Fluval canister filter

[Papa]

Bought five, yes five and thus far regret purchasing. Restarting them when doing tank maintenance takes longer than cleaning the tank. One I still can't going just very weak stream flows when out take held above water line. I've reached out to Hagen but doubt there's much to be done. Must confess I've been using hob's for probably twenty years with no problems. Well that's my rant for the dayI finally got it operating. I think it's the sequence of shutting off water and power. My understanding is water off then power. Oh well.

 

[Archerfish]

Makes we yearn for the simple and reliable, Eheim classic days. My 2013 ran for more than 20 years. Only had to replace the impeller and main seal a few times. Now, they 'reinvent' with electronics, 'APPs' and eye candy. Junk.

 

[raylove1]

Agreed, however, I too had a filter last for 20 years and it was a Fluval - one of the old cream and brown coloured ones. I didn't have to replace anything at all during that time and only replaced it when I dismantled the set up it was on. It was still working OK but would have needed new pipes if I wanted to use it elsewhere so I retired it for another Fluval!).

 

[lottabubbles15 37]

I've been using a API Rena 3 on my 125 gallon tank for at least 26 years. back in 2010 I bought another one for backup on Amazon. it's still sitting in the box. had to install 2 impellers over the years, dropped one on the concrete and about a year later the body not the impeller broke in half. replaced the hoses twice. reasonably priced hose from Rural King.
looks like I'll have to replace pickup and exhaust tubes one of these days though.

 

[GaryE]

I run three fluval and one eheim canister, and have developed a rule for them - they are always second filters. I always run an HOB on the same tank. That reduces how often I need to clean them, and gives me a backup.
I don't find them better or worse than other canisters - it's the canister design I dislike. It's convenient and quiet, but hard to clean. I've gone through maybe a dozen over the years, and HOBs they replaced have replaced them as I go. All the canisters have been raffle prizes or second hand.
When I need to restart, I stick the tank filling hose onto the intake and give it a low pressure run for a few seconds. That does the job. Otherwise, it's a frustrating job.

 

[Country joe]

I jumped from Fluval to owning two Oase biomasters mark two, and I like them, on how long will they run before having problems or none who knows, as one has been running 8 months and the other 4 days.

 

[Uberhoust]

I have a fluval 407 and it has been one of the best filters I own. When I do a water change I drain 70% of the water and towards the end of the water change process it does create a siphon and partially drains the water out of the filter. When filling back up I wait till the tank is 50% full then restart the filter, it always works, I get a bit of air in the line but that quickly clears up. One thing I do is make sure that the lines do not have any dips or saggy areas that cause air pockets in the hoses, I was reluctant to cut the hoses but it does seem to work. The filter is dependent on the siphon to help move the water and if there is an air pocket in the lines, particularly in the line that draws the water, you will have reduced performance with the filter. The filter has been very quiet and efficient in my 75 gallon tank been using it since 2023.

 

[Papa]

I have a fluval 407 and it has been one of the best filters I own. When I do a water change I drain 70% of the water and towards the end of the water change process it does create a siphon and partially drains the water out of the filter. When filling back up I wait till the tank is 50% full then restart the filter, it always works, I get a bit of air in the line but that quickly clears up. One thing I do is make sure that the lines do not have any dips or saggy areas that cause air pockets in the hoses, I was reluctant to cut the hoses but it does seem to work. The filter is dependent on the siphon to help move the water and if there is an air pocket in the lines, particularly in the line that draws the water, you will have reduced performance with the filter. The filter has been very quiet and efficient in my 75 gallon tank been using it since 2023.

Good post. While my frustration level was high I do believe it's more about my learning than Fluval design.

 

[seangee9 2]

I have a fluval 407 and it has been one of the best filters I own. When I do a water change I drain 70% of the water and towards the end of the water change process it does create a siphon and partially drains the water out of the filter. When filling back up I wait till the tank is 50% full then restart the filter, it always works, I get a bit of air in the line but that quickly clears up. One thing I do is make sure that the lines do not have any dips or saggy areas that cause air pockets in the hoses, I was reluctant to cut the hoses but it does seem to work. The filter is dependent on the siphon to help move the water and if there is an air pocket in the lines, particularly in the line that draws the water, you will have reduced performance with the filter. The filter has been very quiet and efficient in my 75 gallon tank been using it since 2023.

That's critical. You want the hoses pretty much straight up and down. When I take mine out to clean, which is rarely, I always fill the canister with water before putting it back - so there is much less need for priming. When you do take the canister out do it when the tank is full so you don't get air in the hose going from the tank into the canister.

 

[Boundava10]

I have multiple Fluval canister filters and my biggest beef is the cleaning.
I have a 207 with the UV attachment for my 38 gallon saltwater tank. As the tank has live rock and sand, the filter is more mechanical - though I have some cone shaped sponges growing in there. I clean it about every 6-8 months.
I have the big boys as well. My 120 has 2 FX4 canisters on it. I have had an issue with the one after I clean it, it needs to be messed with; motor/impeller needs to be removed and cleaned. I purchased an extra motor because I thought it died, but haven't had to use it yet
My 125 has a FX4 and FX6. When I clean the filters it's brutal due to the amount of sponges in these filters. My 125 had a considerable amount of plecos in it so the amount of sludge that accumulates is significant. It would take close to an hour to clean the sponges in the FX6. I never clean both filters the same day, usually the next week.
My favorite part with the big guys is that it's supposed to have a sensor to restart but I will come back an hour or so later and it's still off. Usually unplugging it get it to start the right way.

I am looking forward to building my own tank with a wetlands filter; no more unhooking, lifting a full filter, cleaning multiple sludge filled sponges, refilling and carrying back to re hook up and turn the filters back on for the junk in the tubbing to fill the tank with junk-cause you just cleaned the tank...

The HOB filters do the same, unless you take the whole thing off and clean the unit as well as the media. I don't do that every time, but when you don't the filter expells all that junk right back into the tank.

 

[anewbie]

Bought five, yes five and thus far regret purchasing. Restarting them when doing tank maintenance takes longer than cleaning the tank. One I still can't going just very weak stream flows when out take held above water line. I've reached out to Hagen but doubt there's much to be done. Must confess I've been using hob's for probably twenty years with no problems. Well that's my rant for the dayI finally got it operating. I think it's the sequence of shutting off water and power. My understanding is water off then power. Oh well.

This is kind of vague - adding a bit more information might be useful. I have two fluval canister filter - an fx6 and something from the 07 line - maybe a 207. I just plug them in and they work - both have very good current at or slightly above the water line. Guess you are just unlucky or you didn't open the valves all the way who knows with the information you provided.

 

[anewbie]

I run three fluval and one eheim canister, and have developed a rule for them - they are always second filters. I always run an HOB on the same tank. That reduces how often I need to clean them, and gives me a backup.
I don't find them better or worse than other canisters - it's the canister design I dislike. It's convenient and quiet, but hard to clean. I've gone through maybe a dozen over the years, and HOBs they replaced have replaced them as I go. All the canisters have been raffle prizes or second hand.
When I need to restart, I stick the tank filling hose onto the intake and give it a low pressure run for a few seconds. That does the job. Otherwise, it's a frustrating job.

I prefer the 07 to my eheim 2227 (classic) - but they all ahve problems. In truth any filter with a hose and a pump no matter how simple to how complex has problems - the biggest is they need to be clean now and then - hum 2 years since i cleaned my fx6 - maybe it is time? current is still fine - maybe not - i think i'll wait 2 more years.

Anyway the 07 i've had since - hum let me look it up - oh well not that long - looks like feb 2025 so around a year to 13 months. I don't really care i just got it to add some current it doesn't matter much if i take another 3 or 4 years to clean it.

I found it - yea feb 2025 a 107.

 

[FishBR2]

What Fluval filter do you have? I replaced a classic Eheim 2217 by a Fluval 407 and I am very happy with it. The Eheim started to pop up open when restarting. The Fluval has a good flow and I have not experienced any problems with it.

 

[Papa]

What Fluval filter do you have? I replaced a classic Eheim 2217 by a Fluval 407 and I am very happy with it. The Eheim started to pop up open when restarting. The Fluval has a good flow and I have not experienced any problems with it.

I have four 307's and a 407. I talked with Hagen customer service and the rep said if you do a water change and the water levels goes below where the intake hose connects with the intake tune this means water level in my case would be about 5" then you need to prime the unit again. The manual doesn't say this and that would mean I have to prime it every time I do a water change. She also said running other filters with your Fluval isn't recommended because it causes water turbulence that can cause air pockets. That didn't make any sense at all to me but whatever. I explained to the rep that water was coming our but only a weak amount when I hold the output above water level. According to the manual you should close the valve by putting lever all the way up and then you can shut power off and then then you should be able to turn power on and open the valve and it should operate without having to prime the filter.

 

[Uberhoust]

I don't bother shutting down the valve, I let air into the canister, I will pump it a few times once the water level is higher in the tank to get the water level to the drive portion of the canister, after that it blows some bubbles out but then starts full flow. It almost sounds like you have something like a vapour lock on one of your lines leading to or going from the canister that is blocking flow or you have air trapped in the canister head preventing full flow. The behavior you describe really sounds like the lines have a dip in them, which traps the air in the canister. What does the filter sound like when you start it and after it runs for a while.