Tetratec 500

[Reason]

Anyone have any experience with these? I've never seen more mixed reviews in my life.

I want to buy a second hanging filter for my 72 gallon and I absolutely love the idea of the heater in the filter. Can anyone recommend this filter keeping in mind that it will not be the only filtration, I'll be combo'ing it with an Aquaclear 110 I already have.

 

[SCU33ZE]

i have heard all but bad reviews of these like "the live filter stops going and kills the bacteria", "the impeller jams" but nothing about the heating capsule.

Good luck!

 

[Biznatch]

I have the 300 that I was using for my 29g, when I upgraded to my 72bow that filter kept the whole thing clean/heated even though it's max is like 66gallons. The impeller has never jammed for me and I dont know what you are talking about with it killing the bacteria but I don't think that's possible.

The only down side is the wet/dry thing is kinda noisy and makes a gurgling sound once in a while.

 

[SCU33ZE]

Here are some good but mostly bad reviews of this thing.

Review page 1

Review page 2

Review page 3

If i were to make a decision like yours i would ditch the tetratec's and go with Marineland penguin or Hagen aquaclear. Then get a separte heater and camouflage it nicely in the tank. Then again its your decision so you should also consider your opinion and not just ours.

see the difference.

Penguin (has been recently redesigned and is better than ever. not the ugly black thing anymore)

Aquaclear

Good luck!
BTW, even whisper filters are more reliable than its big brother (tetratec)

 

[garvondavis14]

my friend has had a tt500 on his 75g tank for about a year and a half or somewhere around there...he has had absolutely no problems with it and it keeps his fish in good health despite his laziness when it comes to water changes....i have an emperor 400 on my 55g mbuna tank, and i have no complaints about either one...i would say that tt500 is a good choice, but im still partial to my emp

 

[slipknottin]

You can always do what I did. Buy a HOB with alot of space inside it, then jam a couple heaters in it. Ive got two 150 watt heaters inside a penguin 330.

 

[mcps95]

I have a TT300 with heater, and I'd strongly recommend looking at either a Marineland Emperor/Penguin or another Hagen Aquaclear. Ideally, it would make the most sense to get another AquaClear 110 so you can use the same media in both filters.

The TT does make a gurgling noise, and the wet/dry siphon control often needs to be fiddled with every couple days to keep it working properly.

I do like the fact that the TT keeps the heater out of the tank, but the other filters will be much better choices overall.

Mike

 

[Dobber]

Tetratec follow-up

I was reading through this thread today as a mostly satisfied owner of a TT 150. I searched out reviews elsewhere to see what they said, particularly in relation to the carbon's effectiveness/duration.

This was an interesting read:
http://www.fishinthe.net/html/reviews-4.html

 

[Reason]

You can always do what I did. Buy a HOB with alot of space inside it, then jam a couple heaters in it. Ive got two 150 watt heaters inside a penguin 330.

Now this idea interests me. I wonder if I could fit some heaters into another AC110 if I cut into the sponge a little...
hmm...

 

[tuvok]

This *may* force you to use certain brands of heaters though. I'm not sure what the relative dimesions are but my EJ 150w heater is fairly large, I would be surprised if it fit in anything other that an AC500 sized filter. slipknottin what kind of heaters do you use in your filter (just curious).