Filter advice

thesydmonster said:

I have read that aqua clears are good but that if the power goes off they can siphon out the tank water and empty the tank??? Is that true?

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That's physically impossible, so no - not true. A pair of AC 150s or 200s would be a nice set for a 20long.

I've never heard of or had aqua clears do that.If your water level in your tank is lower then the filter chamber of the aqua clear and the power goes out it will siphon water thats in the filter chamber into the tank. Thats is the only thing I can think of that comes close to what your talking about. As for the emperor filter series they are also great filters. As for filter set up I agree with what Raskolnikov posted.

diy your 10 gallon into a filter (look up diy refugium)
diy sump 7 diy filter should give you some ideas.
fluval have small blackish internal filters you can drop in a back corner that work in small tanks or as added flow in a dead spot. they have a chamber for floss or even a small pack of charcoal (zeolite)

Zeolite is not charcoal but an ammonia scavneger.

But back to the question,

Either AC or Emps are fine filters. I use AC's and have had no problems. Some people seem to have trouble with them when the power goes out that they don't restart well, pumping the water out of the filter's chamber into the tank and runnign dry which could blow the motor. Once again I haven't seen this in my tanks but I keep my water levels high and clean the filter regularly.

One option is to setup the 20 and then run the old filter in it and the new filter in the 10 gallon tank (you may need to be creative to reduce current for th betta). There is plenty of bacteria in the gravel in the 10 gallon to keep it going and the new filter will start to get bacteria growing in it. The new tank will have the old filter to reduce any nitrogen cycle spikes while the bacterial colonies strat to grow in the gravel and decorations and plants. After a couple of weeks switch filters and I doubt you will see any spikes. If you decide to run 2 smaller filters on the 20 gallon then just run one ont he old and one on the new.

Just an idea but something along those lines will help you get things going faster. Also filter media can be stuck into many small spaces. Try using filter floss in the old filter, getting it established and used in the new filter. When you are sure the cycling is stabilized ditch the filter floss.

Penguin 150

I've been using a Penguin 150 on this 20-high tank for several months now with great success.

I recently bought 4 more of the same Penguin 150 filter on sale so that more of my tanks would use the same filter cartridges. My wife's classroom has one (currently a 10, moving her to a 20H), I'm seeding one in my guest room, and I'll have two of them on my guppy summer home after I get it set up.

The water cannot overflow out of an aquaclear. Its just impossible because the 'spout' or where the water comes out into the tank is lower than the rest of the filter by a good inch. I dont think there is any way for the aquaclear to siphon water out even when clogged. Sometimes they do have priming issues - it may take a bit of time for it to get going on its own (sometimes) but usually its ok.

I have had penguin and emperor filters as well and really like them too but I think a larger aquaclear (and cheaper) gives you more alternatives.

Although I think now that I've switched to canister filters, I can honestly say they are worth the money, at least thats the way I feel about my Eheim classics. Actually looks like price on the eheim classics have dropped so how about something like a 2213 for your tank. It should be more than enough and it will do a great job.

I (had) a 20 long, and I used a Penguin 125 (up to 30 gallons!) on it, and it did quite well for me. Moving it to a 29 gallon now Quite a nice filter.