Canister filter above water level. Can it be done?

bela · June 23, 2023

I guess the answer is no but ...

For personal reasons I cannot install any external filtration in my tanks. I run them with Ugf but I want to polish the water a little bit. And i do not like internal filters or HOB. So i thought maybe there is a canister that i can put on top of the glass top of the tank. Ugly as hell but it would hopefully be a temporary measure.

Would it work or no, by pure design?

You may say that it is still an external filter, but the key point is that if it breaks or leaks, the water would fall back into the tank

Edited June 23, 2023 by bela

Galabar · June 23, 2023

That might be a lot of weight to put on a glass top. You could run a powerhead in the tank, pumping water to an external filter. However, again, at 8 pounds/gallon, I'm not sure it would be safe to put on the glass top of your tank...

Now, if you built a stand for the two tanks with separate shelves, you could pump water up to the top tank and have the overflow for the top tank go back down to the bottom tank...

For polishing, I would recommend first (if you aren't already doing this), using a powerhead instead of an air pump for the UGF. That will pull more into the gravel and may be enough to polish your water. If that isn't enough, get a Sicce Shark ADV (400 or 600) and fill it will filter floss. That will do a fine job polishing your water (you mentioned you don't like internal filters, but the Sicce is fairly inconspicuous).

Edited June 23, 2023 by Galabar

anewbie · June 24, 2023

Most canister fillters require gravity to feed the water and putting them at tank level or above will put a lot of strain on the motor if they function at all. zoo med has a filter that I think will work at tank level but not sure it will work above tank level. Sponge fitlers or matten filters might work (depending on your 'personal reasons'). I'm a fan of matten filters and will use them on anything below 100 gallons. A matten filter is just a large sponge filter.

nabokovfan87 · June 24, 2023

11 hours ago, bela said:

For personal reasons I cannot install any external filtration in my tanks. I run them with Ugf but I want to polish the water a little bit. And i do not like internal filters or HOB. So i thought maybe there is a canister that i can put on top of the glass top of the tank. Ugly as hell but it would hopefully be a temporary measure.

There is a variety of methods but it depends on what you intend.

If you just want polishing, go get a marineland magnum filter with the fine polishing cartridge.

If you specifically just want something like a HoB but not a HoB you can install something like a shower filter above the tank. That pours onto some filter floss / polyfil and then that drains back into the tank. You'd simply use a little add on pump (like for a fountain) and then that would feed into the reservoir you have to hold the filter floss.

You can find videos of people doing this with a fluval (or marina) hang on breeder box. You can also mod something like a planter box to work. There's a lot of different methods.

As others have mentioned, I would not put the filter on top of a glass lid. They aren't made to work like that and will break extremely easily. Something like a hang on canister filter might work. There's a ton of different items and methods out there.