.
holllyyy shit did that price go up, i just checked it out on amazon and it's all gone up to at least 100-150$ ahh
Interesting. The cheapest canister filter with me is the Eheim classic 250 (50€). Works for decades. Sunsun costs here 87€.
I just know the prices as I need a spare canister filter.
Why do you have a black eye
Hi, isn't this filter too loud ? I've heard it's not very silent
It's usually only loud if it hasn't been reassembled properly after a water change
@@porcu12345 I have several of these. Some are louder than others. Its weird. But yes, letting the air work itself out tends to help with the noise.
seriously thank you for this video lol 😆saved my wallet
Great reviews. I'm sure the Chinese can make it as fancy if they unnecessary add in a few hundreds bucks more
I got the same one, and mine been running forever
Lol when I was looking at canister filters I was thinking "there's no way this is some secret or hidden technology..."
It's simple to engineer these things
what's that air stone?
@Rudy Briskar i want to know the brand
U never put the bio media to your canister filter 😅
Is it ul rated? Will it leak over time? Not worth my gamble! No flooding!!
I agree with this comment! Mr. TryItAcqutics I have heard that home insurance won't cover any potential damage caused by a device that is not UL rated. Is this true? I think it's worth it to pay a few more bucks and not risk burning or flooding your house. However, if I am mistaken I take it back and would actually buy one. Please set us straight. Thank you for your time and channel, sub'd and liked!
@@MsLila44 These are not UL rated, and i would suggest avoiding these.
@@73Mooner appreciate the advice! I went with the 207 Fluval. It’s 👏!
Cost $90 now
Now it's 80 bucks
🤔These filters wouldn’t be such garbage if they had at least the build quality of a Fluval. 👎🏽 I have purchased 8 of these filters and I’m now down to 1 HW-304B model left. That’s within 3 years mind you. The best thing about these filters are the green tubes and the motor. Although the green tubes should be smoke or black. The UV light will destroy the baskets. The lamp ( glass that covers the light ) UV light will leak and rust the light. And worst of all the latch on the intake/return will easily snap then the filter has to be scrapped.
I do actually like these filters and if you do your part they will last a few years if you only clean it every 6 months and don’t tip the filter to empty out the air bubbles.
Also, there’s six different companies marketing the same filter under different names ( SunSun, all ponds solutions, polar Aurora, ffxtw, flexzion and aquatop.
The point in this hobby is just like when you buy a car, not only for your use but to show off to yr friends how well you are in lifestyle, got me????
LOL
You didnt have a hard time cause you can read Chinese 😉😂
Everyone, by careful with these filters!
They are not UL rated! If they were to cause a fire, your home insurance MAY not cover any damages caused by the fire
Excellent review.
You didnt have a hard time cause you can read Chinese 😉😂