marineland filters

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an interest in aquariums or fish keeping!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

robo-snickers

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
Apr 18, 2012
Messages
40
Location
California
Why hello everyboy, i have a filter question

i have a 72 gallon bow front with a marineland emperor 400 and a marineland penguin 350.. all together its rated to clean about 160 gallons. these filters have done great but i have a major issue with them that maybe you guys can help. I do water changes once a week and alternate the filter i clean. Cleaning the filter consists of me cleaning the filter media with tank water and syphoning the dirty water left in the filter. However the problems comes in when i start the filter, no matter how much i clean them they still shoot a giant cloud of gunk in the tank. only way i can prevent this from happening is taking off the filter completely and rinsing the filter in the bathtub.. and still i will always get some type of gunk cloud. is this normal with these filters? its rather annoying since i do my best to get the tank looking nice only to have gunk fly all over my sand, plants, decorations.

I was also thinking maybe its tie to get a canister filter, but i dont want to pay an arm and a leg for a filter that has the same GPH as my two HOB filters. and suggestions?
 
Are you also squeezing out your foam pads and sponges in tank water? The gunk has to be coming from somewhere.
 
Pretty standard for any HOB filter. I have several different brands and they all do it.

Jesse


I've never had this happen with my AC series. I vaguely remember the Penguin 350 I had would do this. For my AC I clean the whole filter when I tear them down. That way when I prime it there's no gunk left to shoot out.


Caleb
 
If you're breaking down and cleaning the entire housing that's why it doesn't happen. You're removing the mulm when you do this. If you're simply shaking the pads off in old tank water, when you start it back up the mulm will shoot out as you have displaced/disturbed it. All hob's do it. Aqueon, AC, Marineland, topfin etc.

Jesse
 
If you're breaking down and cleaning the entire housing that's why it doesn't happen. You're removing the mulm when you do this. If you're simply shaking the pads off in old tank water, when you start it back up the mulm will shoot out as you have displaced/disturbed it. All hob's do it. Aqueon, AC, Marineland, topfin etc.

Jesse

Sounds about right to me. I don't remember having this problem either.
 
Would you guys say a canister filter is better in general? And how much and what size to get the same kind of filtration?
 
Would you guys say a canister filter is better in general? And how much and what size to get the same kind of filtration?
It's a matter of preference. I always break down my HOB and clean it properly with tank water. but, it shouldn't shoot the stuff out if you just take the filter out and empty the water. Either way, you should break down the filter once in a while to clean it anyways, before the impeller gets gunked, and stops.

As for a canister, a Fluval 406 should be enough for your tank.
 
why not start the filter then in a 5 gallon bucket of treated water to get the gunk out THEN put it back on the tank?
 
Back
Top Bottom