Xp3 hoses getting covered in black/brown spots?

[kaz]

is this normal or do a major clean.
this tank is in the process of cycling and it has nitrite pretty high, changing water cause of fish in it 3 times a week.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Perfectly normal. Don't worry about it. As long as none of the hoses are drooping to where gunk can build up in the bottom of the U-shape, you are fine. If they are, you might want to cut some off and make them more straight with no droop. Mine go almost vertical up the back.

 

[kaz]

so what you are saying is that this is forming do to a curvy hose?

 

[Lonewolfblue]

It can have a curve, yes. Doesn't need to be completely straight. You just don't want a droop in it like a U. It's perfectly fine to have gunk in the lines. Won't hurt anything. You should see mine, lol. You think yours is bad? LOL. Mines been running now 9 months.

 

[SCFatz]

Mine are browning up as well....Its on (under) the tall hex so its quite a run of hose.No a very attractive look.

 

[Creamhorses]

Is it algae?

 

[Lonewolfblue]

It's just a form of algae, as well as the bacteria for your cycle. But yes, that's all it is.

 

[src]

Regarding the arrangement of the hoses, I'm planning to keep all the equipment under the stand. I had planned to route the return hose from the XP3, to the inline heater, to a CO2 reactor (in through the top, out through the bottom), then up into the tank. Obviously, this would put a "trap" in the line where it exits the reactor. Is this a "bad thing", or just something that I need to keep my eye on for maintenance?

I have also considered plumbing in a hose connector and valve on the same circuit. It would make it REALLY easy to do water changes when I don't want to vaccum the bottom. Any thoughts on that? Thanks!

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Yes, it would be a bad thing. Not only for having a trap, but for the auto-priming as well. I would personally have the CO2 reactor before the filter on the intake line.

 

[src]

Yes, it would be a bad thing. Not only for having a trap, but for the auto-priming as well. I would personally have the CO2 reactor before the filter on the intake line.

Hmm, that's pretty bad news for my plans then. I really wanted to keep all of the equipment in the stand. I know that it's not ideal for the reactor, but what about a horizontal run through the heater and reactor, with a slight upwards slope, then turning up to the tank?

As for putting the reactor before the filter, I run into the same issue of hiding everything. Plus, I worry about debris building up on the bio-balls inside - that glued up PVC contraption (just finished it an hour ago) will be very tough to clean.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

You can try it horrizontal, but I'm not sure how well the CO2 injection will do being horizontal. I believe it needs to be vertical. But I've never tried it. My only concern would be the auto-priming. As per the manufacturers recommendation, it should be a straight shot, and no drooping, etc. Experiment with it and see what you can do. Also, I wouldn't see a problem with it being on the intake line. If the bio-balls are large, and have lots of room room for flow, I don't see a problem with clogging up.

 

[src]

I thought that the auto priming was only an issue on the inlet side. Frankly, the instruction book I have doesn't mention hose routing at all, other than "make sure you don't cut it too short". Since the inlet is what gets filled to prime the system, I figured that the outlet side was moderately irrelevant to priming. Could just be a bad assumption on my part, though.

The bio-balls I got were fairly small (about 1" each) - that's all I could find in my area - so I am worried about debris building up if I put it on the inlet.

I may just go ahead and experiment with it while I am cycling. The CO2 will be inactive for a while anyway, I just want to get all the plumbing in place now, rather than having to tear into things again later.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

As for the auto priming, if you have a drip line effect in the hose, the air going from the cannister to the output will get caught in the trap, and possibly cause a little back-pressure. the air should freely go to the output. But I've never tried it. You can always experiment with it and let us know your results.

 

[src]

As for the auto priming, if you have a drip line effect in the hose, the air going from the cannister to the output will get caught in the trap, and possibly cause a little back-pressure. the air should freely go to the output. But I've never tried it. You can always experiment with it and let us know your results.

Thanks for all the advice. I know it sounds like I am going to "just do it my way anyway", but you really have given me food for thought. At least now I am aware of the possible problems, and know that I may have to rearrange things later to make it work. I'll be sure to report back on my results.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Cool, can't wait to hear how things go.

 

[src]

I know I've sort of hijacked this thread, but I thought I would post a quick update. I've installed the XP3 with the outflow going up to the in-line heater, then over to the top of my homebrew CO2 reactor, down through the reactor and out the bottom, then up to the tank. The XP3 came with _just_ barely enough hose to make everything work (more on order for mods/additional plumbing).

The priming went exactly according to the manual. The only issue I had when I started the filter was a lot of "running water" sound from the reactor. Obviously, there was a good bit of air trapped in there. I planned on detatching it from the bracket today to move it around so the air could escape, but by this morning there was no more noise. All of the air has been flushed.

I shut down and removed the filter (using the quick disconnects) to add some media from my other tank, and upon reconnection it primed and started just fine. The only problem I have now is that my in-line heater isn't perfectly vertical (about 30 degrees off), so I have to be sure to clear it of air bubbles before I turn it on. Once I get the additional hose, I will move it to the vertical run after the reactor. Yet another case of "act first, think second" syndrome.

So far things seem to be working quite well. I'm also very glad that I used a check valve as the CO2 inlet to the reactor.

 

[kaz]

about hijacking this thread is perfectly alright, now reading all your post I have a question that I didnt know about, you need to keep the inline heater perfectly vertical? my is a bit slanted

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Both of mine are at about a 15-20 degree angle, not perfectly vertical.

 

[src]

about hijacking this thread is perfectly alright, now reading all your post I have a question that I didnt know about, you need to keep the inline heater perfectly vertical? my is a bit slanted

The instructions say to keep it vertical. I assume that this is because the inner structure isn't just a simple tube, and air bubbles can accumulate in there, which can screw up the heater.

I just give mine a good shake whenever I get air in the system, and will be rearranging things next week so that it is oriented straight up.

 

[BillD]

The build up in the hoses will reduce the flow of the filter, so, I remove mine when it builds up. I use a piece of bamboo garden stake, and a piece of J-cloth, as a patch, the way you would clean a gun barrel. The pumps in cannister filters don't generate much pressure, so the less impediment to flow, the better.