# hypothetical fx5 (now on order)



## danmil3s (20 Dec 2010)

i been thinking about maybe one day getting an fx5. my sump is ok but makes a bit of noise and to be honest is a bit of a bodge. so i was wonder if i did go this route what would you guys do to get co2 in the tank whilst keeping the equipment out of the tank. its a 7'x2'x2' id probably go with a spray bar as this works well at the moment. ive 2 wave makers at 12000 lph each dealing with flow so the filter would just be for filtering. just some thing ive been thinking about. might never happen.


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## Dolly Sprint 16v (20 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*



			
				danmil3s said:
			
		

> what would you guys do to get co2 in the tank whilst keeping the equipment out of the tank.



Danmils

Plenty of options:
1. External reactor (Aqua medic) http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/AQUAMEDIC-AQUA-ME ... 33497fce1c

2. In line diffuser / up atomiser http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Up-aqua-CO2-Atomi ... 3caf1c764e

If you fancy a bit of glassware: 

3. Pop underneath the water intake pipe. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Spio-VIII-CO2-Dif ... 3a4fb700a3

Regards
Paul.


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## danmil3s (20 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*

yeah think it would have to be a diy of option 2 cant find any in-line reactors with 1" fittings


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## stevec (21 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*

im in the process of setting one of these up on a new tank im going to use the aquamedic inline im just waiting for some 1" hose barb fittings to adapt the aquamedic (damn snow) I will let you know how it goes.
Also going to run a full length spray bar which is going to be an homemade acrylic job im thinking of splitting the out flow to fit on both ends.
Also planning on having two intakes im going to make some alternative clear acrylic intakes dont like the look of the monster that comes with the fx5


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## danmil3s (21 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*

sounds interesting Steve you will have to let me know how you get on with the 1" barbs on the aquamedic ive not seen one in the flesh so hard to imagine how you would go about converting it. but nice to know if its doable the more i think about this the more i think im going to go ahead and do it probably get Â£100 for my pond pump so that would nearly cover cost wife still wont be happy. ill have to go to a shop and have a look at the water in take hagan clam its nearly never clogs but if it is huge might need changing. but another thing i plan on doing is changing my 3d back ground for a black one. so that might hide it a bit, will do spray bar in black as well.


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## stevec (21 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*

Well the bits came today so one adapted aquamedic with 25mm hose barbs










just cut off the original hose barbs drilled and threaded to take the 25mm hosebarb and bonded with pvc cement I put the Y connector on as I want to attach hose to both ends of the spraybar

also made the homemade 25mm acrylic intakes




also made a 25mm acrylic spray bar but cant seem to get a good picture of that just looks like a bit of acrylic tube


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## danmil3s (21 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*

impressed with your diy skills mate very  nice intake. simpler to convert to 1" than i thought. ive a Fluidized bed i want to use as a reactor could probably convert that. do you have a link for the tails please think im i going through with this. looks like ill be talking the wife in to it weekend would be nice to have a quite living room again


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## stevec (21 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*

sure mate https://www.irrigationuk.com/


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## danmil3s (21 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*

nice one thanks mate how big is you tank by the way


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## stevec (21 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*

800x700x500cm not as big as yours  but i needed the fx5 for the headhight of the pump as its going to sit in a wall cavity and top of the tank is approx 6ft off the floor and not many externals can pump that high


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## danmil3s (21 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*

now i remember the tank  you where talking about ply builds


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## Gfish (21 Dec 2010)

*hypothetical fx5*

Hi

I have an FX5 that I run CO2 through. Basicly the CO2 pipe goes into the intake between one of the slots and up into the pipe above. So theres no wasted gas, it all goes into the filter and comes out via a spraybar along the back wall of the tank. This method ensures good dissolved gas and good distribution. 
I started off with a diffuser under the intake, and this worked fine but it lost some gas that missed the intake so was not as efficient as it is now. I'm estimating I should get approx. 30% longer out of a bottle.
I thought about the AM reactor as well as building my own, but there's no better way of doing this than using the whole filter to do the job  im really happy with the simplicity and the results.

Cheers

Gavin


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## mdhardy01 (22 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*

Did the thread on the 1inch barbs not screw straight into the reactor
Matt


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## stevec (22 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*

no they seem to be some special bottle thread


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## stevec (22 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*



			
				danmil3s said:
			
		

> now i remember the tank  you where talking about ply builds



no not me?


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## danmil3s (22 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*

oh sorry mate thought it was you with the ply do you have a Journal for your tank.
defiantly going to get an fx5 now did you thread the hole you drilled in the aqua medic or are you 1" barbs just glued or held with a nut the other side cant put a thread in what im going to use the plastics not thick enough so will have to try to find a nut to hold it plus glue thanks for your help buy the way


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## danmil3s (22 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*

iv ordered the fx5 did look at Eheim but they cost to much. once its here on the following Saturday ill probably take the alfgrog out of my sump put it all in and just start using the fx5. then once its settled down ill put in some polishing pads, might get some more purigen too. now need to work out what bits to get for the reactor. not sure i can convert my fluidised bed so bit of a re think is needed.


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## Gfish (22 Dec 2010)

*hypothetical fx5*

Hi

You'll not be sorry of your purchase, I love my FX5! The waterchange facility alone is a great asset.
I did post earlier with an explanation of how I have it set up. Not sure if you missed it, but have you not given thought to using the filter itself as a giant reactor?
Avoids adding extra hardware and restricting flow.

I tried polishing pads in mine but they clog up and within a couple of weeks the flow is noticeably slowed down, and it almost stopped. I don't use polishing pads at all now.

Cheers

Gavin


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## danmil3s (22 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5*

sorry gfish i read your post before work and forgot to reply. i know a lot of people use the filter to react co2 but i have 2 concerns the first is on a 750l high light tank that's a lot of gas to put through even a big filter. second the fx5 has the in built shut of thing  to get rid of built up gas. i don't know of that being a problem on any other filter so didn't want to add more gas to it.  i might give it a go just for a bit see how it affects the filter. what size was your tank  any idea how much gas you are putting in.


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## Gfish (23 Dec 2010)

*hypothetical fx5*

Hi

Yeah I worried about the same things but I've been running it like this now for a month or two and it's going great. My tank is 720litre. I'd say give it a try, you can always change it and build a reactor once you're up and running, but I have a feeling you'll stick with it and be happy of the minimising on hardware. Remember also that if you want to put in an inline reactor you'll need to change the Fluval ribbed hosing. 

The FX5 cut off period lasts 2 mins, that's all. I've not noticed any downside to this. 
To be honest, I wish I had a clear cased FX5 so I could see what goes on in there but I imagine those CO2 bubbles, and lots of them are diffused and become liquid fairly quickly in the turbulence of such a powerful filter. 

Once you get this filter set up, I bet you'll want another one   the tank certainly doesn't need it, but as I had a heavy fishload, (6 large silver dollars, 6 medium to large cichlids and 4 medium to large plecs)  I saw a secondhand one for sale and snapped it up. It was either that or add powerheads as I wanted lots of flow. Not really sure it was necessary but hey, I couldn't resist 

Cheers

Gavin


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## danmil3s (23 Dec 2010)

ill definitely try your method so simple why not. im glad you talk so highly of it. ill just be glad not to have to put buckets of water in every day to keep the level in the sump above my reactors. and a bit of less noise the hum of the pump does  spoil the relaxing part a bit.


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## danmil3s (24 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5 (now fitted)*

filter turned up today super fast from e bay seller. set up in under an hour. only thing is i have to keep getting up to check its still running so quiet and im surprised at how powerful better than i could have hoped.


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## mdhardy01 (25 Dec 2010)

I got one when my two eheim 2075's packed up must say very impressed and almost the same turnover as the two eheims
Would have two of these but need to connect up my am1000 and it won't fit 1 inch pipe
Matt


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## danmil3s (26 Dec 2010)

mdhardy01 we talked  about making the am 1000 fit the fx5 with a bit of diy but Gfish suggested just using the filter as a reactor so when i get my new co2 bottle ill let you know how i get on with that.


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## Gfish (26 Dec 2010)

Good to hear you have it up and running. What media did you put in it?
It's a beautiful beast of a thing huh?


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## danmil3s (26 Dec 2010)

For now ive just put the alfagrog from my sump in it once it has run a bit ill change the media about a bit


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## mdhardy01 (27 Dec 2010)

How's the co2 going?


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## danmil3s (27 Dec 2010)

my co2 ran out last Thursday im hoping to get some tomorrow. will have to start up with half lights and build up co2 levels again. ive left the tank lights off under clives advice. 
i thought i had 1/2 an fe for emergences but guess it leaked. i probably wont be injecting the full amount of gas for several weeks now unfortunately. i will update this thread with how i get on


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## sanj (30 Dec 2010)

danmil3s said:
			
		

> ive 2 wave makers at 12000 lph each dealing with flow so the filter would just be for filtering. just some thing ive been thinking about. might never happen.




Hmm very sensible, ive just been rabbiting on about this.  I use two MP40s for the same, I do use a FX5 and it has a UV attached, but I do use two other filters primarily for co2 delivery with external reactors like those mentioned, although mine where Aquamas reactors from Deutchland. The website is a pain unless you read the lingo.

Probably better co2 conservation than a sump, but then again sumps great advantage to my mind is the extra volume, but its pros and cons and it doesnt suit all situations.


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## sanj (30 Dec 2010)

Yup FX5s are great, i have two and well there is greater probability that one would have had some problem, but no theyve been going strong since 2008.


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## Garuf (30 Dec 2010)

If you had a pair of closed loop reactors that are dedicated to co2 would that not negate the speed at which co2 could be out gassed? I mean, Amano uses sumps on his big tanks, and so does Tom Barr and a couple of polish aquascapers?


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## danmil3s (30 Dec 2010)

*Re: hypothetical fx5 (now fitted)*

i think sumps can be used well with planted tanks if planed right. but unfortunately when i set my tank up it wasn't going to be planted. so the initial set up wasn't right. it was all a bit noisy and a bit of a bodge. the sump was sealed with selotape and expanding foam to make it air tight.  the fx5 was the easiest way of fixing all my problems with out pulling the tank down. getting  new weirs fitted, getting a new co2 friendly sump built and buying a quieter pump. so far im really happy with the fx5. and for the price its well worth it.


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## Garuf (30 Dec 2010)

That always made me think, just how do you clean a sealed sump? Or a sump at all for the matter?


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## danmil3s (30 Dec 2010)

i used to just pull the tape off and put fresh on after id finished. to clean id pump the water out using a power head with a length of hose in to a bucket. so the mulm wouldn't float about. then just clean the media as normal. when you re fill the tank it will refill the sump.if there made with proper lids and the section dividers at the right hight i think they have the potential work really well. my main problem was the noise from the weir and the pump itself.


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## danmil3s (15 Jan 2011)

so i had the co2 just poked in to the filter inlet. Although this seemed to work ok i could hear the bubbles going up the tube. Also the noise coming from the impeller worried me a bit, not as quiet as it was when i first turned it on with out co2.  so i came up with a cheap plan i brought from ebay. 1 meter of 25mm hose, an atomizer (one of the cheap ones) and a 25mm hose tail connector. i drilled a hole in the pipe pushed a bit of co2 hose through, with a enough inside to put on the atomizer and change/clean if needs be. i used a bit of aquarium silicone i had to seal it then waited for it to dry. Then i fitted the end with the atomizer to the fx5 tap, then the other end to the hose going to the spray bar. i clamped all the parts together with  hose clips 3 in total. Turned it all back on, no leaks and now no noise and all the co2 is still dissolved. Much easer than building a proper reactor cost less than a tener and still works.  Hears a photo best i could do with camera phone and no photo skills.


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## mdhardy01 (17 Jan 2011)

So do you end up with co2 mist in the tank? Or dose it all dissolve before? 
Matt


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## danmil3s (18 Jan 2011)

there is the odd squeaky bubble from the spray bar . maybe a few bubbles in the tank but not a mist i mean like a couple of hundred in the whole tank at any one time. i plan on putting something in the spray bar like a bio ball or something to brake up the last little bit.ill let you know how i get on.


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## danmil3s (3 Feb 2011)

ok for anyone thinking of trying this injection method. it didn't work as well as id hoped. the atomizer seemed to get dirty to quickly, this reduced the gas flow giving me algae. back to the drawing board.


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## Gfish (3 Feb 2011)

I'm surprised to hear you've not had success with this. 
It seems the way you have it set up is much more complex than I have it. Or I'm misunderstanding it? :-/
I just poke the CO2 tube straight into a slot in the intake head and up the tube about 6 inches or so. 
I can hear the bubbles if I'm by that end of the tank but it's not too noisy really. It doesnt affect the impeller at all. I've no wish to change it and I'm really happy with the results. 
Atomiser??? What's that, and why???

Sorry to hear it's not worked well for you mate.


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## danmil3s (5 Feb 2011)

gfish  this is what i mean by atomizer
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Aquarium-CO2-Air- ... 4aa83b4a3a
 it  is a shame it didn't work i think it just got to dirty being in such high flow, as it was basically  in side the out flow filter pipe. im glad your way works i did try it but could hear the impeller struggling against the bubbles so chose not to use it. my bubble rate is quite high so that's probably the problem. there its more like one big bubble in the counter. hard waters the cause of that i think. im going to get a sera Flore Co2 Active Reactor 1000 see if that's up to the job. fingers crossed im getting fed up of experimenting.


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## Gfish (5 Feb 2011)

That link didnt work, the page was too old or something.

I think the only way is to build your own reactor. That way you can build it to handle the large diameter hose. But you'll obviously need to do as I've done and convert to smooth pipe instead of the ribbed Fluval stuff.

You could of course do as I did before I inserted the pipe straight into the intake. So initially I used to have a small diffuser underneath the intake, and I drilled lots of small holes in the bottom of the intake head to help this work better.
I managed to get most of the tiny diffused bubbles to suck into the filter, but some rose straight past it and hit the surface. In hindsight I should have positioned my internal pump pushing water past the top of this so it picked up any bubbles that didn't get sucked up.

You can go on forever experimenting with all this can't you. Drives ya nuts in the end you know  

Cheers


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