# Rena Xp3



## Brian762 (May 18, 2010)

I have a 55gal with 2 natts. my ac110 bit the dust already. i couldnt wait for the new motor to come so i went out and bought a new Rena XP3. i have heard good and bad about these filters. My LFS did not have an Eheim 2217, all they had were the Ecco 2236 i think only rated at 145 GPH. I want peoples honest opinons on the XP3 please! thanks i am about to set it up now! hope its easy!


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## JoeDizzleMPLS (Nov 5, 2007)

Definitely a good filter, I prefer the Eheim 2217 due to the fact that media is included, but both are great filters.


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

JoeDizzleMPLS said:


> Definitely a good filter, I prefer the Eheim 2217 due to the fact that media is included, but both are great filters.


 Agreed. I have both, Both are good filters though i prefer the eheim.


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## Brian762 (May 18, 2010)

the rena came with bio stars and i am using my bio rings from my ac110


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## AKSkirmish (Jun 24, 2005)

CLUSTER ONE said:


> Definitely a good filter, I prefer the Eheim 2217 due to the fact that media is included, but both are great filters.


 Agreed. I have both, Both are good filters though i prefer the eheim.
[/quote]

I have hated every eheim I have ever bought...I do like me rena's though...


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

AKSkirmish said:


> Definitely a good filter, I prefer the Eheim 2217 due to the fact that media is included, but both are great filters.


 Agreed. I have both, Both are good filters though i prefer the eheim.
[/quote]

I have hated every eheim I have ever bought...I do like me rena's though...
[/quote]
Really? My 2217 runs great and is silent as can be where after a few years my xp3 has a humm to it (though the xp3 is about a year older). To me I find eheim to be more quality then the more seemingly mass produced xp3. The xp3 would be 10x better if it didn't have that hideous blue intake. I understand they want to colour code it for easy setup but id rather spend an extra 10 minutes fiddling around with some black parts then to have those ugly blue intakes visible just to save a minute in setting up, Its not a complicated setup so you don't even really need an intruction book so colour coding seems unnessisary.

I do liek that rena has seperate baskets to seperate media but I also like how eheim cannister is filled with media so there are no baskets taking up potential space for media. i think eheim could of done better on their output though and i would of liked a plastic molded spray bar and not just flexible tubing attaching a couple hard pieces


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## Brian762 (May 18, 2010)

Has anybody had any problems with sand getting into their cannisters? i have lost 2 HOB filters because sand was sucked in to the impeller.


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## AKSkirmish (Jun 24, 2005)

CLUSTER ONE said:


> Definitely a good filter, I prefer the Eheim 2217 due to the fact that media is included, but both are great filters.


 Agreed. I have both, Both are good filters though i prefer the eheim.
[/quote]

I have hated every eheim I have ever bought...I do like me rena's though...
[/quote]
Really? My 2217 runs great and is silent as can be where after a few years my xp3 has a humm to it (though the xp3 is about a year older). To me I find eheim to be more quality then the more seemingly mass produced xp3. The xp3 would be 10x better if it didn't have that hideous blue intake. I understand they want to colour code it for easy setup but id rather spend an extra 10 minutes fiddling around with some black parts then to have those ugly blue intakes visible just to save a minute in setting up, Its not a complicated setup so you don't even really need an intruction book so colour coding seems unnessisary.

I do liek that rena has seperate baskets to seperate media but I also like how eheim cannister is filled with media so there are no baskets taking up potential space for media. i think eheim could of done better on their output though and i would of liked a plastic molded spray bar and not just flexible tubing attaching a couple hard pieces
[/quote]

I have busted three canisters just getting the hoses on...never had a problem with rena nor fluval in that dept........Never actually gotten to test the quality of the filter.....lol


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## e46markus (Dec 9, 2010)

I'm also slightly curious about this topic, it seems the more reviews i read the more I change my decision on which canister filter i'll actually purchase. The only reason I'm leaning towards Eheim is because I'm finding less and less negative reviews about them. I know theres no perfect product; yet I'd rather purchase one knowing less people have had problems with them then other models/brands.


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## maknwar (Jul 16, 2007)

I dont think I will ever by another rena xp filter. My xp3 has been nothing but a pain. Its hard to prime, and the hoses purely suck. Not to mention, I could never hardly get the hoses onto the filter itself. My eheims were so easy to setup, in fact, I have 3 and they all were super easy to use. I have a fluval fx5, and I like that. It makes me want to try their 405 or 305 models. I have heard good things about them.


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## Sacrifice (Sep 24, 2006)

I've been running an XP3 for about 3 years now without a single problem. I've never had any trouble with priming or the hoses. Only thing I recommend is painting the intake black instead of leaving it that funky baby blue


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## Inflade (Mar 24, 2006)

all my canisters are xps aside from my fx5.

Rena are the Bomb, only downside is that they didnt come with media, but defiantly a kick as canister, and easy to maintenance too!


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## Piranha Dan (Nov 11, 2007)

Awesome filter. Huge media capacity, virtually maintenance free and easy to setup. The XP's do have a low flow rate compared to to other cannisters but it doesn't seem to harm their ability to handle huge bio-loads. 
I've owned an XP4 for about 3 years now, at one point it was handling the bio-load of 6 full grown Natts and an 8" Pleco, I only have to clean it every 4-6 months, and except for one recent issue where I had to replace the impeller assembly it's been trouble free (see this thread: http://www.piranha-fury.com/pfury/index.php?/topic/195965-interesting-xp4-factoid/ ).


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

Brian762 said:


> Has anybody had any problems with sand getting into their cannisters? i have lost 2 HOB filters because sand was sucked in to the impeller.


Ive gotten limited sand in my cannisters but it doesnt get to the motor with all hte media in the way to filter it out.


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## Brian762 (May 18, 2010)

maknwar said:


> I dont think I will ever by another rena xp filter. My xp3 has been nothing but a pain. Its hard to prime, and the hoses purely suck. Not to mention, I could never hardly get the hoses onto the filter itself. My eheims were so easy to setup, in fact, I have 3 and they all were super easy to use. I have a fluval fx5, and I like that. It makes me want to try their 405 or 305 models. I have heard good things about them.


the hoses are hard as







to get on, but the priming was easy!

are the bio rings supposed to be packed in there tight or fairly loose? Why are people saying that they dont come with media??? mine came with carbon, sponges, and bio stars. granted i think there were a total of 10 bio stars, but it came with some. I just used my bio rings from my AC110 so there is some BB in there.


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## AKSkirmish (Jun 24, 2005)

Brian762 said:


> I dont think I will ever by another rena xp filter. My xp3 has been nothing but a pain. Its hard to prime, and the hoses purely suck. Not to mention, I could never hardly get the hoses onto the filter itself. My eheims were so easy to setup, in fact, I have 3 and they all were super easy to use. I have a fluval fx5, and I like that. It makes me want to try their 405 or 305 models. I have heard good things about them.


the hoses are hard as







to get on, but the priming was easy!

are the bio rings supposed to be packed in there tight or fairly loose? Why are people saying that they dont come with media??? mine came with carbon, sponges, and bio stars. granted i think there were a total of 10 bio stars, but it came with some. I just used my bio rings from my AC110 so there is some BB in there.
[/quote]

the tighter you pack them the less flow it will have...just have to find the medium that works for you.....


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## Inflade (Mar 24, 2006)

most hoses are tight to get on. a good way to slip them on with ease is to dip them in hot water from your tap. should slide right on with no problem.


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## Brian762 (May 18, 2010)

Inflade said:


> most hoses are tight to get on. a good way to slip them on with ease is to dip them in hot water from your tap. should slide right on with no problem.


Tried that, no luck lol.


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## Inflade (Mar 24, 2006)

wierd.... works every time for me.


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## D.D.Denham (Aug 13, 2007)

...try a little vaseline around the intake/output stems on the filter. Not only will the hosing slide on with ease, you will be able to easily twist/adjust the hosing so your intake/output attachments will fit snuggly against your aquarium...now go try it!!


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

I just pushed it really hard while twisting the tubing to try to somewhat screw in together


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## maknwar (Jul 16, 2007)

Buddy said:


> ...try a little vaseline around the intake/output stems on the filter. Not only will the hosing slide on with ease, you will be able to easily twist/adjust the hosing so your intake/output attachments will fit snuggly against your aquarium...now go try it!!


tops fail.

Also, it took me forever to get the tubing on and its still not all the way on for me. I even tried a hair drier to warm it up. Maybe its just my filter. Never had a problem like that with my eheims.


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## Brian762 (May 18, 2010)

Buddy said:


> ...try a little vaseline around the intake/output stems on the filter. Not only will the hosing slide on with ease, you will be able to easily twist/adjust the hosing so your intake/output attachments will fit snuggly against your aquarium...now go try it!!


tops fail.

Also, it took me forever to get the tubing on and its still not all the way on for me. I even tried a hair drier to warm it up. Maybe its just my filter. Never had a problem like that with my eheims.
[/quote]

Well id rather it be tough so it doesnt leak. other than those bastard hoses, everything was straight forward and easy.


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## Piranha Dan (Nov 11, 2007)

The hoses are VERY difficult to get on, but the postitive side of that is they don't leak (at least mine never have). If you ever have to take them off for some reason be prepared to lose a few inches--you have to slit them with a razor blade.


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