Modding FX5

[Burto]

How much filtration do you need on a given tank with X stock Y water parameters and Z feeding rate?
If we can't give a definitive answer to these basic questions how can we say that a tank needs more bio filtration?

We know if a tank has enough bio filtration when the ammonia and nitrite are at 0. If you want to be really sure take an ammonia reading after a big feeding. 0 ammonia after feeding = plenty of bio filtration.

If you are filtering a large heavily stocked tank, you will run into circulation (flow rate) issues long before you run into media capacity issues. Insufficient flow will leave dead spots, the tank's volume of water won't be turned over quickly enough to process newly produced waste. You are better off adding more flow and/or another separate filter, than you are adding more media capacity.

One of the recurring issues we keep hearing about with FX5s is essentially choking the filter with fine polishing pads. Firstly, fine polishing pads and fine pore foam aren't necessary for crystal clear water. Second, if the pad is getting clogged and slowing the flow in your filter it's doing its job. Third, the same pad will get clogged in any other filter just as fast in relation to surface area and flow rate, unless the filter allows for a lot of bypass, which the FX5 apparently doesn't.

An FX5 has more filtering capacity than a reasonably sized sensibly stocked tank will need. You will have insufficient flow before you have insufficient media. The only reason to increase an FX5's bio media capacity is if you want to use it to process sewerage.

 

[Morledzep]

i agree with burto.. i tried to reply earlier and add my few pennies.. but my laptop didn't agree.

 

[Jgray152]

How much filtration do you need on a given tank with X stock Y water parameters and Z feeding rate?
If we can't give a definitive answer to these basic questions how can we say that a tank needs more bio filtration?

Why do people build huge wet/drys or buy large filters? Do they know they will need it? Nope. Piece of mind my friend.

We know if a tank has enough bio filtration when the ammonia and nitrite are at 0. If you want to be really sure take an ammonia reading after a big feeding. 0 ammonia after feeding = plenty of bio filtration.

No one said they needed more bio filtration

If you are filtering a large heavily stocked tank, you will run into circulation (flow rate) issues long before you run into media capacity issues. Insufficient flow will leave dead spots, the tank's volume of water won't be turned over quickly enough to process newly produced waste. You are better off adding more flow and/or another separate filter, than you are adding more media capacity.

So I can use one liter of media to filter a 600 gallon aquarium? I just need 10000 gph ?

One of the recurring issues we keep hearing about with FX5s is essentially choking the filter with fine polishing pads. Firstly, fine polishing pads and fine pore foam aren't necessary for crystal clear water.

Nope, but they help clear the water......

Second, if the pad is getting clogged and slowing the flow in your filter it's doing its job.

Really?

Third, the same pad will get clogged in any other filter just as fast in relation to surface area and flow rate, unless the filter allows for a lot of bypass, which the FX5 apparently doesn't.

So increasing the cross section surface area in the fx5 from 6" dia, to 11" won't help with the clogging of fine pads? ...... Tell ya what, My Fx5 can go months with a fine filter pad now after modding compared to 1 week with the OE design.

An FX5 has more filtering capacity than a reasonably sized sensibly stocked tank will need. You will have insufficient flow before you have insufficient media. The only reason to increase an FX5's bio media capacity is if you want to use it to process sewerage.

How large to YOU is a reasonably sized, and sensibly stocked tank?

Regardless, The Fx5 is more than enough bio media capacity for most tanks. I don't know if I would use it but its rated for a 400 gallon aquarium.

The mod just so happens to allow a lot of extra room in the canister, which might as well be used for bio media, unless you are going to start the mechanical filtration halfway down the canister or have the mechanical filtration 10" thick......

No one said anything about modding the filter so it can perform nitrification better on their tank.

Yes, modding the filter allows the pads to not clog up as quickly. Who cares about how fast they clog up in any other filter, we have an Fx5 not other filters. After modding, in comparison with other filters with fine pads, the Fx5 could go for 6+ months without clogging.

 

[CLDarnell]

Off topic...a few years ago, I was a Moderator/Tournament Referee for one of the larger gaming sites. About that time, everyone started to figure out how to Mod their Xboxs and we created a new rule that mod'ed conoles were disqualified from tournament entry. I was always having to delete or lock posts that were about moding consoles.

Every time I click New Posts and this thread comes up in the list, I get a little twinge lol

 

[Burto]

Why do people build huge wet/drys or buy large filters? Do they know they will need it? Nope. Piece of mind my friend.

As I've said before, I'm very much in favour of a comfortable excess. I feel that the prevailing sentiment on MFK is promoting an excessive amount of excess, and if that is the case I think that's irresponsible. If someone is getting into the hobby and from his or her experience on MFK spends $400 on filtration when $200 worth would have provided a comfortable amount of excess, I think that's a bad thing. It's basically selling people on snake oil, buying something they don't need for a problem they don't have.

No one said they needed more bio filtration

Thread starter, Spiritofthesoul, is interested in increased bio filtration.

So I can use one liter of media to filter a 600 gallon aquarium? I just need 10000 gph ?

Well I didn't say that or imply that and that's a pretty extreme example and not what I was getting at. But possibly.
The point I was making was that if you have say an FX5 and you proportionally increase the size of aquarium and stocking level it's filtering, I think you will encounter problems with circulation before you encounter problems with available surface area for bacteria to colonise.

Regarding the specific example, I'd say a turnover rate of over 16 times an hour would be incredibly excessive to the point of stressing most fish. At some point, the velocity of water through the filter media may exceed the velocity at which bacteria can consume the ammonia and nitrite. I don't know what that velocity is. We can't give a definitive answer to the example without a lot of additional information.
Regardless, I'd say if you had a 600 gallon aquarium with about 3" of sand substrate, powerheads moving about 4000 gallons an hour, and a stocking level and feeding regime that produces 20ppm ammonia per week or less, you could probably get away with no external filtration at all.

Really?

Yeah, as far as I know. What do you use fine polishing pads for? I assumed they're for trapping fine particles. If within a week of use your polishing pad is so clogged with fine particles of gunk that it's slowed your filter's output to a trickle, I'd say it's been doing its job of trapping fine particles of gunk pretty damn well.

So increasing the cross section surface area in the fx5 from 6" dia, to 11" won't help with the clogging of fine pads? ...... Tell ya what, My Fx5 can go months with a fine filter pad now after modding compared to 1 week with the OE design.

No that's not what I said. I said it would get clogged just as fast in relation to surface area and flow rate [also, quantity of gunk in the water] if used in any other filter.
So in my estimation, if a pad with say 10 square inches of surface area takes a week to get clogged with 1000lph of water flowing through it, a pad with 20 square inches of surface area with 1000lph of water flowing through it would take about 2 weeks to get clogged, or the same 20 square inch pad with 2000lph flowing through would take about one week to get clogged, etc.
But since the larger pad is filtering the same water you might get some sort of inverse quasi-exponential performance increase above what my simple estimation would predict.

How large to YOU is a reasonably sized, and sensibly stocked tank?

Pretty subjective really. To pull some figures out of the air, I'll say, assuming a barebottom display, assuming stocking and feeding that produce less than 20ppm nitrogenous waste per week, with a 4x turnover rate or more, 1 litre of bio media per 100 litres of water. I think that might be a good starting point.

Regardless, The Fx5 is more than enough bio media capacity for most tanks.

Agreed!

I don't know if I would use it but its rated for a 400 gallon aquarium.

To be honest I wouldn't, unless it was a very lightly stocked 400 gallons. I will very probably add a second smaller canister to my setup eventually, but primarily for reasons of redundancy and increased water movement.

 

[Jgray152]

We need to keep this on topic.

This thread was created with questions regarding the process of modding the Fx5, not why it should or should not be modded. That is up to the owner.

 

[Jgray152]

Yeah, as far as I know. What do you use fine polishing pads for? I assumed they're for trapping fine particles. If within a week of use your polishing pad is so clogged with fine particles of gunk that it's slowed your filter's output to a trickle, I'd say it's been doing its job of trapping fine particles of gunk pretty damn well.

I was being sarcastic...

Off topic...a few years ago, I was a Moderator/Tournament Referee for one of the larger gaming sites. About that time, everyone started to figure out how to Mod their Xboxs and we created a new rule that mod'ed conoles were disqualified from tournament entry. I was always having to delete or lock posts that were about moding consoles.

Every time I click New Posts and this thread comes up in the list, I get a little twinge lol

haha.

TO All: Like I said, Moddifing the Fx5 is not necessary but can do some good. Your eliminating a few flaws and adding more media (mechanical/bio). Its not for everyone and I don't expect it to be, I love my Fx5 modded and I am sure another person with the guts to try it will love it too. If you don't feel is necessary or it is a useless modification and ruins the filter, than don't do it but please keep those types of comments to yourself. My filter has been running like this for years now without issues and I love it everytime I need to clean it....its easy!

 

[rich k]

http://innovationlandscaping.com/fx5/ check this out

 

[Jgray152]

http://innovationlandscaping.com/fx5/ check this out

Thats my website

 

[Morledzep]

http://innovationlandscaping.com/fx5/ check this out

that is Jgray's website and the reason for spiritofthesoul starting this thread. gotta love folks that don't even read the first post, let alone any after that.