aquaclear vs fluval c series vs marineland... advice needed

ECW

Redtail Catfish
MFK Member
Sep 11, 2011
1,323
576
150
Oahu, Hi.
Sooo.... I have been using marineland HOB filters for a looong time now and am quite happy with the results after I have modded them and geared them to mechanical and biological filtration only. I have my penguins set up with refillable media cartridges packed with eheim pro/matrix and poly filter in front as mechanical. The emperors have a media basket that comes with them (I filled them with ehim/matrix) and I have poly filter as mechanical in the back and the space in the front with DIY nylon bags filled with ehiem pro and Matrix. Between the penguins and emperors I prefer the penguins because they are cheaper and seem to work flawlessly and with much less maintenece than the emperors in my experiences (couple broken emperors and the flow seems to decrease over time). I have been really getting back into fish keeping these days (well I never really stopped) and am now looking into aquaclears. I didnt like them before because of the fact that they are the ugliest HOB filter that I have seen out there, but now that I have researched them I really like the flow design that directs the water from the intake to the bottom and flows upwards through the media unlike marinelands where the water is directed to the sides and flows forward. It also looks easy to pack with biomedia. I then found the fluval c series which is supposed to be the upgraded version of the aquaclear (both made by Hagen). It looks interesting as I like the apperance (one of the coolest looking HOB's out there) and has quite a bit of features (built in wet dry biological like the marinelands bio wheel - hear they require just as much if not more maintinence for the wet dry bio system tho...). Though for the fluval c series the water doesn't come out from the bottom anymore like the aquaclears... So in a way they may be almost the same/just as effective as my upgraded marinelands? So my question for you MFK'ers is if you think I should switch to aquaclears, fluval c series, or just stick with what im doing with my upgraded marinelands? If it aint broke dont fix it right? But even if it aint broke if I can make something much better than...i'll change. Do you guys really think hagen is that much better than marineland? If so then aren't the fluval c series better than the aquaclears since they are touted as the "upgraded aquaclear"? Dependability wise I have no problem with marineland and have always relied on marineland. For me their products have never really failed my expectations. I have had some powerheads and HOB filters from marineland for over a decade and they are still running strong and quiet.
P.S. If your thinking I should upgrade to canisters, stop thinking about it! I wont and probably never will. I have had horrible experiences with costly caninsters leaking and breaking and I dont want to deal with them again! Thanks for your input MFK'ers!;)
 

1974Pantera

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Aug 3, 2008
734
0
0
San Carlos, Ca.
I'm not impressed by the fluval C series. For the money, you can't beat AquaClear's standard HOB. I have two AC500's dating back 20+ yrs and they still run perfectly! The flow rate is excellent! I run them in addition to powerheads on 4 of my 5 tanks. The only drawback to HOB's is that don't provide enough surface aggitation.
 

frickr

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
May 31, 2011
90
0
0
Mitchell, SD
compaired to the marineland filters ive owned, the aquaclears are alot nicer in terms of fit, matainance and noise level. marinelands were loud, aquaclears i swear get quieter the longer they run, have 3 of them now, the 70 being new is barely audiable, the 50 and 30 i have were just as noisy when they were new, but both are dead silent now. cleaning aquaclears takes all of 5 mins to have it all looking brand new. wash the sponge under the faucet till its clean, quick brush and the biofilm slides right off. water on all 3 tanks is clear. something i couldnt manage when i had the marineland. still on the same media that was in the filter new on all.
 

J.Lake

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Feb 4, 2011
1,693
0
0
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
\i agree when it comes to HOBs you cannot reinvent perfection. The acs have all the basic needs of a hob, easy to operate, easy to maintain, and easy to fix. The 110s push alot of water thru. Ive seen the fluvals in stores by i would never buy one. Just bc i have so many ac 110s and fx5s as my go to filters. I would be interested to hear how ppl who own the fluval c series feel. Personally i en oy fluval products.
 

spotted-elk

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Aug 21, 2010
168
0
0
colorado
I dnt have a fluval HOB but i watch a review of one vs aquaclear check it out on youtube. i have a aquaclear 50 seems really simple to do matnice on vs the fluval>
 

J.Lake

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Feb 4, 2011
1,693
0
0
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Yeah i use my 110s as just added bio support. The media basket is good you can stuff anything in there. I use all sorts of stuff like scrubbies, ceramic rings, and matrix. And if i wanted to use it as mechanical filteration I would just fill with sponges and maybe put a lil sponge on the intake. Very versatile.
 

jft

Plecostomus
MFK Member
Aug 24, 2010
447
30
61
PA
Personally after trying all the filters over the years aquaclears 110 are definately the best hangon and eheim 2217 the best canister as I have several of each running 15 plus yrs w/o one problem , not even a replacement part. For My money you cannot beat them.
 

caoder

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Aug 18, 2011
31
0
0
Montreal
i have a aquaclear 30 on my 20G right now, all i can say is this is the best designed HOB i've seen in stores or otherwise. Its simple, provides more than enough space for BB to grow on, and keeps my water clear. The mechanical is a tad bit lacking with just the single sponge on bottom, but it still clears up my water within an hour of disturbing everything off of the bottom in water changes. When i go buy a new filter i'll be looking for something with a similiar design if anything. i have used forward flowing HOBs, and they are just not as good at all simply because water takes the easiest route pumping from the bottom forces the water through most of all of the filtering elements, not to mention when you need to clean just lift the single tray out rinse and replace.
 

plecostic

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
May 17, 2011
495
2
0
USA
AC fanboys got me thinking about it too. I bought a Marineland 530 Canister filter, thinking I'd go pro and do it right, it's a real beast. It does the job alright, but the more I think about it and in hearing others view points, what can a canister do that a powerful HOB can't do ? The big argument I hear often is how large and plentiful the media capacity is. Does it really matter how big ? I have the beast working with a 75 gallon and for a 10 gallon just a run of the mill nothing special HOB, both are cycled with 0 ammonia/nitrites. So what do I need this big beast canister for again ? Once the tank has established it's beneficial bacteria, I'm not sure if it really matters any more how big your media capacity is or does it ?

I think one of the obvious benefit with the canister is the powerful flow, 530 gph, although I hear the AC moves a lot of water too and just one AC110 is 500 gph, so two on my 75 would give me double the flow and cheaper with less maintenance too. I was thinking of getting a second canister but why ? Do I really want double the PITA ? I have some sponge filters on the way too so that combined with a couple of AC 110's would be snappy I think.

I got the canister at a low price $160, so can't complain.

The AC looks like a very sound alternative to a canister filter. Best of both worlds perhaps.
 
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