# Marineland Penguin 100 Power Filter vs Aquaclear 20



## Arcteryx (Nov 23, 2011)

Has anyone ever tried using one of these? Was contemplating one but not sure if forum experience has a preference for the AC20. Quiet operation is one of the important criteria at play here. Thanks folks.


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## tony1928 (Apr 22, 2010)

I think most people like the AC's as you can basically used whatever type of media you want in the filter. Alot of the other HOB's require cartridges. AC's are fairly quiet as long as you keep he water level nice and high (don't allow splashing on the return). My experience with them has been good but sometimes they don't like to prime easily especially if the intake tube is long.


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## Arcteryx (Nov 23, 2011)

Thanks Tony, appreciate the comments. I'm liking the flexibility of media type as well, so maybe I'll just stick with the tried and true. Probably a reason why I notice the AC's seem to be the most-used HOBs here...


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## Nicole (Nov 21, 2011)

+1 of AC HOB
I like my water level high so they're really silent. Priming can be a pain but I just fill it up with water myself on the lower setting and then switch it to the max.


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## Foxtail (Mar 14, 2012)

I picked up the ac20 at petland on sale for $21, as a secondary filter. It is a lot louder than my aqueon 30 that uses cartriges but its still not that bad, the aqueon makes no noise at all, just the water trickle.

Sent from my SGH-T959D using Tapatalk


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## Diztrbd1 (Apr 21, 2010)

Having used both filters, the Ac is definitely more versatile for using different medias. As for the penguin filter, I find it to be quieter than the AC, I believe the reason is, the outflow sits much lower in the water, than that of the AC. I have made my own cartridges for all my bio wheel filters for some time now. Easy to do and save lots of money in the long run. I simply by an 8 pack of the flat green scrub pads at the dollar store. Cut the pad to fit the original cartridge's frame and sew it on with fishing line. Can even add carbon if needed. Takes about 5 minutes and with the smaller size filters you can make close to a dozen cartridges for less than $1.50, not including carbon. A container of carbon is fairly cheap if you use it, so you can make several cartridges for the price of a new one. Have had no problems since I have started doing this, well over a year ago.


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## Morainy (Apr 21, 2010)

I've had both, although my Penguin was bigger. I really like the Penguin's biowheel, which keeps the cycle going even when you change the cartridge. I found my Penguin's motor to be quite quiet, although I had to leave the lid off to prevent a rattle. This increased the sound of water falling, but it was in our playroom and I didn't mind.

I have had many AquaClears and I find them very convenient but it's the luck of the draw whether they are noisy or quiet. More than half my AquaClears have been noisy (motor noise) on arrival, and only some of them quiet down over time as they gunk up (as I call it). Changing the impeller doesn't help. I've had 2 AquaClears that were silent out of the box, and they are wonderful. If it weren't for my experience with those 2 I'd probably give up on Aquaclears, though. 

I don't mind changing a cartidge (and do it all the time for my Eclipses, which also have biowheels) and I also like the AquaClear setup, so I think it comes down to whether the particular unit you get (of either) is noisy. If it is, I'd take it back and exchange it right away and don't wait for it to quiet down. I've never done this, but should have. Recently, I bought two identical Fluval Specs. One is silent -- you can not hear it at all. The other buzzes and hums, sounds like we've dropped the refrigerator into the tank. Straight out of the box, there was a difference and it doesn't matter which tank you put it into.


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## Scherb (Feb 10, 2011)

Hello. i have had both, and i would get the ac. because, the penguin filter cartridges are not cheap, the ac media is reusable. Cheers


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## Arcteryx (Nov 23, 2011)

This makes me think we should have some kind of equipment review database on this board... what a tremendous help this thread was to help me decide to go with the AC20. Thanks all!


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## Diztrbd1 (Apr 21, 2010)

Nice as it would be.... I personally just Google if I need to review something, You get alot more results that way IMHO. But it is also nice to get feedback from those you know and trust.... as you did here


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## Arcteryx (Nov 23, 2011)

That's exactly my line of thinking.


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## Arcteryx (Nov 23, 2011)

I seem to have been lucky enough to get a quiet AC20 out of the box, although it was noisy to start for the first hour; then I re-primed it and it immediately got quite a bit quieter. Maybe there was an air bubble rattling around in there? In any case I'm pretty happy with it. So thanks for the help everyone.


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