I've noticed that if I bump my canister a few times, a bunch of sh*tty looking particles are expelled from the output head. I was wondering if anyone does this regularly before water changes in order to get the stuff previously dormant in the filter out? Couldn't cause any problems right?
bumping a canister filter before doing water changes?
- Thread starter BassetsForBrown
- Start date
I wouldn't do it. Just take the canister off the tank and clean/flush it without it going in the tank
You can hook it up to double tap valve then disconnect to back flush if you are tired of cleaning canister. I just zip tie a pond sponge to the intake and rinse weekly. This method allow my canisters to go longer without cleaning.
I usually get all that junk when I start my canister filter after I cleaned it. I tie a panty hose to the output head. It catches most of the junk. I found that all that stuff is harmless to the fish.
Wouldn't flushing out the canister this way kill your bacteria? Blasting chlorinated tap water through it? Unless you have a basin of treated or RO water, and a pump to force it through with.
Not the zip tied pre filter intake, part, I understand you there, but don't you think the flushing part may be risky?
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you are back flushing out the fish crap out by siphon suction thru your canister. You are not pushing water to force back into the tank. Its sort of like this idea in this video
http://youtu.be/ZtgajS8ayFg
Oooh I think I understand, that's an interesting way of doing it.
But could the suction from the siphon possibly damage any of the mechanical parts in the filter from the reverse flow? Assuming you turn the filter off I mean, could anything bad happen?
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as long as the filter is off I doubt you can damage anything. The fluval FX5 has a build in back flush.
That's likely gunk in the crappy stock ribbed hoses that come with the filter! These ribbed hoses not only build up crap, they also slow down water flow!
Do yourself a favor and either buy clear plastic hose from your hardware store (bring extra valve with to match diameter!) and grab 4 radiator clamps of appropriate size to clamp down all 4 connections! I make sure the hoses have about 3-4" of slack at the most, the more length of hose the more flow (gph) you will lose!
Or you can 'hard plumb' the filter with PVC, this is a good method but IMO 90° bends also significantly slow down flow! And with the clear plastic hose its thick enough to where it can bend around without exceeding harsh 60-70°+ bends! You can also get heavier grade braided hose that wont kink if your filter is in a tight spot!
Either way upgrading the ribbed hoses are cheap and easy fix to increase filter efficiency!
×Go S. Vettel #1 Infiniti Redbull! 4x WDC!!! Congrats on another flawless title× <GET BETTER SCHUMI>
__________________________________________________________________
Cheap way to decrease nitrates and keep your fish healthy: http://monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=504763
Do yourself a favor and either buy clear plastic hose from your hardware store (bring extra valve with to match diameter!) and grab 4 radiator clamps of appropriate size to clamp down all 4 connections! I make sure the hoses have about 3-4" of slack at the most, the more length of hose the more flow (gph) you will lose!
Or you can 'hard plumb' the filter with PVC, this is a good method but IMO 90° bends also significantly slow down flow! And with the clear plastic hose its thick enough to where it can bend around without exceeding harsh 60-70°+ bends! You can also get heavier grade braided hose that wont kink if your filter is in a tight spot!
Either way upgrading the ribbed hoses are cheap and easy fix to increase filter efficiency!
×Go S. Vettel #1 Infiniti Redbull! 4x WDC!!! Congrats on another flawless title× <GET BETTER SCHUMI>
__________________________________________________________________
Cheap way to decrease nitrates and keep your fish healthy: http://monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=504763