Rena filter

[Ruadh]

Hello all

I had a Cascade 1500 on my 175 gal. FW tank and it gradually lost volume for some unknow reason. I cleaned it, cleaned to lines, no joy.

I went to Big Al's here in Edmonton and got two of the biggest Rena's (can't remember the number) to replace the one big Cascade. Rena doesn't have one rated for a tank this big, which suited me just fine. This way if one goes down or is being cleaned, there's still the other.

I agree wholeheartedly with everything that FMZ as to say in the reviews.
This is a great filter.

The reason that I write all this is because there are a couple of reviews that complained about noise.
I did have a problem with noise and the pump not working right which I think was actually my own fault.

After a couple of days running, the pump would loose prime and make a heck of a racket. I would go through all the priming steps, take the top off and make sure the tank was full and put it all back together. It would be good for a couple of days and happen again. Then today, it wouldn't restart at all. I took the lid off and emptied all the water out so I could start from scratch. It was then that I discovered that the impeller cover had come loose. The pump won't work at all if this cover is not latched. Problem solved! She fired right up!

Now I have to admit that I didn't check to see if the pump cover was seated properly when I first installed the filter and it must have been just a little loose and worked it's way off.

Just thought I'd share this with you all so if your's make a bunch of noise you can look at the pump cover first instead of sharing my frustrations.

Enjoy your tanks

Rick

 

[gheitman]

Good job on tracking down the problem. I have a couple of the xP1 models on different tanks and couldn't be happier. I also bought the SmartHeater to use as the intake for the Filstars.

 

[Ruadh]

Thank you Sir

When I read some of the reviews complaining about noise, I thought it was kinda odd.
Then when I discovered why mine were making all that racket, I put two and two together and had to reply.

I think they are far, far easier to clean than the Cascade. With that filter, I couldn't get into the pump chamber completely to do a good job of cleaning so I got a great deal of brown junk every time I fired it up.

Rick

 

[Chisel]

I run an a Rena XP2 on my 55 and I have no complaints other than I wished I had held out for the XP3. lol These filters are extremely quiet and work well.

 

[Bert B]

I just bought a Rena XP4 for my 100 Gallon to replace my magnum 350. We just moved to a new home and I have yet to restart my tank but want to be very choosey at what kind of setup I want to run. Any tips you may have about the Rena XP4 filters would be appreciated as I have never owned one of these. is there anything i should know like how to correctly fill the 4 media baskets ? I know the coarse pads go on the bottom and the fine pad goes up on top. My questions are the middle baskets which have a divider in each one. I am thinking the divider is to put on top of the bio-media to keep it in place however, the drawing on the box shows media both on the bottom & on top of the divider but the instructions don't. can you experienced XP filter owners tell me what method works best to fill the center baskets and what kinds of bio-media do you use ? Mine came with some stars. Also, the bio-chem zorb, is that used in place of regular carbon ?
bert

 

[Chisel]

Fill the empty compartments with live rock rubble. Works far better than sponges or bagged bio-media.

 

[Bert B]

thanks, sounds like those baskets can take all kinds of stuff to filter well.

 

[SpeedEuphoria]

Fill the empty compartments with live rock rubble. Works far better than sponges or bagged bio-media.

Thats assuming its for SW, I believe he's asking about FW

 

[Bert B]

yes freshwater

 

[gheitman]

I just bought a Rena XP4 for my 100 Gallon to replace my magnum 350. We just moved to a new home and I have yet to restart my tank but want to be very choosey at what kind of setup I want to run. Any tips you may have about the Rena XP4 filters would be appreciated as I have never owned one of these. is there anything i should know like how to correctly fill the 4 media baskets ? I know the coarse pads go on the bottom and the fine pad goes up on top. My questions are the middle baskets which have a divider in each one. I am thinking the divider is to put on top of the bio-media to keep it in place however, the drawing on the box shows media both on the bottom & on top of the divider but the instructions don't. can you experienced XP filter owners tell me what method works best to fill the center baskets and what kinds of bio-media do you use ? Mine came with some stars. Also, the bio-chem zorb, is that used in place of regular carbon ?
bert

Yes, you can use the Bio-Chem Zorb in place of carbon. As far as other kinds of bio-media that can be used I suggest looking at Seachem's Matrix. I use it in a couple of my Filstars.