I set a post in the fresh water getting started forum and people told me fluvals are good, and the people that have them said i can't go wrong with it. Well i went to a lfs and the kid that works there knows what hes talking about you can just tell and he said that fluvals are the worst and he always see's them coming back to the stores broken. Whats the deal, did i screw up when i ordered the fluval 404 for my 55 gallon tank?
Are Fluvals really that bad, im confused.....
- Thread starter Franco7
- Start date
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Jchillin
Aquarium Advice Addict
You would take the word of a kid working at a LFS? I'm a fluval user and IMO, it's the best thing on the market. Of course, with any mechanical device, damage caused by misuse and or improper maintenance can occur but I would say it is quite rare that a fluval would break on it's own.
I would be interested in knowing why this kid told you this...did he recommend something different?
I would be interested in knowing why this kid told you this...did he recommend something different?
Clown Monarch
Aquarium Advice FINatic
I second that, I love mine.
ummmm.... he just said that he see's alot of them come in, and he also said its prob alot of people don't know how to use it or take care of it. That leads me to this question tho. Are they hard to use and put togather or maintain? He said he uses the cascade 1000 and recommended that.
Jchillin
Aquarium Advice Addict
I agree that the initial set up can be very tricky. You will have to cut the single hose into two parts, making sure that you measure them out perfectly. If you follow the directions, you won't have any problems. For a pictorial view, I've included these:
What the hoses should look like when finished:
Test run: (check the amount of flow)
Another view of the hose assembly:
HTH!
What the hoses should look like when finished:
Test run: (check the amount of flow)
Another view of the hose assembly:
HTH!
Isn't that water spitting out to fast, see i won't be able to do that seeing where my tank is already setup. I convereted from a 30gal to a 55gal so i had to set it up with just mt hang on the back fliter which i am keeping as well as the canister so that i have alot of filteration. Have you had any major problems with yours or anyone, and how long have you had it for?
http://cichlid-forum.com/reviews/category_display.php?CatID=104&sort=rating
Just a theory here, but note how many more reviewers there are for the Fluvals. My bet is that many more people buy them in the first place since they are so affordable, and hence the seemingly high return rate, but perhaps the percentage failure rate is still lower than other filter? Anyone here work at an LFS that has actual metrics that they can share?
Just a theory here, but note how many more reviewers there are for the Fluvals. My bet is that many more people buy them in the first place since they are so affordable, and hence the seemingly high return rate, but perhaps the percentage failure rate is still lower than other filter? Anyone here work at an LFS that has actual metrics that they can share?
Jchillin
Aquarium Advice Addict
It's on maximum flow (this was the original test run). What exactly do you mean by "I won't be able to do that?" Do what? I don't know if you can tell, but the tank is almost flush with the wall...plenty of room. The flow is adjustable (as is the outflow nozzle position) I used the pic to show what maximum (with no water in the tank) to illustrate the power...I wouldn't run full flow...it's not necessary.
If I had any problems with it...I would have been happy to cite an example and I have had 0 problems. This one is two months old.
If I had any problems with it...I would have been happy to cite an example and I have had 0 problems. This one is two months old.
very cool, i mean like how you have a half full tank. My tank is already fully setup so i can't really do a flow test you know, so i guess i will just play with it while its in the tank to see what flow and just adjust as needed.... Thanks guys, keep anymore insight coming as well....
i went to my local petco today and the kid that was running the fish section also told me that fluval is the way to go and the only reason why so many come back is cause people dont maintain and put them togather right.... so see i guess not all lfs's are out to get ya...
Clown Monarch
Aquarium Advice FINatic
Franco7 said:
The ease of maintenance with the Fluval is outstanding. It takes me literally 10 minutes to clean.
Jchillin
Aquarium Advice Addict
IMO, the damage was almost fatal...LOL. If you think about it, if you had gone with the kid's original advice, you may have purchased a different filter altogether. 
greenmaji
Aquarium Advice Addict
My experiance with the fluval.. I have a old fluval 403.. it is a little harder to maintain but this one is 15 years old and still runs like a dream! There is nothing wrong with the fluval, I know of many of them that are still running that are 10+ years old.. I dont know what to tell you other than if you got yourself one you made a great desision.
GIMojo
Aquarium Advice Freak
greenmagi said:My experiance with the fluval.. I have a old fluval 403.. it is a little harder to maintain but this one is 15 years old and still runs like a dream! There is nothing wrong with the fluval, I know of many of them that are still running that are 10+ years old.. I dont know what to tell you other than if you got yourself one you made a great desision.
YEH!!!! FLUVAL 403 USER!!!!!!!!
Somebody gave it to me at a grage sale along with a bunch of other stuff for 50 dollars
Fishyfanatic
Aquarium Advice Addict
But don't disregard the kids advice on the Cascade either. They are quality canisters. I have 2 and the third is on it's way.
greenmaji
Aquarium Advice Addict
I get alot of my equipment used, sometimes broken... I fix it and use it.. my fluval had a bad impeller o-ring.. I just replaced it and off I went..LOL, Im almost certain I didnt pay a penny for it.. so as far as buying the Cascade.. well I might try it if someone breaks an old one and I get my hands on it...LOL 
tazcrash69
Aquarium Advice Regular
My fluval 304 (old translucent round one) is 6 years old, and I have never had to even replace the o-ring on it. It can get a picky to get it started (I tilt it to 1 side, to get air out), but it runs nice and quiet. I just wish it had a primer.
Zagz
Aquarium Advice Addict
Jchillin said:
I have a used one and downloaded the instruction manual but seem to have missed the part on how to adjust the flow. How do you adjust the flow speed?
greenmaji
Aquarium Advice Addict
tazcrash69 said:
the 403 had a bad impeller o-ring from dry rott.. it was left dry for a long time.. otherwise I would say they dont need much maintainace at all..
sorry zagz.. Ive got the old one.. you can restrict any pump on the output side without damaging it.. I would look for a valve on the output or on the output side of the top of the filter case.. HTH
That reminds me that I might be able to use my fluval as a pump!!!! (I need less flow then 311gph) ahhhhh KUDOS to YOU!!!
