SunSunTech'n'Toy HW-602B 106 GPH 3-Stage External Canister Filter

I always wait a while before I write a product review. I love this little filter, and it fits my needs perfectly. I purchased this little filter as an add on to my 25gal on September 13, 2016. My tank is a bit over stocked, so I needed the extra bio filtration. Let me tell you this is the little engine that coiuld. The sponges are perfect for bio filtration, and there is room to add any extra filtration you want. I cut my filters out of bulk material, so I have added a felt polishing pad, and at different times I have also added, crushed coral ( to help rais the KH). I now have a bag of Purigen at the bottom to help absorb any extra bio-contaminants that the sponge filters might have mised.At one time I thought it was leaking around the lid, but it turned out that I had not seated the O-ring correctly, and after fixing that everything is fine.Pros:1: It's a small, inexpensive filter that works great, most filters are overpriced in my opinion. It has been an excellent add-on filter. If you need just a little extra help on a larger tank, this filter would work perfectly. You can also use it as a pre-filter.2: It's quiet, not as quiet as my EHEIM, but unless the small engine is resting directly against something I can't hear it.3: There is plenty of room to add and customize it for specific filtration needs.4: It would be a great primary filter for a tank of 20gal or less.5: Again, it's inexpensive!Cons/things I think need improvement:1: The little metal clips that hold the top on fall off every time I clean it. If you loose those things, you may end up having to buy a whole new filter.2: The sharp angles of the intake and outlet make them tough to clean.3: The connections are kinda cheap so make sure the are secure every time you do maintenance ( I do this with all my filters, so it's no bigy), don't over tighten them or be too harsh, you may end up breaking them.Minor detail: The intake screen is too large to put a premade prefilter on, and you have to custom make one,Advice: This filter operates in the opposite direction as most filters. The intake is at the top, not the bottom so if you hook it up and it is not working that should be the first thing you check. I still get the hoses mixed up sometimes when I disconnect them for cleaning. Get some food safe silicone grease and put it on the o-ring it will help extend the life of the ring and keep the seal tight.As with any filter you buy you should keep it in a bucket for at least two weeks in case of leeks. I do this with all my filters. Like it or not most filters are made in China now, and quality control can be hit or miss

The media could not be loaded. So far so good. This canister filter is very quiet if you don’t restrict the flow with the adjuster on the out line. That causes a water gurgling noise which is why I only gave it four stars.The setup was really easy. I also got a 10mm glass lily spin pipe and intake pipe and a couple of reducers to have smaller hoses. This is for a nano tank and the 13mm lily spin pipes are just too big.This works perfectly well with the other equipment. It’s a basic canister filter but so far works fine. It does only come with three sponges inside. I took two out, used the medium course sponge and added some Purigen and BioHome Ultra Mini to get polished water and have some biological media.It’s a small canister perfect for nano tanks. I’m running it on a rimless 7 gallon Landen Cube. I always over filter and I think the 106 gallons per hour is a little inflated which is a good thing since it’s for a nano cube.I included a video of it running so you can see it’s very quiet. It’s a solid canister filter for the money and you can’t beat that.

This little canister (and it is small, check the dimensions before purchase so you know what you are getting) is very nice. There is a slightly larger model, it is a couple extra inches of canister dimensions, the pump wattage and GPH is identical. For constant use as a main tank filter, the larger size might be worth considering.I have three of these, and use them mainly as supplemental filters and water pumps for both removing and adding water to numerous smaller tanks. They are very easy to break down and reassemble, a major plus with any canister, and the seal is tight and secure- they seem very unlikely to develop leaks. They are not difficult to prime, come with a nice length of green tint clear tubing, three sponges of graduated pore size, and a fine floss pad. There is a little room above and below the mechanical media for additional media, though to maintain full flow and insure no debris enters the water pump I would not put anything in the space at the bottom. Chemical media (such as carbon) can be sandwiched between two sponges (by leaving one sponge out) if it's needed.This really has only a couple extremely minor "flaws" which are too trivial to deduct any stars over. One of the four latches that locks down the lid is positioned behind the pump, making it a little awkward and inconvenient, and even when filled it is still quite lightweight and easily moves around or tips over, so a base of some kind would have been helpful.They do not push out water at high levels, it has a very moderate flow which is actually preferable and more conducive to maintaining a good bio-filter, which is what canisters excel at. For creating current and mechanical filtration, power filters are simply better.I've had no problems with any of them so far. If the 6 watt water pump ever fails, it looks to be easily replaced. The sponges will last indefinitely and additional floss pads can be cut from whatever media you like.This is a nice little canister filter.

It worked great for the month and a half we used it then the pump decided to die. There was no visible issues anywhere on the pump. It was being used on a guppy 30 gallon tank with a light fish load. Too expensive to purchase again not knowing if it will last or not.