Good HOB filter and heater for my discus tank?

[AquaAlex]

Hello. I am ready to convert my 120 gallon aquarium into a discus aquariums as plans have picked up and I've rehomed all of my fish except for my L128 Blue phantom plecos and a royal panaque and my angelfish who will be staying in the 120.
I've already picked up some driftwood, still need to find some ones to resemble tree branches. What is a name I should look for at the fish store of wood that could resemble tree branches? I also picked up some fake plants.
Now I decided to keep on my Aqueon quiteflow 75/90 on my 120. I need to add another HOB filter to this tank. I'm thinking an Aquaclear 110 for discus. Is this a good choice? What hob filters would you reccomend? Thinking of doing 3 on my 120. Is this too much?
Also would I need an air pump and an airstone for bubbles?
Now as for heaters, what brands do you recommend? I haven't bought heaters in a while but the last time I did I had this cool heater that lasted 3-4 years and it had like a temperature control box thing that I could change the temp just by going to the wire and turning the knob. Forgot the name but it was an expensive heater but it turned my qt tank one day to 89 degrees just 4 hours after being set up. I had it on the 85-90 degree stage. Anyone can recall this brand? It's hard to describe. But what brands do you think are good for discus? Should I get 1 or 2?
Anything else I should get?
Appreciate any help I get. thanks all.

[dprais1]

The only HOB I will ever buy is aquaclear

[ESXiGuy]

The only HOB I will ever buy is aquaclear

May I ask why? I was about to recommend the Cascade series from Penn Plax myself.

Thanks

[Driftwood Mike]

Have an Aquaclear 110 and an Emporer 400, 2 long airstones and 2 Aqueon Pro heaters one set for back up on a 55

[xmas_dude]

Eheim Ebo Jager for heater. Always keep one spare. For filter, I am eheim canister fan. For HOB, have used Marineland Penquin Biowheel/Aquaclear110 in the past. Aquaclear didnt work out for me due to noise. Might just be my unit.

[Ryan]

The only HOB I will ever buy is aquaclear

Same here. I have some that are a decade old now (back before they changed the model names) and they still work. They are a little noisy after that many years in constant service but so far they haven't died on me. The filters are simple, have a large area to fill with sponges, and easy enough to remove baskets from so that you can quickly and easily rinse the sponges. Plus, the Hydro prefilters fit them perfectly. There's no point in having an HOB filter if you don't use a prefilter sponge.

Have an Aquaclear 110 and an Emporer 400, 2 long airstones and 2 Aqueon Pro heaters one set for back up on a 55

Eheim Ebo Jager for heater. Always keep one spare. For filter, I am eheim canister fan. For HOB, have used Marineland Penquin Biowheel/Aquaclear110 in the past. Aquaclear didnt work out for me due to noise. Might just be my unit.

I have been using the Aqueon Pro heaters. They are much cheaper and just as reliable as the Ebos. For a while the Ebo quality had taken a nose-dive and everyone switched to Stealth heaters. When Stealth heaters started literally exploding in people's tanks, everyone went to titaniums, then slowly back to Ebos. Last year I bit the bullet and bought six new Ebos for tanks ranging from 20 to 55 gallons. Only one of the six is still working, only a year later. I have decided that I'll never waste money on another one. I've only been using Aqueons for maybe a year, but I recently purchased about 10 of them to replace all the old Ebos and remaining Stealths in my house. So far, so good. Temperature is accurate within a degree or two and I haven't had one stick on or completely die. I had Ebos that did both of those things!

[dprais1]

Same here. I have some that are a decade old now (back before they changed the model names) and they still work. They are a little noisy after that many years in constant service but so far they haven't died on me. The filters are simple, have a large area to fill with sponges, and easy enough to remove baskets from so that you can quickly and easily rinse the sponges. Plus, the Hydro prefilters fit them perfectly. There's no point in having an HOB filter if you don't use a prefilter sponge.

Pretty much sums it up....I use poret foam, some bio-media and filter floss type media in my AC. What I like is that I can change it up however I want, the order, the contents, even the flow rate to some extent.

The cartridge type filters don't seem to have that level of versatility.

BUT...I did have a whisper hob years ago and I can't say that I ever felt is was inadequate. So, I will only use AC not because I think they are superior but because I like them better and give me more options. Probably any filter will be fine as long as you maintain it correctly.

[DISCUS STU]

I use the Aquaclears for my hospital/quarantine tanks but that's only because I already own them.

I would not use them as a primary because they have a tendency to NOT RESTART after a power flux or outage. This is usually due to accumulated gunk on the impeller.

It's a serious problem that unless you're on top of and constantly monitoring for can cause serious problems.

On the plus side, they're easy to maintain, clean, and don't require manufacturer's pads or other parts that have to be specifically found only from the manufacturer.

[jmf3460]

i have been a long time fan of the emperor 400 HOBs. I have 2 on my 75gal discus tank and I am very happy with the flow. I buy the aftermarket replacement filter pads from either Kensfish.com or yourfishstuff.com and they work just as well as the name brand filter pads and are a fraction of the cost. I recently replaced one of mine and the one I replaced was at least 10 years old. It still woks but was just so old and calcified that I decided it was time for a new one. I love the biowheels. I like how the filter holds its flow even during a water change almost all the way down to the bottom of the suction downspout thing. This allows me to do a 35% water change in my 75 gal tank without having to restart the filters. I highly recommend them to you and anyone else if HOB is the route you want to go.