Fluval 404 quality?

[fishfeind]

Hmph

Maybe I damaged the impeller shaft in my 104 during cleaning and it's causing the impeller to vibrate? Mine is in the tank stand cupboard and I can hear it in the other room when I have the TV on mute

Have to see if I can replace the shaft - they can't be that expensive?

I've had a Fluval 104 for over 2 years and I've got no complaints about it. the impellor shaft for a 104 at petland is only 9 canadian dollars, not bad, eh?

When i clean the tubes i just conect then to my sink tap turn on the hot water, and then squeeze parts of the tube to dislodge any debris. works for me.

 

[ukjay]

ive got the 304 had no probs apart from the tubes getting around to changing then to non corrsgated

good bit of kit

 

[knutty]

there is something to be said for corregated tubing- they can bend nicely around the lip of the tank without collapsing and kinking. as for the negatives: they hold junk and they produce turbulance which degrades flow. i experimented with different types of tubing when installing my UV sterilizer. nothing works like corregated tubing. nothing. everything else kinks when it softens from the warm water. i ended up using the unit as a hang on the tank style to keep my tube runs short. i really wanted it under my cabinet ( hence the purchase of the rio 2500 to push the water all that way.. ) but now use a little 201 powerhead. wasted rio 2500, anyone need one? i decided i could keep the unit concealed enough that it did not bother me to the point of using another setup of corregated tubes that would have to be cleaned. i would have jsut gone with the output from the fluval and then return from the UV unit to the tank, but my flow rate dropped below what I felt was sufficient for a filter ( while being perfect for the UV unit)

 

[Sye]

I have a 204 running on one of my tank the only problem is with sealing the the unit togther without it leaking......

 

[knutty]

ok ok ok. i talked a good game about the fluval but ya know what...i am taking some of it back. i feed a lot of brine shrimp and blood worms. there are always bits and pieces floating around the tank. so my filter gets dirty faster than most. here is a problem i experienced: once the mechanical filter insert becomes semi-dirty, water is allowed to pass around it directly to the output chamber. there are ways around this filter stage. the magnum series seals the micron filter and forces water to pass through, regardless of filter quality. this is very important to me. i dedided to take the fluval off after last nights cleaning. i jsut cant handle the bypass and the corrugated tubing. think about the magnum filters and do a little homework. fluval makes a good product for the money, but i think there might be better values in other brands.