Penn-Plax Cascade 300 Power Filter – Hang-On Filter with Quad Filtration – Great for Freshwater and Saltwater Setups

Finally able to keep a clean tank!

I first was looking at the Tidal 110 but decided in this one because it was more in my budget range. I already have several canister filters on my 150 gallon tank but needed something that I could put carbon in to get that extra little bit I needed for my tank to be clear. I think the one thing that stands out about this filter is that there's no way for my eels to swim up into the filter to escape the tank. Most other HOB filters don't do that. The water output is hard to see a difference whole turning the adjustment tho. It's hard to turn amd I don't see any difference in the flow. Other than that one useless feature, I'm happy with my purchase

Bought for my mother's 70 gallon tank. After a day the water looked clean and clear.

After reading the instructions, installing everything as instructed, I filled it with water and put the plug in and nothing happened. I emptied the water and took the filter off the tank. I was very disappointed it didn't work right out of the box. It appeared the impeller and shaft wasn't seated properly and there's a lot of play in it even when it is seated properly. So I fiddled with the impeller and shaft, got it to seat properly, tested it in the sink, and then put it back on the tank, filled it with water, and it worked. So, hopefully people will read this review prior to installing the pump and make sure the impeller and shaft are properly seated and working prior to filling it with water and putting it on the tank. Otherwise they will be unhappy like I was having to empty the water and fiddling around with it to get it to work after it was already installed. It seems to work well and has good flow and is very quiet.Update: Filter has been performing well and I cleaned it for the first time. It is much easier to clean than my Aquaclear 110's. It isn't quite as powerful, but much easier to handle and keeps my 38 gallon tank very clear. I don't think I would use it on my big tank though because it doesn't have quite the power and flow that the 110's have. Good alternative if you want to save yourself time and trouble cleaning the Aquaclears.

Arrived completely cracked. I was very disappointed. It was in bubble wrap and if it still cracked that easy, I’m thinking I probably won’t get another one considering the other reviews! Returning it tomorrow! So disappointed.

The media could not be loaded. I bought three one for my 20 gallon and two for my 55 gallon, they're very quiet they've got good water flow and for the price you can't beat it

I have over 35 years in this hobby and a fishroom with 34 tanks. I say that because I've tried most everything in this hobby over the years and am super impressed with this unit. It is virtually silent, as the waterfall bio system eliminates any splash from the overflow. It is not as versatile as the Seachem Tidal, as it uses cartridges instead of Seachems basket design, but dollar for dollar the Cascade is a great unit at about 30% less cost than Seachem. The Cascade is well made, has a large syrface are on the filter cartridge, and uses the dual cartridge approach of Marineland, but with a better quality cartridge. I also like that i will be able to save the mechanical filter cartridge frame to use my own filter floss DIY. When running a lot of tasks, that is a huge money saver. I will definitely buy this unit again for future set ups. I would use it solo up to 75 gallons, maybe even 125 gallons if live plants and stocked with smaller tetras, etc..

not deep enough to reach the bottom of my tank even with the extension tube. and it's KINDA NOISY!!!!