Eheim Classic External Canister Filter 2215 Review – I am old, not obsolete

Eheim is one of the leading brands in manufacturing fish tank equipment and accessories. Their classic external canister filter series are very popular among fish keeping hobbyists due to simplicity of design, tried & tested for a long time, excellent quality and economically priced. I am using Eheim Classic External Canister Filter 2215 for my 50 US gallons goldfish tank. I love it and I am going to tell you why…

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An overview of the product

  • Product: Eheim Classic External Canister Filter 2215 (Classic 350)
  • Product Dimension: Height: 14.6 inches, Diameter: 7.3 inches
  • Power (50Hz): 15 watt
  • Capacity: Suitable for fish tank up to 92 US gallons
  • Included:
    Spray bar, inlet pipe, hose, valves and installation accessories
    Filter pads and loose filter media (EHEIM Mech & Substrat Pro)

Eheim Classic External Canister Filter 2215 (Classic 350) is in the middle range of the classic filters series. Although the design of these filters hasn’t change since they were released long time ago (thus the term “classic”), they are still around and selling well. I guess that happens when you have a well designed and high quality product which stands the test of time.

My hunt for a perfect filter

When I started my 50 US gallons goldfish tank a few years ago, I have the following requirements for a filter:

  • A filter with high capacity to handle bigger tanks.
    Goldfish produce high bio load, so I need a “strong” filter.
  • A filter that can be hidden from view.
    I want to admire my fish and the layout, not the filter.
  • A filter that is so quiet that I don’t even know it is there.
    Water sound is soothing but mechanical sound is not!
  • A filter that is capable of doing mechanical, biological and chemical types of filtration.
    These filtration help tremendously in keeping a clean and safe home for my goldfish.

After doing my research and also considering the money I was willing to spend, a canister filter would be perfect for my goldfish tank. I guess it’s a no brainer now to know that I chose Eheim Classic External Canister Filter 2215.

Okay, that’s a mouthful for a product name. For the rest of this post, let’s refer to it as “Eheim Canister Filter 2215”, shall we?

Why Eheim Canister Filter 2215?

Well it’s from Eheim, a brand which is very popular in the fish keeping equipment and accessories business. The brand name itself and the reviews that I have read gave me the confidence on the quality of its products.

Eheim Canister Filter 2215 was my choice because:

  • It remains relevant even after so many years.
  • It satisfied all my requirements for a filter.
  • It’s within the price range which I was willing to fork out.

Look at this diagram on what go into this filter.

Eheim Canister Filter 2215

Look at all the filter media that you can fit into it! In case you are wondering why I got so excited over this is because more filter media means better filtration. The filter media included are capable of doing all the 3 types of water filtration – mechanical, biological and chemical.

You can also replace or add on your own preferred media as well. It is that flexible! I replaced the activated carbon pad with Seachem Purigen 100ml in mine.

2 years later and am I still crazy about it?

Look at a view of my goldfish tank. Does this tell you anything?

My Goldfish Tank

Okay okay… I know this is not like the most beautiful goldfish tank out there but I really love it. I could just stare at it the whole day…ahhhh…

Anyway coming back, weekly fish tank maintenance and my Eheim Canister Filter 2215 play a huge part in keeping my goldfish alive and the tank looking this way.

Don’t get me wrong though… the filter doesn’t need maintenance every week. I only maintain the filter every 2-3 months. The weekly fish tank maintenance that I mentioned above are like partial water changes, fish tank glass cleaning, rocks scrubbing etc.

So yes, even after 2 year I am still in love with my Eheim Canister Filter 2215 although it is not without its flaws. It is not cheap, but for me it is money well spent!

The Pros and Cons

Pros

  • Reputable brand and good quality. It is still functioning as when I got it 2 years ago.
  • Support the 3 types of water filtration. The filter media for these are already included with the filter.
  • Flexible in the sense that you can easily replace or add-on your own preferred filter media. No, please don’t go and try to bend it!
  • Very quiet … really no sound … really …
  • Less frequent filter maintenance depending on the condition of your fish tank. I only do it every 2-3 months for mine.

Cons

  • Not cheap
  • The set up manual is not to die for. You will have better luck looking it up on Youtube.
  • Priming the filter can be a challenge. You may need to suck on the outlet hose to get it going. However I have this trick that seems to work every time. Please refer * below.
  • When it comes to filter maintenance, there is a lot to do such as cleaning the spray bar, inlet pipe, hose, valves, the canister, the filter media etc. So yes.. a lot of work!
  • After a while, the connections between the hoses and valves may get loose and water would drip. I use water sealing tapes to rectify this problem.

* Trick on priming the canister filter:

Step 1: Fill the inlet and outlet hoses that are connected to the inlet pipe and spray bar with water while the valves are closed. With the water retained in them, install them to the tank.

Step 2: With the inlet valve of your canister closed, fill up the canister with tank water. Then fit the pump head (with the outlet valve opened) onto the canister. Some water from the canister will flow out from the pump head’s outlet valve. Once fitted, close the pump head’s outlet valve.

Step 3: With all the inlet and outlet valves still closed, connect your canister filter with the inlet pipe and spray bar hoses.

Step 4: Turn on the canister filter and open all the valves. That should do it!

Eheim Canister Filter 2215
My Eheim Canister Filter 2215

My 2 cents

I don’t think there will ever be a perfect filter. There are many new filters out there with additional functions added in, and perhaps you’ll get impressed by looking at what this or that can do. However, are they really necessary? Is there any repercussion of having these functions in your fish tank? What kind of price tag do they come with?

Eheim Canister Filter 2215

For me, I like it simple. I want a filter which is focused on what a filter is supposed to do and doing a darn good job at it. I want a filter that is reliable and stand the test of time. To me, Eheim Canister Filter 2215 is that filter. It is not perfect, but it is good enough to keep me and my goldfish happy.

For that I am giving it a Rating of 9.5 out of 10.

I remember a scene in Terminator Genisys movie where Arnold Schwarzenegger said, “I am old, not obsolete”. This certainly applies to Eheim Classic External Canister Filter 2215!

==> Click Here to buy Eheim Canister Filter 2215 <==

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14 Replies to “Eheim Classic External Canister Filter 2215 Review – I am old, not obsolete

  1. I am glad you love your filter and that you have found one that works. When it comes to a fish tank every one has their favorites whether it is the size of the tank, the fish or the instruments that run the tank. Thank you for share your knowledge on the Eheim Canister Filter 2215.

  2. Wow, this filter must be really good, because in that picture the water looks crystal clear. I will definitely have to try it out, my current filter isn’t that great anyways. Thanks for sharing I found the post to be helpful.

  3. It is good that it can do mechanical, biological and chemical types of filtration. I actually saw many great feedbacks for its filtration and it is the most important thing for me. Because of a bad filter my cosine’s fish died. So I am extremely careful about that.

    1. Hi Furkan,
      Yeah.. a good filter does make a big difference to your fish keeping experience. Sorry to hear about your cousin’s fish. Hope he has already chosen a suitable filter for his fish tank.

  4. Great review. I am looking to buy some fish for my children and I will definitely look into the eheim filter. From the sound of things it looks like a great filter!

    Thanks

  5. Hi Alex, great one here. I’ve always known that one important factor in aquariums is the filter. By sharing this, it gave us a well-trusted brand and opinion on what is the best in the market now. Thanks for this. Very helpful =)

  6. Hi there, I recently purchased and installed the eheim classic 250 for my 38 gallon and I wonder if the flow is too strong for my fish? It’s practically silent which is amazing and I have the spray bar under the water, what do you think? Is the flow slower when not using the spray bar? And can you adjust the flow. My fish aren’t flying around the tank ridiculously but the smaller of my three goldfish seems to be having a little trouble and I don’t want to cause him stress….

    1. Hi Alexandra,
      I had the similar situation when I first set up my filter in my goldfish tank too. Gradually when “stuff” accumulates in the filter, you will see the water flow slow down.

      Anyway for now, you can try these few methods to slow down the flow:
      1) Make the holes on the spray bar bigger. Bigger the holes, lesser the pressure of water rushing out.
      2) Point the spray bar towards the tank decorations such as rocks. This will sort of break out the flow.
      3) Position the spray bar at the surface of the water. This will create some water sound though, which can be soothing to some, but irritating to others. Lol.

      If you decide to try these methods, please come back and let me know how they work out for you. If you discovered a better way to do this, please share. 🙂

  7. Hi Alex, what do you think of adding pre-filter canister loaded only with sponge before the main filter?

    I’m planning this for my 50 gallon tank because people say goldfish has lots of waste so that you will have to clean the filter quiet often. By having pre-filter I thought we’ll have 2 benefit: First, we can have lots of bio media/good bacteria in the main filter which will reducing ammonia/nitrite more effective. Second, we only have to clean the pre-filter sponge regularly without disturbing the main filter too often, so it will reduce the possibility of damage to the main filter.

    I also read that by adding more filter/media will also reduce the filter flow rate, but I have Eheim 2217 which quiet powerful for the size of my tank.

    Any thought?

    1. Hi Agus,
      I think this is a brilliant idea. You get more filtration for the tank and less maintenance. Try it out and let me know how it went, ok?

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