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sirsears

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May 24, 2007
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Hi,

I have just bought my first fish tank, a 20 gallon freshwater tank. I want to buy the proper equipement and was doing research on filters. I have read that the Emperor and Penguin power filters are supposedly the best, but can anyone give any recommendations? I heard the penguin filters could be noisy but are the emperor filters too strong for a 20 gallon tank? Thank you for the help.
 
We used a Penquin 200 on ours, just the right amount of flow, and good filltering........:hi:
 
Do you mean the Emperor 280 or is there a 200 as well? I only saw the 280 or 400. Thanks for the quick reply!
 
I have a really OLD Aquaclear (Hagen) 500 on my 29G - I think it is 6 or 7 years old. Never had a problem with it - other than the media wears out :)

I recommend the Aqua Clear series, cost effective, easy to change media, reusable media. I think it is now the AC 50 (here). I use two sponges and bioballs for filtration for overstocked cichlid tank. Provides enough filtration, but I also have a powerhead for more water movement.

I have heard good things too about the Penguins and Emperors, but no experience with them.

I think a Penguin 175 will be good, but I hate the idea of filter cartidges - bad idea imo. The Emperor 280 will be more than enough too.

Also, think of the fish you are going to put in. Some fish dont like a lot of current, some want all the current they can get. This should influence which filter you get.

Good Luck

Aries
 
I agree that the idea of filter cartridges rubs me the wrong way. That is why i use Aquaclears. But truthfully they all do a fine job, they are all pretty quiet as long as the water level is high enough. I haven''t personally used a biowheel so they may be a bit louder.

A min of the AC 30 for a 20 gallon tank. Over filtering really isn't a problem, fish can deal with current. If you add fake or live plants or decorations the current gets diverted anyway.

I would say aim for a filter that is rated for at least 1.5 times your current tank size. The flows they list most likely don't include any filter media. So err on the side of a little more.
 
Good point, I never thought about what kind of fish I am going to get and what current they like.. Why dont you like the filter cartridges?
 
It sounds like everyone likes the aquaclear, but isnt it better to have the 3 stages of filtration that the Emperor and Penguin have with the bio-wheel?
 
If I am not mistaken Aquarclear's do have 3 stages, the sponge, the carbon, and the bio-pellets (not sure if that is what they are called)
 
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