Quick Odyssea CFS500 Review

[klownh8er]

It finally arrived.

Note: I can not compare this to any canister filter that it is supposed to compare to, the only have I have is the magnum 250 from 8 years + ago.

Here is it out of the box

I'm not sure what the inside of a fx5 looks like, but this has no media trays, just a pump.

Everything put together, minus the hoses.

Directions/Diagram

Alright now for the actual review
- Some parts feel very sturdy, while others feel cheap.
- The top two valves literally twist off with ease, which concerns me.
- The hoses fit very snug
- The water pump, literally pops off from the bottom and moves around when you take the top off.
- Just dump in the provided bio-balls, and put foam on top, that is it for assembly
-I'm not sure what media capacity is, but it doesn't look like much.
-It took about 25 seconds to move 4 gallons of water out of the jug, with their provided media. So round that to 30, it is approximately 480gph (please correct me if I'm wrong)
-Does not leak, I picked up the unit and shook it around
-Self-priming, no pumping required, just filled it up and started it. After a few minutes, air was purged. Upon shaking it the unit though, more air was being pumped out.


BAD: Leaky hoses/valve connectors. Unit is no longer in use until I can fix it.

Any questions or concerns, feel free to speak up.

 

[romanjetfighter]

lol good to know there is more than just one "bioball" as it says on the ebay page

one question, the flow rate that was with 0 head? could maybe you estimate the gph at 4-5 foot head? and the inside diameter of the tubes used is 3/4 inches? how quiet do you feel it is?

thanks so much
this is a freaking sweet deal for only 60 bucks

 

[ar0wan]

man from those pix it looks like it's worth $60.
that makes me a little scary..

GL tho

 

[klownh8er]

lol good to know there is more than just one "bioball" as it says on the ebay page

one question, the flow rate that was with 0 head? could maybe you estimate the gph at 4-5 foot head? and the inside diameter of the tubes used is 3/4 inches? how quiet do you feel it is?

thanks so much
this is a freaking sweet deal for only 60 bucks

I'm not sure what you mean by 0 head? If you are talking about the hoses, they were connected, and the hose was stuck in the 5 gallon jug.

Yes the inside tube is 3/4"

 

[klownh8er]

man from those pix it looks like it's worth $60.
that makes me a little scary..

GL tho

Well remember that the hoses did not seal properly, the gasket they provide does not stay in place and actually slides to the bottom.

The valve connectors on the other hand, are just not tight and feel very loose.

I'm still trying to figure out what to do with stuff I have laying around, without have to spend more money.

Any suggestions from the gurus out there?

 

[NotoriousSway]

there is also a thread about this on AC

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=2393605


Here is a excerpt that should help you:

i have a jebo/odyssea cfs4 canister and have had only one problem with it started to leak aorund the spot the hoses hooked to. replaced thoes rubber o rings with some from auto part store and never leaked again. its been up and running for 8 or so monthes with only one little hiccup.

so with my experience with jebo stuff ide get that filter and try it with out a second thought

 

[klownh8er]

lol good to know there is more than just one "bioball" as it says on the ebay page

one question, the flow rate that was with 0 head? could maybe you estimate the gph at 4-5 foot head? and the inside diameter of the tubes used is 3/4 inches? how quiet do you feel it is?

thanks so much
this is a freaking sweet deal for only 60 bucks

I apologize, I understand your question and will test at 4-5 ft head.

 

[klownh8er]

Just finished my test at 6ft head. I had an empty ten gallon tank, and held the out hose above my head, so it's a little over 6ft. It took 1 minute and 37 seconds to drain the entire 10 gallon. The ten gallon was approximately at 4 and 1/2 ft.
So does that mean 60/1.37 = ~44 (43.79) x 10 = 440 gph?
Or is there something I am completely missing here in my equation. I feel like I'm doing something wrong.

I thought the general rule of thumb was that you divide the given gph by half?

Note, will be getting some gaskets tonight hopefully.

 

[the_deeb]

1 min and 37 seconds = 1.62 mins

So 10gal in 1.62mins means you're getting around 370gph at 6' head.

Thanks for posting the review. Flow rate seems pretty good. The capacity looks a little smaller than I expected and the proportions seem a little off (the hose attachments look huge in comparison to the media capacity). It's hard to tell from the pic - where does the pump draw in water from? Are there holes along that central shaft or just at the bottom? The media layout makes it look like a vertical flow canister but that central shaft makes it look like water would be drawn in horizontally.

 

[Michiba54]

How long did it take to arrive klownh8er? Free shipping is the devil.

Wanna see some more data/user reviews on these. Chinese knock offs are usaually crap, but every now an then you find a diamond in the rough.