Freestanding aquarium filter

A free standing canister-type aquarium filter comprising:

• a base section having a motor carried therein, said motor including a vertically extending shaft;
• a magnet support element secured to the motor shaft, said support element including a cylindrical vertically facing space which is concentric with the shaft;
• a ring-shaped first magnet element carried on the support element, said magnet element containing a plurality of magnetic poles arranged in alternating fashion around the cylindrical space;
• an open-topped container configured to rest upon the base section, said container having a generally planar bottom surface which includes a cylindrical extension which fits into the cylindrical space surrounded by the first magnet element;
• a pump section located within the container, said pump section including an impeller shaft and an impeller rotatably attached thereto which is concentric with the motor shaft, said impeller located in a space directly above the extension in the bottom of the container, said pump section further including a second magnet element which is coupled to the impeller shaft and extends into the extension in the bottom of the container wherein the second magnet element includes a plurality of magnetic poles equal to the number of magnetic poles of the first magnet element and wherein the second magnet element is concentric with the first magnet element and is surrounded thereby, whereby rotation of the first magnet element imparts rotation to the second magnet element and thus the impeller;
• a filter section located within the container, said filter section being in fluid communication with the pump section, said filter section including a filter element through which water must pass before entering the pump section, and
• a cover section having an inlet port coupled to the filter section and an outlet port coupled to the pump section.