I have a 55 gallon tank with a Fluval 305 canister filter hooked up to a custom spray bar that's 18 inches (46 cm) long. The filter moves some pretty good water. In the same tank, I also have an Aquaclear 300 that I am running just to get the biological filter going for another tank.
I clean the fluval out about once every 8-9 weeks, or when I notice a significant decrease in the water flow.
Inside the filter I have:
1. Bottom basket - 2 100 ml bags of Purigen
2. Middle basket - ceramic noodles for biological filtration
3. Top basket - more ceramic noddles. But these are the hex shaped ones with the circle in the middle.
The filter has the usual 4 sponge pads that I have continuously reused since the day I bought the filter.
I've had the filter for about 5 years now and I bought it used off someone.
I noticed a decrease in the water flow on Wednesday, but did not get a chance to change the filter. On Thursday, the water began to look a bit less than perfectly clear. On Friday I finally got around to cleaning the filter.
The pads were pretty clogged up (as expected) and the Purigen was a nice brown color. It was pretty much exhausted and I assumed the less than stellar color was from tannins being in the water, since the Purigen wasn't working any more.
Yank out the Purigen and soak it in 50/50 bleach-water mixture. Rinse off all 4 pads. Make sure the basket bottoms and tops are all clear of debris and reassemble. I put the filter back together and take it to the aquarium and fire it back up.
And the flow is about 2/3 of what it normally is. Better than it was before, but nowhere near what I expected.
I went out to buy some more Purigen today and decided to clean the filter again, this time cleaning the impeller and lid completely. There wasn't a lot of stuff there, but it gave me the chance to throw some Purigen in and try to get the flow back up. Not much luck on the flow. It's still less than I'd expect.
I'm thinking the following possibilities. I'd like to hear the group's opinion.
1. The foam pads/sponges are original to the filter. I always just rinse and reuse. Perhaps they've finally clogged to the point where they're obstructing water flow and I need new pads.
2. The impeller may need to be replaced. It's not making any obvious noise, but if it's not turning at optimal speeds due to normal wear and tear, perhaps it's slowing the water down.
3. Perhaps the motor is starting to go?
I have a very large tube of teflon lubricant and I'm debating lubricating the impeller shaft with it to see if I might be able to get it move more water.
And lastly, as far as I can tell, there is no air in the system. I shook the filter around and it did not dislodge any trapped air, which is the usual cause of this problem.
I clean the fluval out about once every 8-9 weeks, or when I notice a significant decrease in the water flow.
Inside the filter I have:
1. Bottom basket - 2 100 ml bags of Purigen
2. Middle basket - ceramic noodles for biological filtration
3. Top basket - more ceramic noddles. But these are the hex shaped ones with the circle in the middle.
The filter has the usual 4 sponge pads that I have continuously reused since the day I bought the filter.
I've had the filter for about 5 years now and I bought it used off someone.
I noticed a decrease in the water flow on Wednesday, but did not get a chance to change the filter. On Thursday, the water began to look a bit less than perfectly clear. On Friday I finally got around to cleaning the filter.
The pads were pretty clogged up (as expected) and the Purigen was a nice brown color. It was pretty much exhausted and I assumed the less than stellar color was from tannins being in the water, since the Purigen wasn't working any more.
Yank out the Purigen and soak it in 50/50 bleach-water mixture. Rinse off all 4 pads. Make sure the basket bottoms and tops are all clear of debris and reassemble. I put the filter back together and take it to the aquarium and fire it back up.
And the flow is about 2/3 of what it normally is. Better than it was before, but nowhere near what I expected.
I went out to buy some more Purigen today and decided to clean the filter again, this time cleaning the impeller and lid completely. There wasn't a lot of stuff there, but it gave me the chance to throw some Purigen in and try to get the flow back up. Not much luck on the flow. It's still less than I'd expect.
I'm thinking the following possibilities. I'd like to hear the group's opinion.
1. The foam pads/sponges are original to the filter. I always just rinse and reuse. Perhaps they've finally clogged to the point where they're obstructing water flow and I need new pads.
2. The impeller may need to be replaced. It's not making any obvious noise, but if it's not turning at optimal speeds due to normal wear and tear, perhaps it's slowing the water down.
3. Perhaps the motor is starting to go?
I have a very large tube of teflon lubricant and I'm debating lubricating the impeller shaft with it to see if I might be able to get it move more water.
And lastly, as far as I can tell, there is no air in the system. I shook the filter around and it did not dislodge any trapped air, which is the usual cause of this problem.
