I just got a marineland bio wheel penguin 350 filter

[Itzblackmayne]

It filters 350 gallons of water every hour and I'm using it in my 55 I was wondering if there's any draw backs or problems with this filter any info on this filter would be a great thank you

[mfdrookie516]

I had one and hated it. It was noisy and ended up dying about 6 months after I bought it. That's my experience. Most of us on here prefer AquaClear over any other HOB. Some have had decent luck with the MarineLand filters, but they're not what they used to be for sure.

[Itzblackmayne]

Thank you what should I look for, for signs of failure

[mfdrookie516]

Noisiness, reduced flow, things of that nature. Mine just siezed up

[Itzblackmayne]

Thank you vary much

[doogle]

the wheels will stop. clean them often and i have to keep a small space between the bottom of the media and the bottom of the filter so it will flow faster into the wheel.that keeps it moving well.a little bypass but they still work...

[doogle]

i changed the media with aqua-tech filter media cuz its the same as the marineland and its cheaper, now my wheels are turning again. ..they are a pain, still like aquaclear better,no problemswiththem

[Tim Wheatley]

Originally Posted by doogle

the wheels will stop. clean them often and i have to keep a small space between the bottom of the media and the bottom of the filter so it will flow faster into the wheel.that keeps it moving well.a little bypass but they still work...

The documentation says the wheels stopping should not matter. And if you think about it, it shouldn't. The bacteria should build up quickly unless you were to change the replaceable media (on both sides) at the exact time that the wheel turned exactly 180 degrees and then stopped again. You'd also have to have the other wheel do the same thing at the same time.

I've had many, most of them died due to the impeller eating it's shaft out into the surrounding magnet. Just needed another impeller... They went noisy before the impeller was replaced. Still wouldn't put me off buying another though...

Although now I use Canisters and just one HOB, which is an Aquaclear.

[tornadonick]

I have a 150 in my 29, brand new and a little bit noisy, that doesnt put me off of it though as I Get noise from other stuff so I dont really notice that, havnt had it very long at all but so far so good.

[BigJim]

My experience with a Penguin 200:

- The filter does not work well with a sand substrate. The impellers get eaten and the filter makes a horrible shrieking noise. I went through two impellers before switching to an AquaClear.

- The stock cartridges get plugged up pretty quickly. I DIYed some cartridges using the Marineland media cages and some canister filter foam.

Other than that, I didn't have any real issues with it. I do prefer the AquaClears though.

[doogle]

the aquaclear's short intake tube is better with sand cuz less chance of it getting sucked into the impeller and ruining the impeller. sand is bad on any impeller if it gets sucked in the filter. i believe pool filter sand is the least destructive if it gets in a filter.

[mudraker]

Thos large HOBs are a real pain. I would definately look into a canister filter for a 55 gal.

[mudraker]

Also, you can toss out the biowheels. They are a pain and do not contribute as much bb as manufacturers claim. I threw away all the bio wheels on the small HOB filters I still have.