The Truth About Oase Biomaster Filters....
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- čas přidán 5. 10. 2023
- Do you think the Oase Biomaster is overhyped via Fishtube sponsorships?
Or, are the pre-filter and internal heater, features that you couldn't live without?
In this video we dive into one of the most popular external aquarium filters on the market, and examine whether the clever marketing of convenience factors can actually be believed.
I personally use an Oase Biomaster 250 Thermo on my 70l Dennerle Nano cube ( • Risky Business: Keepin... ). And whilst I do really like it, I cannot deny that it is very comparible to my much much cheaper Fulval 307 which I bought secondhand 4 years ago for my Mbuna tank.... Was the Oase Biomaster really worth the investment? Only time will tell I guess......
So.......
❓ What are your opinions on this filter that looks like it will be a mainstay for years to come?
❓ Do you think the pre-filter is worthy of all the hype?
❓ Do you experience noisy filter gargling which is often reported (though not experienced by me!) by aquarists?
❓ Are there any other products out there that more overhyped in your opinion?
If after watching this, you want to consider purchasing the Oase Biomaster, head here:
🛒 Amazon US: amzn.to/3tjPevL
🛒 Amazon UK: amzn.to/3F9Zr0u
🛒 Ebay US: ebay.us/rycXvF
🛒 Ebay UK: ebay.us/tn16W7
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Thanks for watching!!!
Things I have bought that I think you will like too:
🛒 Co2 Generator Kits - Ebay US: ebay.us/BEjSvF | Ebay UK: ebay.us/Opa3QG
🛒 Dennerle Nano Cube Tank - Ebay US: ebay.us/UkoQv6 | Ebay UK: ebay.us/ctHSGZ
🛒 Dennerle Scapers Tank - US Ebay: ebay.us/QhAnTD | UK Ebay: ebay.us/jEGRtV
🛒 Aquael Leddy Slim Link - US Ebay: ebay.us/u8tp85 | UK Ebay: ebay.us/1QfNhl
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I never clean my filters either. Maybe once a year at most. I have a Fluval 207 filter on my 20 gallon that I have not opened up since last year, during initial set up. I also got rid of all the various ceramic media and replaced them all with 30 ppi sponges. The output is connected to an unpowered Aquaclear 50 (with the pump removed) that also exclusively uses the aquaclear 50 sponge inserts. It currently has a school of spawning ember tetras with hundreds of neocaridinia shrimp. The input has a pre-filter using size 120 stainless steel mesh that I made on my own.
I'll only open it upto squeeze the sponges once water flow has obviously lessened.
My other tanks have a similar set up and I almost never do 'filter maintenance'. I can count the number of times I squeezed out the sponges in them with the fingers with one hand.
Over filtering + maximizing useable surface area of the filter media + right amount of surface of filter media is a winning combo of almost no filter maintenance.
One helpful tip I picked up is that if your water looks milky/hazy and it is supposed to be a mature tank (i.e. can process ammonia just fine) then you don't have enough surface area on your current filter with your current stock. Once you meet this requirement and achieve crystal clear water, then filter maintenance will plummet to almost 0.
Good to have you back.
Sadly mine often gently leaked, even though I bought new seals. But it worked well in terms of mechanical filtration and was easy to hook up in-line CO2 and it maintained pressure to dissolve CO2 properly. And with coarse sponges the pre-filter is very effective. The in-box heater, like a Juwel tank, leads to a lot of thermostat switching which might shorten the life of the heater-stat.
But, and this is big but, it is at least twice as expensive as comparable alternatives - even factoring in buying a heater-stat. Also, other often much cheaper externals can be had with UV, which I really rate for disease control.
The Juwel internal filters are very effective and not too obtrusive and of course, no leak issues.
As I get older, external canister filters are a bit of a physical bind to detach and carry to the sink, but some folks don't seem to find this too bothersome.
I used an Eheim professionel 4+ 350 and an Oase Biomaster 600T. For my 325 liter super heavily planted, heavily stocked aquarium, the Oase is far the best because I have a lot of small leaf litter that is picked up by the prefilter. I want to be able to clean the prefilter weekly because excess plant waste will cause Black Beard algae. With the Oase this is a 5-minute job, with the Eheim, you need to disassemble the filter which takes 30 minutes. Also, the filter material of the Eheim is extremely hard to clean as plant waste gets stuck in the rough matrix. With the Oase it is just a case of squeezing and rinsing the sponges under the tap (yes tapwater because the biological media sits in the filter). Not having to remove the filter head is a huge timesaver for me.
So, it boils down to whether you want (need) to clean your prefilter often, in case needed, go for the Oase.
Agreed! Great summary!
Well the prefilter big win if you use it for saltwater 😊
I have tried the OASE Biomaster Thermo 600, returned because of constant air purging. Even the newer model OASE 850 also has issues with purging air based on CZcams. If OASE fixed this, I would definitely buy.
I’ve been running a reef tank on a 600 biomaster for 14 months now and I haven’t had any problems like air purging at all.
Little silicone grease on seals, barely enough to even see. No issues going on two years. Runs silently.
In this hobby marketing is a major influence on most products. From lights to filters to products we add to the water. I have 2 eheim external filters. 1 "classic" cheap filter and one from their experience line. And both perform exactly the same. There are just some "convenience-features", but when it comes down to it i clean both about 4 times per year or so, and both take me the same amount of time, despite all the features. I once had a filter running for a whole year and water quality did not decrease in any measureable way. Only the flow rate decreased a bit.
In fact, i once had a small tank with a small filter that was missing the filter medium. Just having the pump in there circulating the water seemed to be enough on a lightly stocked tank. Adding the filter medium later never made any real measurable difference. The substrate is more filter medium anyway. Yet, when on forums or in shops everyone will always advice a filter, and usually a very large one for the water volume as well. "Better safe than sorry". And since it rarely hurts and people have succes with those tanks, those advices will keep echoing around.
This was EXACTLY the sort of conversation I was hoping to provoke. Thanks so much for sharing.
In your opinion, what's the most over hyped product or most wild benefit claim in the hobby??
I always think the marketing of filter media is hilarious / ridiculous!
@@AquariumShed Well i have supspisions based on my own experiences, but those are limited and not enough to say something definitive. 1 thing i never do anymore is "starter bacteria". I have serious doubts if that does anything at all in a tank with plants. I never really notice a difference in "cycle time" using a product like that or not.
@@MolanoZwolle I find it odd that none of my lfs don't just have used media sitting around for the purpose of helping starters out. I would think the profit on this would be great as well, but maybe new fish keepers wouldn't understand the advantage. But agree, very skeptical of the "start bacteria". The other thing I really wonder about is this Anoxic Filtration cat litter thing. Not mentioning names, but I am sure many of you have seen this on CZcams. Great marketing for something I personally don't think works, but why? Does he own stock in kitty litter companies? :)
@@diggydiggs Yeah, used filter medium would work a lot better. The thing is though that it might be difficult to charge for. It's not a cool marketable product, and maybe the risk of diseases plays a part. If the store sells medium they have on their main system and they add fish regularly to it there is always a risk. But it would work a lot better than the starter bacteria.
The cat litter thing I want to try out soon. No experience whatsoever. And if we'd find premium car litter for aquariums in webshops I'd be sceptical, but I'd say that expensive aquarium soils are the thing that is marketed and overpriced for what it is.
@MolanoZwolle Yeah, good point about the aquasoil. You're essentially paying for peace of mind which I totally get. But, so many affordable alternatives. But, on the flipside I have an experiment on the got atm that is not going well at all because the substrate I have tried is far too nutrient heavy.... I'll leave you guessing as to what that is! 🤣 Video out soon! 👍
My eheim pro3 2080 is with me for 15+ years I have no intentions of changing it. Its reliable, sturdy, big volume for filtration and honestly don't need to be cleaned that often. Only thing i wish that it had would be heater but it is really hard to give up on filter that is with me for so long working like precise clock.
I have an Oase Filtrosmart Thermo 200 running on a relatively small shallow aquarium... I love it.
The pre-filter on the other models is not necessary... I have an oversized filter inlet strainer stuffed full of very fine filter media... Once a week I pop the strainer off and replace the media... takes only a minute... job done... easy... and the cost is miniscule (a bulk block of media costs very little and i only need to cut off a small bit each time). And this ensures virtually no large particles enter the filter body itself, so doesn't block up. You can run the filter for well over a year in this manner without needing to open it up and disturb the bacteria.
And this method works with pretty much any external filter: It is a simple pre-filter modification that will work on anything else....
YES!!! I do this on my Mbuna tank with the Fluval 306 and couldn't agree more. So much easier than taking the filter apart. I bulk buy rolls of filter floss for next to nothing. My current bag was purchased over two years ago and is still going strong. Namebrand filter media are another pet hate of mine tbf!
Any photos / explanation / more details pls. I'd love to try it out
I really like the pre-filter feature and if I ever get an Oase I would definitely go for their Thermo version, I really like the idea of not needing to have a heater inside the aquarium :)
Agreed. The Thermo version that I have is great. So many times with my other tanks I've completely forgotten about heater placement until its too late.
I love mine, but I didn't buy it as a combo with the heater included. I actually saved money buying the heater separately. Price out both options, you might save a bit.
@@diggydiggs Yeah the problem is that then you have to have another piece of equipment inside your tank 😕 for me personally the less equipment I see in my tank the better.
@@Sinserg I think @diggydiggs means they upgraded it to a Thermo by buying the heater seperatley amd it worked out cheaper.
I also remember seeing a little hack for the Eden filters where you could buy the Oase heater conversion kit and get a budget Filtosmart. Eden are the company that Oase bought out and basically just repackaged their filters as the Filtosmart range. I'm not sure what the build quality is like on that range tho. Anyone have any experience with them?
@@AquariumShed That is exactly what I meant, poor wording on my part. Love the fact I don't have a heater in the tank using the Oase. It was one of the primary reasons I got it, along with a lot of good reviews errr marketing?
I have one Biomaster... a bit noisy but it really has some good ideas to remove the prefilter or the heater from the tank... and that's all... good plastic quality, no leaks... hype? yes, 'professional youtubers' had made good job. Regards
As far as i know eheim also uses the thermo in it's filters, i got mine with the thermo, and happy with it, it's been running 8 years now and i clean it 2 times a year, with the right ammano shrimps arround the tank and a couple of "cleaners " the filter just stands it very well , i always get bombef by oase marketing in youtube videos, and green aqua also does a fantastic job in subliminal messaging
The best feature the biomaster has is that it has the option for an integrated heater.
Yeah, very good point that they don't make nearly as much of a fuss about.
@@AquariumShedIt is strange they don't. It along with the pre-filter is what sold me. As I mentioned in a different reply here, anyone interested in the thermo, check the price with and without the heater. I added the heater and didn't buy as a combo or all in one. It was less expensive that way and is the exact same equipment.
Eheim has been offering integrated heaters for decades. And these are not just simple and breakable glass heating tubes. Eheim offers stainless steel heating elements specially developed for the filters. They are robust and do not interfere with the maintenance of the filter. Why doesn't any other manufacturer have this? Eheim has patented this.
😮😊
@avronaut Arnt they like twice the price almost like for like though. Eheim used to be quality, but like most things, they are made in China now, and as a company show very little innovation with new products. I've owned 4 of their filters and as many heaters. No real issues with them but they didn't set my pants on fire either. Like most things the cost is in the brand.
What about a 70 gallon with a turtle?
Arent you suppose to clean your filters with aquarium water and not tap water which would kill the beneficial bacteria?
Lots of debate about this. I personally don't worry about the pre filter sponges, but would always clean the internal sponges with aquarium water. I haven't experienced any issues and I know people like George Farmer do the same thing. I think beneficial bacteria loss is actually less than we're led to believe, but also, biological filtration is not the purpose of the pre filter. 👍
Doesn't the prefilter mean that the other sponges are a waste since the gunk is caught by the prefilter especially if using the fine prefilter foam?
Well this is definitely a debate I'm keen to unpick. I think that Oase would claim that the other filters are just for biological filtration more than anything. What do you think?
@@AquariumShedThey could make that argument, but then I would argue that the proportion of space given to biological filtration is too high vs. mechanical filtration.
No. The prefilter's main purpose is to make sure the big stuff doesn't clog up the main filters. The main filter
s job is to be a biological filter, which is the most important thing that a filter does. There is no such thing as having a too high biological filtration as this is the main reason why ypu have a filter in the first place. All of my tanks have 95%++ biological filtration only and I have crystal clear water.
To add to this, my DIY filter in the Shrimple (czcams.com/video/j1-buh5Uyos/video.htmlsi=EkyQGj2yQA8qfqUK) has Zero mechanical filtration and crystal clear water!
@@FA-ft9sqIf Oase's intention was that the filter pads were for biological filtration, then they wouldn't need to provide 2 types with different PPI ratings. I think if they really thought it through, the prefilter would be bigger so it could hold more. There, ideally, would also be at least two layers with one layer catching big items and the next layer for finer particles so you could get clearer-looking water. The biological portion could then be made smaller to keep the overall filter size the same. And yes, you can't have too much biological filtration because the beneficial bacteria will exist in the exact amount that can be fed by the aquarium. If there's more space for BB than is needed, then that space is wasted.
I had a bio master but moved to a fluval 407. It’s a lot quieter, cheaper and the build quality seems better. Oase seem to be upping prices and decreasing quality whilst fluval do the opposite. The filtrosmart series are just rebadged Eden units at double the price!
Interesting!
I defo agree with you about the Filtosmart range. I have steered clear of them on the assumption that they couldn't be all that good if they were a failing company that got bought out, and clearly didn't have any of Oases R&D invested in them.
But, I have to admit that the build quality of the Biomaster compared to my Fluval 306 does seem better. Much more solid plastic, and the clips etc. feel really well designed. That said, I haven't actually had any issues with my Fluval, it's just a perception. Do you think the 7 seres was a noticeable upgrade in quality for Fluval perhaps?
Basically, I think there seems to be very little difference between most big name filters. But I will admit that Oase know how to make a product that looks and feels solid.
Why are you washing your filter media under the tap?
Only the pre filter sponges! 👍
@@AquariumShed Happy days!
If you're not touching on flow rate from the canister as it relates to cleaning/maintenace, than you don't know the proper intervals of maintenance. In other words saying canisters don't need to be cleaned very often, largely depends on the flow rate change affected by how dirty the canister is. All systems (tanks) are different.
Very good point!
Fluval fx4
dude speaks about quietness but music in background and no real example, but after run in they are kind of quiet but cant match ceramic shafts....
That was a decibel meter in the shot.... 👍
I think their over priced, here in NZ a Biomaster 350 costs $550 that's 270 pounds. I think I'll stick with my Aqua One cf1200.
Woah! Yeah, that is definitley overpriced. Tho, to be fair they have gone up a lot here in the UK too. I paid £160 for my Thermo 250 a few years ago, but it would set you back over £200 now I believe. I see no discernable difference between my Fluval (which I bought secondhand!) and my Oase either. Defo stick with what you have if it is still working well.
The wear on the filter media! These talking points are ridiculous. Sponges and bio media will out live us…
🤣I know right. Manufacturer spiel is hilarious, but also insanely misleading. Also, even the (very) limited wear that might possibly occur would be completely dependent on the type of media etc. and certainly wouldn't be something a pre-filter helped with...... My only guess is they actually mean it will get less dirty......
As a hobbyist for many many years i was super happy with the 2217 canister filter, I bought the "professional 4 " canister and I am SO DISAPPOINTED with it!!!!! way over designed and complicated !!! DID NOT DO THE JOB !!!
returned it and bought the 2217 again. stay away from this filter !
Can you please elaborate more as I am planning to get one. Thanks
@@ericflask727 simply said, aquarium water in the canister bypass the filter media, renders this system was useless. i purchased a new system and after 4 months returned it for full refund. now i use my old work horse the eheim 2217 and after 25 years it does a wonderful job. good luck
@@ericflask727 Eheim classic is easy, works well and is cheap. Canister filters have become inkjet printers.
@Vulpes10 Such a good analogy!!
Biomaster is good, but so noisy😢
The video says the opposite :( "Library midnight silent" . Any feedback about noise please ?