Shortening Filter Inlet

[ellena]

I have tetratec ex600 in a 60l tank. The inlet is close to the bottom of the tank and sticks out a lot at the top. It's 2 tubes which slide inside each other and I think I'd have to trim both to reduce the length enough.
Is this a bad idea for any reason? Will it cut with a normal hacksaw?
Any other tips to advice?
Thank you

 

[Asteria]

Are there any little parts you can remove from it?

 

[Akasha72]

seems sensible to me. I would put a bit of masking tape around the pipe before you try to cut it - might help with both slippage and help to stop the plastic from splintering and splitting. You might also find you'll have to use a stanley knife blade to smooth off the cut pipe so the smaller tube slides inside it easily
 
 
Ps - Mind your fingers!

 

[DrRob]

Cutting them down is fine. I agree on the masking tape as well, helps to stop the saw jumping as you start. A bit of sandpaper around the cut edges makes it easier to get the newly cut tube into the intake cover again as well. Just make sure that you don't cut off anything that has a size change in it to allow pipes to join.
 
Extending them if you want them longer is slightly tougher. The idea of having them long is to get water from the bottom of the tank into the filter but also to help to stop the syphon from breaking every time you do a water change, which is irritating. So extending them can mean working on getting a seal.

 

[Far_King]

Whenever I've had to shorten them before I've used a brand new stanley knife blade and scored my way through the pipe.  As the others have said, do be very very careful!

 

[ellena]

No little parts other than rubber rings. Thanks for all the tips, I shall give it a go