fx5 possiblity-anyone any opinions on it?

kelly82

kelly82

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Jun 1, 2007
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Lincolnshire, UK
i have just come into a small amount of cash unexpectedly, and i have wanted to replace my extremely noisy rattley humming rena xp4 for some time (well my husband has more than me as it drives him nuts), so i am jumping on this chance. has anyone got one of these? if so can you answer a couple of my questions please.

1.are they noisy?
2.they have high turn overs so do they come with a spray bar i can fit to the return to stop my fancy goldfish being whizzed up in a whirlpool?
3.ive heard there are 2 outputs on this filter, is this true? if so would i be able to get spray bars for each?

if you own anything different that would have a decent turn around like this filter for my 6 x 2 x 2 tank let me know and please add any opinions on which to go for. thanks for reading.
 
:) thanks for that, i have been reading lots of reviews of them since posting and so far it looks like il be getting one. very few people i have found have problems with it. i just hope it will create plenty of surface agitation as my goldies seem to really need a lot of oxygen in their water. i will still be running my air pump either way :) i so cant wait to get my hands on one now! a filter without the noise pollution!

oh and navyscuba, is that fish for real in your avatar??? i cant make up my mind lol.
 
If I'm not mistaken the noise level is about the same as an xp. The fx5 does not come with a spray bar. You could probably make one yourself out of some pvc pipe and a few elbows.

The most quiet canisters by far are Eheim. If noise leve is your biggest concern than you may want to look into an Eheim.
 
I own a two Magnum 350's, two Fluval 404, two AquaClear 500/300, and three Fluval FX5's.

Noise. I can tell you that I was very surprised that such a large canister filter like the FX5 with an external pump could possible be a s quite as the Fluvial 404. The only way you can tell if its running is by looking at the outflow tubes which vibrate back & forth inside the aquarium due to the high GPH, and even though the 1 inch outflow nozzle is split into two 1 inch outflow ports, I still have to point the outflow nozzles at the corner to help defuse the flow. But yes dead silent not so much as a hum, buzz, or gurgle.

Satisfaction. Very satisfied, so much so I d like to get two more for my 60 and 80 tank but cant justify it since I already have a doubled up Mag 350 and fluval 404 on each.

Performance. You just cant beat the duel capacity filtration this canister has, almost 300 square feet of industrial style circumference filter surface area which can accommodate standard poly polishing quilt material as the first stage of filtration, followed by a top to bottom 3 level basket filter stage each with its own sealing O-ring to absolutely prevent filter bypass. Each of the 3 baskets basket holding 1/2 gallon of loose water treatment media (bio balls, carbon, ceramics) as intended for the ultimate canister filter capable of providing the bio & water treatment of a stack-only canister filters (Ehiem) while capable of true non-bypass polishing due to its 1st stage enormous 300SF filter footprint which scrubs the water clean before proceeding to the basket stage eliminating the early clogging experienced with stack-only canister filters which had a small footprint to size surface area most only between 35-80 square feet. The FX5 simply provides the best of both circumference industrial strength mechanical filtration and the stylish convince of removable basket media for bio and chemical filtration.

All of this backed by a 600 GPH pump flow and with a price that cant be matched. I bought each of mine on Ebay auction NEW for between $200 and $230 which included shipping. If you read the head to head reviews with its competitor carefully, 3 key areas the FX5 was exceptional and blew away the competition was in total media surface area, ability to capture dirt, GPH almost twice the competition's, and price almost 1/2 the competition.

You can pay more but you wont buy a better performing in house aquarium canister filter hands down and box stock.:thumbsup:
 
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Fish avatar

kelly82 said:
:) thanks for that, i have been reading lots of reviews of them since posting and so far it looks like il be getting one. very few people i have found have problems with it. i just hope it will create plenty of surface agitation as my goldies seem to really need a lot of oxygen in their water. i will still be running my air pump either way :) i so cant wait to get my hands on one now! a filter without the noise pollution!

oh and navyscuba, is that fish for real in your avatar??? i cant make up my mind lol.
Click to expand...

Yes is a real fish. Is an Red OB Peacock. Basically a hybrid between a Red Zebra and a Electric Blue Peacock(Both African Malawi Cichlids)
 
CWO4GUNNER said:
I own a two Magnum 350's, two Fluval 404, two AquaClear 500/300, and three Fluval FX5's.

Noise. I can tell you that I was very surprised that such a large canister filter like the FX5 with an external pump could possible be a s quite as the Fluvial 404. The only way you can tell if its running is by looking at the outflow tubes which vibrate back & forth inside the aquarium due to the high GPH, and even though the 1 inch outflow nozzle is split into two 1 inch outflow ports, I still have to point the outflow nozzles at the corner to help defuse the flow. But yes dead silent not so much as a hum, buzz, or gurgle.

Satisfaction. Very satisfied, so much so I d like to get two more for my 60 and 80 tank but cant justify it since I already have a doubled up Mag 350 and fluval 404 on each.

Performance. You just cant beat the duel capacity filtration this canister has, almost 300 square feet of industrial style circumference filter surface area which can accommodate standard poly polishing quilt material as the first stage of filtration, followed by a top to bottom 3 level basket filter stage each with its own sealing O-ring to absolutely prevent filter bypass. Each of the 3 baskets basket holding 1/2 gallon of loose water treatment media (bio balls, carbon, ceramics) as intended for the ultimate canister filter capable of providing the bio & water treatment of a stack-only canister filters (Ehiem) while capable of true non-bypass polishing due to its 1st stage enormous 300SF filter footprint which scrubs the water clean before proceeding to the basket stage eliminating the early clogging experienced with stack-only canister filters which had a small footprint to size surface area most only between 35-80 square feet. The FX5 simply provides the best of both circumference industrial strength mechanical filtration and the stylish convince of removable basket media for bio and chemical filtration.

All of this backed by a 600 GPH pump flow and with a price that cant be matched. I bought each of mine on Ebay auction NEW for between $200 and $230 which included shipping. If you read the head to head reviews with its competitor carefully, 3 key areas the FX5 was exceptional and blew away the competition was in total media surface area, ability to capture dirt, GPH almost twice the competition's, and price almost 1/2 the competition.

You can pay more but you wont buy a better performing in house aquarium canister filter hands down and box stock.:thumbsup:
Click to expand...

:thumbsup: thank you so much, you have cemented my decision on an fx5. sounds great, exactly what im looking for.

Navyscuba said:
Yes is a real fish. Is an Red OB Peacock. Basically a hybrid between a Red Zebra and a Electric Blue Peacock(Both African Malawi Cichlids)
Click to expand...

amazing fish :D
 
kelly82 said:
:thumbsup: thank you so much, you have cemented my decision on an fx5. sounds great, exactly what im looking for.



amazing fish :D
Click to expand...

Your welcome, the only place I goofed in my comments is on the measured area, so anywhere I said square feet should be replaced by square inches LOL.
 
I own both the FX5 and the rena xp4, as well as a Ehiem 2028. I can conclusively say the fx5 is quieter than the RENA, but it sounds like you got a bad rena xp4 as well. My Rena gurgles from time to time but I can't say I have ever heard it rattle. In terms of total quiet the Eheim wins, but then again its half the filter the fx5 is so it's not apples to apples.

As far as the dual outputs, i am not sure what you are refering to, the fx5 has one output hose that has a dual head on the end. I don't really consider that a dual output, but maybe others do.
 
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