There are a ton of aquarium manufacturers on the market today and sometimes it makes for some difficult choices. You don’t want to end up with a garbage aquarium, no matter how glamorous it’s marketed on the shelf or on an online advert.
Aqueon aquariums are not bad. They are beginner-friendly and probably not for experts or those who have owned fish for years. Aqueon tanks are affordable and come with many attractive features but they lack flexibility for the more seasoned aquarium enthusiasts.
When it comes to Aqueon, there isn’t a lack of choices. At least that’s true with tank sizes and interesting, unique features within the industry. What really makes them stand out is Aqueon’s use of bright and colorful LED lighting options.
Are Aqueon Aquariums Tempered?
According to Aqueon, many of their tanks come with tempered glass but only in the bottom, not the remaining glass walls. If you have a reason to drill holes in your Aquoen aquarium, you can safely do so, just not from the bottom.
Tempered glass is not designed for drilling through. Aqueon states that their policy towards tempered glass is that if it’s used, there will be a clearly visible sticker on the wall that is tempered. If every wall on the aquarium is tempered, there will be a sticker on every, single one of them.
If you are ordering an aquarium from Aqueon and some or all of the glass is tempered, you can request that some come with pre-manufactured holes in specific places according to your own plans.
Are Aqueon Tanks Glass?
The aquariums that are advertised on Aqueon are manufactured in glass. Aqueon calls their glass “high-quality glass construction” and the specs don’t indicate that Aquoen aquariums are manufactured with anything else.
All of the glass on an Aqueon tank is silicone sealed to adjacent pieces and the silicone is visible though expertly trimmed and smoothly flush against the glass connections. Aqueon also claims that their aquariums are designed with center-braced frames to support the glass and keep it from bowing.
Are Aqueon Filters Good?
Aqueon manufactures a sizeable number of filters. Fortunately, all of these filters are rated and reviewed from personal use to aggregate scores as exceptional and dependable filters for a wide range of tank sizes.
The Aqueon Quiet Flow 30 is probably one of the more popular filters in the Aqueon lineup. The fact that it comes in different sizes that fit 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, and 75-gallon tanks probably gives it a reasonable popularity boost as well.
This particular filter features a triple filtration system and it runs very quietly so you’re not going to hear the Quiet Flow from across the room. The diffuser is quiet as well and, keeping with Aqueon’s tradition of bright and vibrant LED lights, the Quiet Flow series comes with just that.
These are internal filters, so they slide right into the tank, along the side, and don’t require any kind of priming. The best part is, that they’re not overly complicated. You won’t have to haul out the manual to piece the thing together and figure out how to install it.
The flow rate on all Aqueon Filters is pretty substantial. Most Aqueon filters can process all of the water in the tank several times per hour. That may not be the greatest thing for fish that prefer still water but it’s great in terms of keeping your tank water clean. In fact, it’s exceptional.
Is Aqueon 40 Breeder Tempered?
According to Aqueon, their 40-gallon breeder does not contain any tempered glass. If you need to drill, this is the tank to do it with since you won’t have to worry about any tempered glass.
There is an interesting little trick that you can try if you want to determine whether or not your glass is tempered. Aqueon is supposed to label each glass panel to let you know but maybe you purchased yours used and want to know.
Grab a smartphone with an LED screen and place it inside of the tank with the smartphone’s screen showing through the glass from your point of view. Grab some polarized glasses and put them on.
If the glass is not tempered, your polarized glasses will black out the smartphone’s screen as you turn your head sideways (like you are trying to touch your ear to your shoulder) while remaining fixed on the smartphone.
If the glass is tempered, your polarized glasses won’t black out as your turn your head sideways. It’s a pretty neat little trick and you can see a visual explanation of how to do it here.
How Long Do Aqueon Filters Last?
Aqueon is one of those manufacturers that have their own blog about everything under the sun that has anything to do with filters or their aquariums. According to them, you should change your Aqueon filters out on a monthly basis. THey also advise consumers to rinse their filters out as often as necessary.
However, most of your seasoned aquarium owners advise new owners to use another physical media entirely, such as a sponge with matrix or biomax bio media. The problem is, when you change your filter completely out, you also remove a lot of the good bacteria along with it and it can crash your whole tank system.
As with almost any brand filter, however, you should get an idea of the filter based on your water testing results over a one-month period. How your water tests should help you determine when you should change your aquarium’s filter.
Bottom Line
Aqueon tanks are solid aquariums for beginners. They aren’t something that’s going to shake up the world of aquarium consumers but they are certainly decent tanks. Experts and seasoned aquarium owners will probably avoid them but only because other tank brands offer a deal of flexibility and not because Aqueon tanks are inherently bad.
