Penn Plax Cascade 400 Submersible Aquarium Filter Cleans Up to 20 Gallon Fish Tank With Physical, Chemical, and Biological Filtration, CIF2

Let's start this very simple.This is a top tier filter for 40 dollars ,heck, I'd pay 60 on a bad day. Out of the box it is quiet and effective. Very easy to clean once it's disassembled.After 5 years: it opens easier for sure.I've recommended this filter to everyone I know. I came back to this page to purchase two new ones. Not because my original quit functioning but because it's a little loud after being in a sand/silt bottom tank for 5 years. I will retire this one to my plant tank as it is still a great filter but would be horribly loud for a pet to live next to.More details about it's life:I've abused this filter. It's been overloaded, underwatered, at one point my tank cracked and it ran dry for 3 days while I was on vacation. (one year in) I only ran the carbon portion for about a year, it was extremely difficult to open and refill. Happy to say the filter works great without it. The internal construction is simple and easy to clean making upkeep a dream, just pop the head off and fill your sink with water. Turn the filter on and swish it around.At one point I used the top portion as a pump to do water changes. Just fit some clear tubing on and into a bucket. It is very versatile even in ways it wasn't meant to be.This filter has had a long long life and has proven to be probably the most durable thing I've ever bought. Happy retirement little guy.

The media could not be loaded. Today is the 1st day up and running, and not sure yet if I can give it 5 stars, but a solid 4. As can see in the video, I ditched the charcoal and added bio rocks in that compartment. It popped open, but not disturbing anything so leaving it alone until I have to go back in. I ordered some Seachem Purigen and will have to alter the bag to make it fit somewhere in there on the sponge side to really clear the water. It's a tight squeeze in the foam cavity to add much of anything without impeding the flow of the filter, unless you decide to cut the foam and add layers of what you like. (maybe a future plan) and can always stack it back if do not like it.So far I really like that it is super silent compared to my HOB filter. My plan was to run 2 together to get this going and seed it, but the HOB bit the dust and became really loud, so unfortunately, I am hoping this cycles fast with Safe Start and also ordered some Seachem Stability (should be in next week). I rinsed my old sponge filters in the tank from the HOB, and have to say was not impressed as it took hours and hours to clear the tank, and still some stuff floating around (that was yesterday). Not as effective as the HOB suction wise, but I think because it's too new and the bacteria are not established to help filter the water, the stuff is just blowing through the pores of the sponge, as not multi layered. I am not seeing much of anything actually being sucked into the filter, but it must be because the outflow is really strong.I am running this on a 29 gallon tall flat back hex. The setting is set just above slow to get some air bubble going, and is really strong. I wish the attachment was a bit taller as when you adjust, it likes to come off easily. I tried the spray bar, and although was nice, if not adjust properly you will get a shower and will go all over. The floor got a nice cleaning today :). I since went back to this attachment to control the flow. My angel likes to swim in the current as with the guppies, but is okay and not fighting it too much, just enough to play in.So that is my review. I will update it in a few weeks to see if I like it more or less. So far I am glad I got it...It is now a few weeks later and upgrading my rating to 5 stars! Once it got going and established, it works fantastic! I will never go back to a HOB filter again. Does a great job, very pleased, use in conjunction with a sponge filter knocked my nitrates down to 20 ppm. LOVE IT!

I had originally purchased this for a nano tank and was impressed with how much water it was able to move. It was able to clear up my tank very quickly, and was fairly quiet overall. The filter has a small venturi port at the top and comes with an attachment to extend the port opening to be above the water line. Taking the filter apart to change out the sponge was easy and it has an adjustable flow lever on the side of the unit that allows you to adjust the flow to your needs.Although the filter was very impressive for the price and size, it does not come without its negatives.1) Though not necessarily a negative as this is relative to the size of your tank, the filter is powerful - much too powerful for my smaller nano tank that was 2.5 gallons, even on the lowest flow setting! I would recommend this filter for tanks of 4-10 gallons or long tanks where the flow has more distance to disperse.2) The suction cups on the unit are very weak. I found myself having to stick the filter on the glass again ever 3-4 days as it would constantly lose suction to the glass.3) The venturi port, though nice, was inconsistent for me. As you get obstructions in the outflow, the venturi effect eventually stopped and instead of drawing air in, it started to spit water out the top. You have to be careful with the placement of the air hose in this case as to make sure that if this does happen, the water will not spray out onto your floors. I opted instead to just not use the port for air and added an airstone instead.Overall, I think this Penn-Plax filter is great for the price. It has a very powerful pump that moves plenty of water, and effectively filters the water. There are issues with things like the suction cup mount constantly losing suction to the glass or the venturi air tube having the opposite effect and spraying water out instead of intaking air. If you don't mind just having the filter hang by the power cord or opt not to use the venturi air tube, these aren't really issues. Just make sure to have a large enough tank to contain all that power!