FILTER comparisons

[Karebear13]

So I am getting a 30 gallon tank. it will house one juvie axolotl. I am trying to get a decent filter. Im thinking the Aquaclear 20 or the biowheel 150 anyone have any input on either or know of another filter that might be better?

[paloverde]

Hi, Aquaclear has not changed much in the last 30 years was good then & is still good now. Bio wheels were the big thing back about 10 yrs ago,the concept is sound but the performance is in my opinion not so great. They have issues with the wheel making a lot of noise, stopping & getting dried out so the bbb dies out. I jumped on the bio wheel band wagon, learned the hard way & went back to my simple trusty Aquaclears.

[Karebear13]

Do you think that the Aquaclear 20 will be sufficient for a 29 gallon tank though I will also have a sponge filter in there too

[SinX7]

I vote for AquaClear. Get at least the AquaClear 30 IMO. Plus that flow adjuster is a big plus! and 3 stage filter!

[paloverde]

Originally Posted by Karebear13

Do you think that the Aquaclear 20 will be sufficient for a 29 gallon tank though I will also have a sponge filter in there too

Just my opinion, but if you are using a internal sponge filter along with a aquaclear 20 that would be quite sufficient. Now if you don't already own that filter and were going to buy it, you just might want to check out the aquaclear 30 as the prior poster has already suggested, the price difference may just a few $.

[Karebear13]

I mean I already have the sponge filter, but I just saw that petco has the 30 for 30 dollars but Petsmart only carries the 20 for 18 dollar so its just a matter of spending ten dollars more... Axolotls are pretty messy and he is currently in a ten gallon that has uncontrollable parameters and Im done dealing with that so Im hoping the Aquaclear will help and since it is adjustable I could use the 30 in the ten gallon right?

[SinX7]

Originally Posted by Karebear13

I mean I already have the sponge filter, but I just saw that petco has the 30 for 30 dollars but Petsmart only carries the 20 for 18 dollar so its just a matter of spending ten dollars more... Axolotls are pretty messy and he is currently in a ten gallon that has uncontrollable parameters and Im done dealing with that so Im hoping the Aquaclear will help and since it is adjustable I could use the 30 in the ten gallon right?

I was also debating if I should get the 20 or 30 (Like you said on that price) and Went for the 30 since I know i'll probably upgrade the tank size later on down the road and I could still use it (20 Gallon max for 30 IMO. I don't want to to under-perform)

Yeah, I have the AquaClear 30 in my tank right now and It does the job really well! No problems, plus I can still use it if I decide to upgrade my tank size down the road. 30 is perfect for 10 Gallon IMO. It does its job!

[Karebear13]

and that is in your betta tank right? ANd the current doesn't bother your betta My axie hates the current

[Karebear13]

Also I was reading some reviews and they said that it is nice because you can fill it with whatever you want. I have plants in my tanks and stuff. Any suggestions on what I can fill it with?

[paloverde]

Well I would not use any carbon because of the plants. I really like seachem matrix, it's just pumice but is an excellent bio media. The ceramic noodles that aquaclear has are also very effective bio media.