Which filter?

[Kirax25]

Not sure if this is the best place but I just got into the hobby. I bought me a 20 gallon long tank, friend handed me down a flu so c3 but it is extremely noisy.
I am looking at the tidal 55 or the marine land 275 penguin pro.
I know the penguin pro is pretty new and the tidal gets decent reviews but some mixed.
I am looking for a quiet but efficient filter.
What do you think would be best?

I also plan to use the bio media from the c3 to help seed the new filter and start/continue the cycle.
Thanks!

 

[seangee]

I have 2 tidal filters and can highly recommend those. Get the 30 the 55 is overkill and way too powerful. What fish are you planning to keep? That should be a factor because different fish have different needs about flow.

 

[Kirax25]

I have 5 guppies in the tank right now and plan to get more fish just not sure what type yet.

 

[Tony blazer]

First thing you have to ask yourself do you want to hang on the back filter canister or internal. I personally do not like internals the way they look. If you're going to get a larger tank more than 55 gallons I would go with a canister but 55 and less old school hang on the back in my opinion. I love my fluval and my tetra- whisper double chamber so you can add multiple mechanical or biological media. The fluval horizontal chamber is designed for multiple biological and mechanical as well. Both are extremely quiet and both come with a flow control to increase or decrease your intake end and flow output.

Just remember there is a lot of misinformation about when to change your bio and mechanical filtration setup. What I'm learning now you should not really add ammonia chips if you have plants in your aquarium once you're fully setup and your tank is cycling properly. The plants need the ammonia as well as you really don't need carbon unless you have water quality issues and edit other medications and chemicals for other tank issues. You just really need a good mechanical setup and biological setup. There is a lot of misinformation from fish companies just to increase revenue. Whatever you do don't use any water clarification products to make you water clear it contains chemicals that can kill sensitive fish. Weekly or bi-weekly water changes is the way to go. And in a 20 gallon tank you just talkin about 5 gallons a week which is basically one bucket of water.

 

[seangee]

For guppies and similar a sponge filter is all you need. Since you are concerned with noise this means finding a quiet air pump. An alternative is a simple internal filter like an eheim pickup.

I have a tidal 30 in a 20G in my study and can confirm it's completely silent. But I have fish that need a higher flow than your guppies.

 

[Retired Viking]

I agree with @seangee I would go with a sponge filter, inexpensive and does a good job for guppies.