Fluval FX4 Filter (Amazon): geni.us/s4cRLE Fluval FX4 Filter (Ebay): ebay.to/2sOVw4k Foams and Biohome Ultimate: www.filterpro.co.uk Full kits to upgrade a Fluval FX4 and FX5 / FX6 can be found on the 'Filter Kits' page of the FilterPro website: bit.ly/2LuRtl0 (FilterPro site has links to suppliers in other countries) The Fluval FX4 has a powerful pump, excellent mechanical filtration and decent provision for biological filtration. However, since it 'only' holds around 3kg of biohome ultimate it is really suited to normally stocked tanks of up to 300 litres (78 US gallons) or heavily stocked tanks of up to 150 litres (39 US gallons) if you want to achieve a full cycle. Your FX4 will have extra red trays which fit inside main trays - they are not needed unless you need to use one in bottom tray to separate carbon from filter media without using a mesh bag. A full cycle is completed by bacteria - the aerobic part of biological filtration which processes ammonia to nitrite and nitrite to nitrate followed by an anaerobic part which processes nitrate into soluble nitrogen which bubbles off to the atmosphere. Therefore it requires a suitable amount of excellent quality filter media to be able to provide the environment for both aerobic AND anaerobic bacteria - that is what Biohome ultimate does perfectly but even with such good media there are limitations and we recommend the following amounts for different stocking scenarios: (1 US gallon = 3.8 litres) (1kg = 2.2 lbs) Average community tropical aquarium = 1kg per 100 litres Average coldwater aquarium = 1kg - 1.5kg per 100 litres Predator aquarium = 1.5kg - 2kg per 100 litres Large cichlid aquarium = 1.5kg - 2kg per 100 litres Malawi / Tanganyikan aquarium = 1.5kg - 2kg per 100 litres Marine aquarium = 1.5kg - 2kg per 100 litres Average mixed fish pond = 1kg per 200 litres Average koi pond = 1kg per 150 litres You may be disagreeing with the above figures but remember that they are for a FULL CYCLE not half a job - achieving 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite is quite easy since aerobic bacteria grows freely on any surface but the anaerobic bacteria responsible for COMPLETING the cycle needs more a specialized habitat. Size a filter properly, set it up sensibly and you will have perfect water - it's that simple....and your filter won't be the dreaded 'Nitrate factory'. This series of videos is all about trying to squeeze more efficiency out of internal and external aquarium filters which generally have a limited filtering capacity - If you have a filter you'd like me to feature in a video then please contact me on: sales@filterpro.co.uk 07772848730 (Richard) Anyone who sends a filter (UK only at present) will have it upgraded and returned to them for free and the only cost you will pay is how much it costs to ship it to me - I'm helping to boost your filter and the resulting videos will hopefully be useful to viewers all over the world so it's a win/win. The following videos will be useful to anyone interested in learning more about filtration, bacteria and making the conditions for your fish as good as possible: Sizing a canister properly and filter set up: goo.gl/om19un Looking INSIDE different filter media: goo.gl/hZWS6c Bacteria and filter media: goo.gl/123gAF How to clean an aquarium: goo.gl/bPMhvh Aquarium tips / filtration playlist: goo.gl/pXgqVj Check out my channel for hundreds of videos on a wide range of my hobbies - many of the videos have educational content so if you have enjoyed any give them the thumbs up and share. This channel is purely a hobby for me so I will never ask viewers to donate money for any of my projects or charge anyone for information - information should be shared freely and I certainly don't consider myself an 'expert' in anything I pursue as a hobby so please do your own research, never accept anything as 'fact', reject anyone claiming to be some sort of authority or 'expert' and make your own minds up about anything you wish to study. We all are on a long path of learning......... RECOMMENDED PRODUCTS ON AMAZON: goo.gl/jMaBWy INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/pondguru_outdoors/ FILMING EQUIPMENT: Panasonic HC-VX870 HD camcorder geni.us/3UwE +Rode stereo microphone: geni.us/4OL +Rode 'deadcat' mic cover: geni.us/1pmn JVC Everio quad proof HD camcorder: geni.us/e09e +Rode 'deadcat' mic cover (opened up and held between tripod and camera base) geni.us/dee24 Zomei Z666 tripod: geni.us/1a1af3 Manfrotto MTPIXI-B PIXI mini tripod: geni.us/87f7 If you've enjoyed this video please check out the playlists on my channel for hundreds more - on a variety of subjects. Feel free to share or link any of my videos on facebook, twitter, forums etc. for the benefit of anyone you think may also enjoy watching. See you next time. Pondguru
I just got an fx4 as a birthday present, and I'll be setting it up over the next few weeks while rescaping my 80g. I had a couple questions if you don't mind- 1. I have 50 micron polishing pads cut to fit the top tray where you placed your fine pad- is it wise to use such a fine pad/ will it clog up quickly, or will having a semi fine pad like this www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000HHO764/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1 help to prevent any decrease in flow? 2. I'm about to buy some biohome ultimate, mainly because I found the fact that it can house anaerobic bacteria kind of fascinating and very useful. Do you need a special starter to seed anaerobic bacteria, or is a starter like seachem stability enough and the anaerobic bacteria come naturally? And is it possible that, in a planted tank, the anaerobic bacteria will compete with plants for nitrates, or is it more likely that they'll compete with and prevent unwanted algae that would have absorbed what the plants cannot? Thanks! Appreciate your channel.
Hi, i just ordered the pond foams now for my fluval and plan to chuck the red trays but i have purchased the fluval circular carbon sponges for the fx4 i was curious if i still need the red tray to keep it seperate from the bio media?
@@ObscuraAbyssus There is a link to my site (FilterPro) in the video description and pinned comment. I think the seller on amazon UK had problems with one of the ID numbers being the same as a filter from another manufacturer and trying to sort it out with amazon was a nightmare so he now sells on ebay. You won't need the red trays in the FX4 / 6 as all trays would be filled with media with the fine pad on the top of the top tray.
Wife got me a Fluval fx4 for my 75g discus tank and it's a game changer over my old two hang on back filters. Not too much flow for my discus, and enough flow to even keep the bare bottom clean of debris. I'm about to Pimp out my filter now! I'm new to canister filters, you made it easy. NA Measurements you included were great too, once this sponge comes in ill cut it to your dimensions.
Do not put any media like that in the bottom as " primary settlement " if u plan on using the water change valve at bottom. The little bits of gritty stuff they eventually give off ruins the seal and causes the valve to leak.
This is soo awesome! I'm purchasing an FX4 for my 75G African Cichlid tank to replace the Sunsun 304B that's making a helluva racket even with a new impeller! Your videos for both the Sunsun and the Eheim filters (which I have both on the 75G) have kept my tank sparkling clean so much that my fish look like they're floating in air my water is THAT clean! Thank you so very much for taking the time and sharing your infinite wisdom and your valuable knowledge!! You're awesome!
I ordered the fx4 upgrade from this guy two days ago, installed the upgrade yesterday and today my water looks amazing. Literally crystal clear... I used exactly the same setup but put some established bio media in with the bio home to populate it. Honestly best 70 quid i've spent on my tank...
I watched your video on the fx4 I was having trouble with high nitrate so I put most of the ceramic tubes that come with the filter in the channel at the bottom then did all that you said I now have a 340 litre tank well stocked with happy fish and plants thanks .
I did exactly the same as what is suggested in the video, spending a lot of money on biohome ultimate, and found the flow from the filter is reduced so much the waste builds up in the filter dramatically and leads to constant cloudy water. This causes a bloom of detritus worms within the filter (which find there way into the tank) and a lot of waste build up along the bottom of the tank itself. Although the video's main point is to try and increase the maximum amount of surface area within the filter, an overload of media can cause problems. Upgrading the existing sponges and ceramics is a fantastic peice of advise and I also recommend anyone buying this filter to do the same. Instead of filling all the cavities with ceramics, I suggest placing a medium-coarse sponge in the inner circle (16.5cm diameter) and course sponge for the outer rim at the bottom, with ceramics in the smaller inner rim to use the empty cavities effectively. This doesn't compromise flow whatsoever. The fine white wool stuff also does a good job when sat at the very top of the trays.
I know this is an old video and comment but you hit the nail on the head! These ideas are not tried out on tanks in real life! It is all well and good to in theory upgrade it and fill every space with media but practically sometimes these great ideas don't work.
I didnt take any at the time and would have to take it apart to do so now. I've made some adjustments over the last 18 months or so, see below. - do not place any sponge in the middle circle at the bottom. It clogs very quickly and prevents the filter from working properly within 2 weeks after a full clean. - do not place any ceramics in the bottom outer rim. They can get trapped in the propeller. - synthetic wool at the top is optional. Depending on your bioload, you may be replacing this on a weekly basis. I stopped using it and found no reduction in water clarity
@@danielsinclair7593 I was completely planning to do this and then got to thinking "I wonder what other people think" (and it made me miss the dislike button count) but I realized I couldnt be the only one second guessing filling the bottom.
What I did with my Fx4 since it handles ammonia and nitrites really well is I put it on my 75 gallon planted tank and adjusted the nozzles and flow to accommodate the plants. Plants help handle the nitrates and the Fx4 runs on a 75 very well. I also have two small sponge filters hidden in the back so that helps as well!
My first viewing of your excellent instructional video. I am new in my 'fish-keeping' hobby and don't understand all that jargon yet but will continue to watch until I do! Thanks very much for the links below, they will be very helpful in the near future! Regards, David O'D
Just added this to my 75 gallon turtle setup. The 8" Red Ear Slider Turtle was destroying hanging filter daily. This filter turned my tank into a river, so much flow. Running the stock setup, but I do plan to buy generic media to create filtration specific to Turtle life. I have two 4" goldfish in the tank, they love all flow!
What the reviewer is not aware or not told you is that putting in other 3rd party course, medium and fine foam plus other more biological medium is that the flow rate of the filter is severely reduced alot compared to the supplied media foam and ceramic rings. So you need to bear that in mind, if having reduced flow is ok for your size of tank.
The flow is only going to be limited compared to the stock setup when the fine pad gets clogged, which varies in time depending on the tank. The biohome is not reducing flow much.
I admire your effort with the video. Water will always take a path of least resistance so use of combination coarse/medium foam in the outer rings means that water will largely bypass the medium foam in favor of lesser resistance encountered in the coarse foam. i would suggest coarse foam only in the bottom outer ring then medium-only foam in the upper outer ring. I would use the finest filter pad in the bottom, not top, of the center bottom ring to catch small particulates before they interact with the impeller. Good job with the video!!
I just bought a used FX4. First thing I did was to throw out all the bio media. I have a 125 gallon cichlid tank with about 100 fish but I also have about 350 lbs of rock in there, for sure I don't need any more bio media. I just use the sponges and a big bag filled with carbon.
I am not sold on these to replace my EHEIM Pros in aquaria but for my 75 gallon red eared slider turtle tank the extra mechanical filtration and flow rate make it a better choice. thanks for the info on correctly stuffing it. I don't know why the manufacturers get it wrong...even EHEIM puts the fine filter pad on the wrong spot.
I’m new to the hobby, and I’m curious as to why you believe the two trays don’t house enough bio media? I’m not saying you’re incorrect because I’m obviously still learning lol, but how do you quantify what the correct quantity should be?
(my other channel) I base the amount needed on the weight of media necessary to support enough bacteria to process the ammonia, nitrite and nitrate (a full cycle). Those figures have been gained by having over a decade of feedback from thousands of people all over the world and I never used to state an amount which was needed until I was happy that the 10+ years of data was enough information to make that call. This is from the Q&A page on the FilterPro site: IS THERE A MINIMUM AMOUNT OF BIOHOME REQUIRED TO ACHIEVE FULL CYCLE FILTRATION? Yes - Using 500g in a huge filter on a 500 litre tank will not reduce nitrate if all the other media is producing nitrate. When a sensible amount of Biohome is used the results are outstanding. Through years of Biohome being used in all sorts of aquariums and ponds the recommended amounts of Biohome needed to see a good reduction in nitrate (full cycle filtration) are as follows: (100 litres is approx. 26 US gallons and 1kg = 2.2 lbs) Average community tropical aquarium = 1kg (2.2 lbs) per 100 litres (26 US gallons) Average coldwater aquarium = 1kg (2.2 lbs) - 1.5kg (3.3 lbs) per 100 litres (26 US gallons) Goldfish aquarium = 1.5kg (3.3 lbs) - 2kg (4.4lbs) per 100 litres (26 US gallons) Predator aquarium = 1.5kg (3.3 lbs) - 2kg (4.4 lbs) per 100 litres (26 US gallons) Large cichlid / discus aquarium = 1.5kg (3.3 lbs) - 2kg (4.4 lbs) per 100 litres (26 US gallons) Malawi / Tanganyikan aquarium = 1.5kg (3.3 lbs) - 2kg (4.4 lbs) per 100 litres (26 US gallons) Marine aquarium = 1.5kg (3.3 lbs) - 2kg (4.4 lbs) per 100 litres (26 US gallons) Average mixed fish pond = 1kg (2.2lbs) per 200 litres (52 US gallons) Average koi pond = 1kg (2.2lbs) per 150 litres (39 US gallons) Ammonia and nitrite will be reduced at much lower amounts but full cycle filtration is the only 'proper' filtration therefore the figures above are for the filtration job to be done properly resulting in less water changes being required. REMEMBER - It is always better to over-filter than under-filter as a filter with a larger capacity will react more quickly to any pollution incidents and process waste before levels rise above safe amounts.
There are pads for nitrite, phosphate removal and also bags for other filter media like resins and zeo filtration as well as the carbon pads and foam and stone
This is a really informative video and I'm curious I have a red-eared slider that I just bought an FX4 for and I was wondering if you would change any of the setup that you just did. Turtles are extremely messy and I'm trying to optimize before I install everything.
I'm thinking about getting this for my 350liter(92gallon), turtle tank that is about half full, since i have basking areas. I'm more concerned about mechanical filtration as turtles can make do without 100% perfectly clean(from a nitrite/nitrate standpoint) water. I could go with a 407 as well but for the extra 30 euros in my country i think the fx4 is a better fit.
Hello everyone. I did the spong pimp to my fx4 about a month ago. I checked it today and wanted to add the media to the cavity at the bottom. I has able to get 1.6kg in each basket. My daughter helped me stack the tablets of biohome ultimate. Be cautious when stacking trays together and insure top tray is fully seated into the bottom tray. Apparently mine wasn't and I had some muck to clean out. The filter setup is working great @pondguru that black round thin pad is fluval fine filter to print debris from enter pump motor. I agree with you and removed it and replaced with fine filter pad at the top tray. Sorry for long comment however thanks for the information.
So glad I saw this video before buying this filter! Looks like I can do better after all! Thank you for separating truth from marketing! I know these are older videos, but what I wish you would do is show the best filter setup possible. Like, what should we do? What's the best option? I don't have room for a sump, but still have a turtle that needs cleaner water and I don't wanna pay for a bunch of marketing and bad design I don't need. I'm sure I'm not the only one either 😅
In this series I just concentrate on the individual filter set ups regarding the foams and media but I'm intending to do one on the in / out / spray bar set up options some time in the future. The video will show the flow by using the gel filter balls moving in the water as they are fairly neutral buoyancy.
The FX Series has always been foam heavy and having less space for filter media. I was going to purchase either an FX4 or an FX6 but I settled on an Eheim Classic. Now I am beginning to replace my old canisters with Aquaels. Awesome video Sir Richard. Looking forward to the next one.
No worries and apologies for not getting the video uploaded sooner - I'm way behind on editing and have over 30 more still to do. I'm glad you're pleased with the filter.
Hey I know this comment is 3 years old so you probably won’t notice, but can you let me know what sort of results you got from this filter before and after the upgrade? Thanks
Fanflippingtastic! I inherited an FX4 with zero media when I bought a used 400 litre tank last week, I wish I'd found this video before I bought a load of compatible media for it! At least I didn't have to pay genuine fluval prices I guess 😂 I will definitely be pimping my FX4 along the lines you have shown, can't wait!
I know this video is older but if you take one of those red trays it will fit in the bottom center with a bit of trimming off the top. This will give you some space for chemical media.
Hi. I’m looking at getting a new filter for a 240ltr tank. I was thinking of getting the Fluval 407 but some people say get this fx4. I have the 307 sat in the shed at the moment that come with the tank. Love watching your videos Thank you Mark
@@user-sparky In that case the FX4 will easily be big enough as it holds 3kg of filter media - just avoid using seachem prime / safe if you are trying to achieve a full cycle (reduction in nitrate) since it will starve the bacteria and prevent a full cycle. If you think one day you'd like to have a heavier stock e.g. cichlids, discus etc. then the FX6 would be the one to go for as it holds 5kg of media giving you 2kg per 100 litres. Of course there are other choices of filter which also hold a similar amount of media.
@@pondguru thank you very much I’m going for the fx6 with the spray bar. I normally use the seachem purigen. Could I still use this or is there no need ?
@@user-sparky There is no need for any chemical media unless you need to use chemical media. See how it goes and if the clarity isn't perfect then go with a pouch of chemical media to clear it up. It will go last in the system so in an FX4 / 6 it would be in the bottom of the bottom tray. Best of luck with the tank.
I will definitely reconfigure my FX4 on my malawi tank. Fortunately it works together with an Eheim 4+ 600 on my 450l tank, so it's enough "space" and power together ;). Thx & greetings from Austria.
So after all the gunk gets trapped in the Eheim ceramic ring centers (that can't be back flushed out), the vertical flow upwards to the center of the filter is suppose to shift horizontally black blue black blue giving you coarse fine coarse fine filtration as it ascends 🤔 I will say it looks pretty cool...and just think about all that money you'll save from not needing aquarium fertilizer by all the extra nitrates produced by the ceramic rings when feeding all your Plants...very thrifty 😉👌
I just hot one and did the upgrades. Only thing is the media I bought is a bit smaller. I mixed the two together and filled both trays with it. I hope it's OK. I start it up in the morning. Hope it dont effect the flow.lol
I wouldn't worry about that since the media has very little effect on flow rates for filters unless it is extremely small and packed very tight together (and clogged up with muck). The fine white pad (when clogged up) is the factor which leads to the flow slowing down so when the flow slows down that lets you know that it needs changing and the filter needs cleaning. It makes no difference where the fine pad is located in the filter trays as to how quickly it clogs but with this filter it should definitely be on the top of the top tray since water flows through the filter trays from top to bottom. Having the fine pad on the top allows the media to stay clean and effective.
@pondguru thanks alot. The fx 4 is up and running great. Did all the upgrades . Filter Foam didn't arrive in time so I'll add that on my first water change. Looking great so far except for the new tank cloudy cycle time but its only been 24 hours and it getting clear. I appreciate all the tips.
@@prockfisherman8661 (my other channel) Good one and best of luck with the system. It will settle down quickly once the media starts to colonize with bacteria.
Why do you use both coarse and medium foam on the top and bottom tray? Would it work better to have coarse on the outside of the bottom tray, and medium on the outside of the top tray, and fine pad in the middle of the top tray? Thanks for the videos.
I owned anfx4 but sold it after 9month I wanted one for a while n desired to get one n was disappointed in it don't get me wrong it is a beast has a ton a flow and keeps a 300ltr tank spotless but it has bypass issues it don't hold a lot of biomedia I had to add an eheim classic to my 300ltr tank as back up to hold more bio then I was cleaning the propellorn snapped the shaft I had to order a new propellorn and shaft for 35pound just to get a shaft which came broken as well as fluval don't package it right so the shaft is in the propellorn and rattles about in pagaging and there's a good chance most come this way so I ended up selling it the only fluval filters Iv got that I do love is my 207 and c2
Hi , I just got the Fluval X4 on a 75 gallon , where can i buy the foam in the US , preferably on amazon , not sure what it is called and what to look for , any help is truly appreciated!
Great Video. Placed an order for your FX4 kit. Going with some Eheim Mech Pro for the bottom (1 liter). Now just have to figure out how to cut my tank stand to fit this thing inside :), it's about 1" or so too narrow.
Thanks for the order. I wouldn't bother with the mech pro in the bottom as it could affect the flow from the drain pipe. I put the media down there in this video as it was a suggestion from a viewer but I'm not convinced that it does anything or is needed.
@@pondguru Thanks got my box today. Do I need to pre-clean your media? I have the Ollie and Hutch Flipper Wildwood 55 gallon stand if you or anyone here can offer suggestions to modify. If I was building it from scratch I'd leave one of the rear one panels off and a middle shelf. Unfortunately mine is glued (even if not removing the rear panel now would be difficult). I am planning on using a 4.5" circular saw to remove what I have too.
@@alk3myst Ideally the media should be quickly rinsed with water you've drained from the tank or with treated tap water but it's not essential - any 'dust' will simply be fine sand generated during transit and will not harm anything. Either way as soon as the media goes into the system it will mature very fast.
@@pondguru Finally found the time to setup the FX4 (I had to modify my existing stand). Within minutes my 55 gallon tank was clear and has been clear a week now. I installed with a water bar since I like the sound of the trickleing and the reduced flow doesn't seem to be hurting anything. Your kit was a great purchase rather than having to buy too much of things. My trays were well filled and if I wanted I could manage to get some charcoal bags in the bottom tray (so far I don't think I need them). Big THANK YOU from Florida!
@@alk3myst (my other channel) Awesome stuff - best of luck with the tank. A proper filter upgrade is the single most important investment for any tank.
Hello, I have a 6ft 125 gallon tank. Would you recommend two FX4's or two 407's for that size tank? I plan to keep mostly tiger barbs , loaches and a few panda garra.
Nice one and thanks for that - I got your name totally wrong sorry about that, lol My lack of short term memory means I always have to tell the truth which is definitely a good thing but sometimes it is embarrassing when I can't remember people I just interacted with, even if I only met them hours before.
One complaint of this filter is the clips that tighten up to hold the lid in place. Forever breaking & although they are only plastic they are expensive to replace. Been looking for metal ones but not had any luck yet. If anyone does know please post where they can be purchased. Great video tho thanks.
hi Richard, no one is ever going to own all of these filters, but I am really enjoying the series, well done and keep up the great work. I have a pond solutions canister filter on my 200l tank, set up your way and its fantastic, thanks
Please guys don't copy this, I did and it's almost destroyed both my Fx4s. Putting a fine filter pad before all the ceramic clogs up something awful. You've been warned
Ok coming soon is this kit fitted to the new fx4 just delivered i got the upgrade kit so looking forward to that and must say items turned up quick so thats Richard
Hello and thank you for your video's. I did recently purchase a Fluval FX4 and I am excited about it for the price point. I am definitely going to use some of your recommendations for the setup of the filter media. I did have one quick question. i usually use a pad of filter floss to help polish the water off. At what level would you recommend putting this in, top tray or bottom tray?
Almost. There are 5 stages (meaning 5 places of filtration) in the filter. 1) the outer sponges 2) the top of the red tray on the top basket 3) the bottom of the top basket 4) the top of the red tray on the bottom basket 5) the bottom of the bottom basket 5 STAGES, not 5 TYPES. :)
@@Sahadi420 I meant the coarse sponge is one type of sponge and one stage of filtration just like the medium sponge and the fine pad is. The filter has a 3 stage mechanical filtration with 3 three different types of mechanical media. The red tray is irrelevant In the set up, you can take it out.
@@hendrikwirtz8418 the red trays are there to simply give you the option to separate the inside space in the basket. I have the red trays IN on the top basket of my FX4 and 6 to simply put in another sponge. Bio-home is under that sponge, and fills the entire middle area in the lower tray(s). You're correct about the different sponges....I'm just saying Fluval means the "5 levels of filtration" are 5 different places you can filter the water.
Thank You soo much for the video. I had a quick question. I've bought a tank that has the fluval 306 filter and the fx4 filter. I'm going to run them together for my tank 260l reef. Would i be able to just load one of the filters (fx4) with pure biomedia?? I'll load the 307 the way that you showed us in the previous video.
Hi Gary. I set my fx4 up with the ceramic rings to start with. But twice the amount. (Used the ones from my old fx5 ) and seemed OK. But have now changed to bio home. Hopefully that will be better. Will keep you informed.
I have a 270l salt water marine tank it comprises of 1 3 striped damsel 2 clown fish and one dog faced puffer also 4 crabs if they are still there I've got a all pond solutions ef1 but I am looking to buy a fluval fx4 I've seen your hack will it be OK in my 270l aquarium
(my other channel) Ideally you'd aim for approx. 2kg of media per 100 litres for a marine system so I'd say go for the FX6 all day. It will hold 5kg of media as opposed to the FX4 which will only hold 3kg of media. That is a massive difference.
Hi, I have an 8,000 gallon Koi pond with an Oase Proficlear drum filter with 2 additional media sections with K1 and an end section which houses the pumps and the UV's. That last section also has 2 baskets which is for additional media not provided by the manufacturer and the choice is left to the user. I have no problem with my filtration but I have 2 empty baskets that could be filled. Would Biohome Plus or ultimate be beneficial? You state 1kg per 100 litres so I wonder if 5 kgs is actually going to do anything on an 8,000 gallon pond? In fact is any media in that small quantity going to add anything to that size pond? I would be interested to hear your views.
Once again great video. I have a question pertaining to Seachem Prime. Does it kill off anaerobic bacteria as I've read on some forums? If so how do you recommend I treat my water that has chloramine in it? Thanks again. Got 4kg of Biohome going on in my two filters and so far so good but waiting for that "full" cycle to start.
I have been using prime for years. I test for ammonia/ nitrite weekly. I have had no problems with bacteria die off or ammonia/ nitrite spikes. My tank is well stocked. I dont believe prime kills off benifical bacteria. You could always email Seachem.
I have just bought a 650 litre tank second hand and plan on having it heavily planted but also quite a few community fish. I was looking at this filter due to it being advertised as being suitable for this size but after watching your video, I have my doubts. You mention cheaper filters that have more biological filter. What would you recommend? BTW, I was given a 2nd hand AquaOne 2200 but found it extremely hard to get the top off due to how it's designed which is why this one appealed to me. In fact, one of the clips broken in trying to get the lid off due to the incredible suction it has. Thanks in advance.
I have a three hundred litre fish tank with two fish in it, a comet and common goldfish... the common goldfish is about 7 inches long and the comet is about 5 inches long... should I get the FX4, 5 or 6?
Thanks for the video. I'm about to do this to my FX4 this weekend. How often do you break the FX down to rinse out the foam pads? I do mine every two weeks now but I wasn't sure with this new setup how often I should do it.
Every tank and filter is different - ideally it should go at least a month when a filter is correctly sized for a tank but see what it is like then extend intervals if you think it would go longer after you've cleaned the filter. e.g. if you normally do monthly maintenance and think it would go 6 weeks try that and assess it from there, if you think it would go 8 weeks try that and so on until you find the sweet spot for your situation - no point 'cleaning' a clean filter.
I just purchased a Fluval FX4 for my 60 gallon cube tank. I’m going to set up the FX4 exactly this way. How often do I need to change the Eheim Mech, fine filter pad & course and medium bio sponges? Thanks!
I run an FX4 on a moderately stocked 55 gallon (208 L) freshwater community aquarium. Based on the numbers in your description, it seems that I should be able to get full cycle filtration using the media you describe on my set up. My tank is well established and fully cycled. I have been using a combination of mechanical, biological and chemical filtration. Most of this is from the manufacturer. I have a couple of questions. First, how would you recommend adding in the anaerobic bacteria? Presumably, I have an adequate supply of aerobic bacteria in the current media. Second, how often if ever does the biohome media need to be changed? Thanks in advance for your advice.
I bought a used one on eBay and had it relisted for sale the same day. The 2650lph is b@llocks too..unless it has no media inside. I bought it to replace a sun sun (a.p.s in u.k)304 with pre filter, running alongside a eheim 2080 (1700lph) and the eheim is way more powerful, plus the eheim has substrat pro in it and the fx4 has your media , which is way easier for water to pass as it doesn't stack as densely. I really wasn't impressed. Went by what fluval said the liters of the unit was. Held only just over half of the 304b as well. Don't see how they can justify the price against their own fluval 406 which holds the exact same amount of media but yet is rated for larger tanks, how? Where do they get their information from? Their own advertising? They only rate the 406 as up to 400ltrs ..so the more money it costs the more it will do lol? I've put the biohome back in the 304b until a used pro3 2080 comes up for sale locally, plus the eheim is only 25w so pays for itself in the long. I wish you'd design and make a filter, or in conjunction with a company do a filter together. I'd take a good few lol
I do have an idea to radically change the fluval FX6 but I have neither the materials or the free time to put into the project - I should probably send it down to Mark's Aquariums along with some drawings of what I would do and get him to make the necessary changes, lol
Fx for filter is rubbish I have it running on my 350 L tank and the pump just pulls through the sand straight through saw the tank is constantly murky we definitely are changing those filter pads thanks
Hey thanks for the tips, especially the Eheim Mech on the bottom of the canister! I’m going to try that! You indicated that some of the modern chemical media will mess up the biological side of things. Do you think Purigen placed in the bottom tray mixed with bio media would mess up the biological process?
Hi Pondguru I was just thinking if the water comes up through the outside sponges and then down through the middle , would it not make more sense to b Have just course foams around the bottom tray and just medium foam around the top tray, this would stop the water simply by passing the medium foam and spilling into the central baskets and quickly clogging the wool pad. In my experience water will always take the path of least resistance. What do you think?
The water flows from the outside though the foams horizontally not vertically. They hit both trays equally from the horizontal side. That is why you put coarse and medium foams in both trays.
Would you put the purigen in the bottom? I'm gonna add a small purigen andchemi pure bag? I'm just wondering since there is charcoal in the chemistry pure if it goes in the bottom? Thank you
Yes you can add chemical media in the bottom of the bottom tray if you need to. Unless there's a problem with staining from bogwood or you need to draw in residual fish treatments you won't need chemical media when you have a suitably sized, well set up filter.
about to set up 2 Fluval FX6. If set up properly and more efficiently, roughly how many pounds of Bio Home Ultimate will fit in each FX6? I have 5 pounds already. They will be running 125 gallon tank.
Just one Question would this Filter work for a 100 gallons Discus Tank a will have Three Lifeguard filters to Add to my Tank. A few plants and 10 discus with 1/2 sand. Thanks
can you pimp a canister filter that is designed for small pond applications....say 100 to 300 gal gold fish indoor ponds. Also maybe something that is available here in the USA.......PLEASE
Hi have noticed that there is another space underneath the bottom tray, at the very bottom of the canister, looks about the right size for a bag of chemi pure or similar product. I am wondering whether you would know whether it is ok to utilise this space as well, or leave it empty?
I just got an fx4. And ordered all pimp up material, get them in a day or two. Thanks for the tips. I wonder, i also got the fluval pads, for ammonia, nitrite and phosphate. Do i put them on the bottum on lowest part?
Thanks for the order. and best of luck with the tank. Yes, any chemical media would ideally be after the biological media to give the bacteria living in the media the best chance at all the food it needs before the pads start to remove it.
@@pondguruah! Ok. Thanks. Have another question. Watched some more videos and send the fx4 back, and ordered an fx6. On fx4 on the bottom outside ring you put eheim mech. It has more room than fx6 you said. I wonder, do you still fill that bottom outside ring with eheim mech on the fx6?
@@visfanaat8188 The filling of the trench at the bottom of the filter was a suggestion from a viewer but it's something which I can't see much value in doing. If you use something in there which is too small it will clog the exit pipe - just leave it how it is and it will hold the heavy muck no problem. No need for media there.
@@visfanaat8188 That was a suggestion from a viewer but I personally wouldn't bother adding anything into that bottom ring since adding something which is too big or too small could interfere with the drain feature on the filter.
Would the fx4 be able to be pimped out to a dr Kevin Novak anoxic filter Bcb type deal? Maybe load the trays with the baked clay and a laterite core? Not sure if too much oxygen would get to it. The water needs to flow around the clay, not through it.
![What Do I Really Think About Canister Filters? [Fluval FX2]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/ivOqFbdQSMg/mqdefault.jpg)
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The Fluval FX4 has a powerful pump, excellent mechanical filtration and decent provision for biological filtration.
However, since it 'only' holds around 3kg of biohome ultimate it is really suited to normally stocked tanks of up to 300 litres (78 US gallons) or heavily stocked tanks of up to 150 litres (39 US gallons) if you want to achieve a full cycle.
Your FX4 will have extra red trays which fit inside main trays - they are not needed unless you need to use one in bottom tray to separate carbon from filter media without using a mesh bag.
A full cycle is completed by bacteria - the aerobic part of biological filtration which processes ammonia to nitrite and nitrite to nitrate followed by an anaerobic part which processes nitrate into soluble nitrogen which bubbles off to the atmosphere.
Therefore it requires a suitable amount of excellent quality filter media to be able to provide the environment for both aerobic AND anaerobic bacteria - that is what Biohome ultimate does perfectly but even with such good media there are limitations and we recommend the following amounts for different stocking scenarios:
(1 US gallon = 3.8 litres)
(1kg = 2.2 lbs)
Average community tropical aquarium = 1kg per 100 litres
Average coldwater aquarium = 1kg - 1.5kg per 100 litres
Predator aquarium = 1.5kg - 2kg per 100 litres
Large cichlid aquarium = 1.5kg - 2kg per 100 litres
Malawi / Tanganyikan aquarium = 1.5kg - 2kg per 100 litres
Marine aquarium = 1.5kg - 2kg per 100 litres
Average mixed fish pond = 1kg per 200 litres
Average koi pond = 1kg per 150 litres
You may be disagreeing with the above figures but remember that they are for a FULL CYCLE not half a job - achieving 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite is quite easy since aerobic bacteria grows freely on any surface but the anaerobic bacteria responsible for COMPLETING the cycle needs more a specialized habitat.
Size a filter properly, set it up sensibly and you will have perfect water - it's that simple....and your filter won't be the dreaded 'Nitrate factory'.
This series of videos is all about trying to squeeze more efficiency out of internal and external aquarium filters which generally have a limited filtering capacity - If you have a filter you'd like me to feature in a video then please contact me on:
sales@filterpro.co.uk
07772848730 (Richard)
Anyone who sends a filter (UK only at present) will have it upgraded and returned to them for free and the only cost you will pay is how much it costs to ship it to me - I'm helping to boost your filter and the resulting videos will hopefully be useful to viewers all over the world so it's a win/win.
The following videos will be useful to anyone interested in learning more about filtration, bacteria and making the conditions for your fish as good as possible:
Sizing a canister properly and filter set up: goo.gl/om19un
Looking INSIDE different filter media: goo.gl/hZWS6c
Bacteria and filter media: goo.gl/123gAF
How to clean an aquarium: goo.gl/bPMhvh
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Pondguru
I just got an fx4 as a birthday present, and I'll be setting it up over the next few weeks while rescaping my 80g. I had a couple questions if you don't mind-
1. I have 50 micron polishing pads cut to fit the top tray where you placed your fine pad- is it wise to use such a fine pad/ will it clog up quickly, or will having a semi fine pad like this www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000HHO764/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1
help to prevent any decrease in flow?
2. I'm about to buy some biohome ultimate, mainly because I found the fact that it can house anaerobic bacteria kind of fascinating and very useful. Do you need a special starter to seed anaerobic bacteria, or is a starter like seachem stability enough and the anaerobic bacteria come naturally? And is it possible that, in a planted tank, the anaerobic bacteria will compete with plants for nitrates, or is it more likely that they'll compete with and prevent unwanted algae that would have absorbed what the plants cannot?
Thanks! Appreciate your channel.
Hi, i just ordered the pond foams now for my fluval and plan to chuck the red trays but i have purchased the fluval circular carbon sponges for the fx4 i was curious if i still need the red tray to keep it seperate from the bio media?
Also the biohome ultimate is no sold anywhere anymore i think i tried look for it on amazon no luck
@@ObscuraAbyssus There is a link to my site (FilterPro) in the video description and pinned comment. I think the seller on amazon UK had problems with one of the ID numbers being the same as a filter from another manufacturer and trying to sort it out with amazon was a nightmare so he now sells on ebay.
You won't need the red trays in the FX4 / 6 as all trays would be filled with media with the fine pad on the top of the top tray.
@@pondguru Alright ill check it out thank you
Wife got me a Fluval fx4 for my 75g discus tank and it's a game changer over my old two hang on back filters. Not too much flow for my discus, and enough flow to even keep the bare bottom clean of debris. I'm about to Pimp out my filter now! I'm new to canister filters, you made it easy. NA Measurements you included were great too, once this sponge comes in ill cut it to your dimensions.
Good one - I'm glad you found the video useful and best of luck with the tank.
Do not put any media like that in the bottom as " primary settlement " if u plan on using the water change valve at bottom. The little bits of gritty stuff they eventually give off ruins the seal and causes the valve to leak.
Think I’ll try putting a bit of filter foam over it to help protect it and see how it goes.
@@lukedehart7667 did you see any result?
Anything?
I use the big pre filter bio media big holes in it to let water flow
This is soo awesome! I'm purchasing an FX4 for my 75G African Cichlid tank to replace the Sunsun 304B that's making a helluva racket even with a new impeller! Your videos for both the Sunsun and the Eheim filters (which I have both on the 75G) have kept my tank sparkling clean so much that my fish look like they're floating in air my water is THAT clean! Thank you so very much for taking the time and sharing your infinite wisdom and your valuable knowledge!! You're awesome!
I ordered the fx4 upgrade from this guy two days ago, installed the upgrade yesterday and today my water looks amazing. Literally crystal clear... I used exactly the same setup but put some established bio media in with the bio home to populate it. Honestly best 70 quid i've spent on my tank...
I watched your video on the fx4 I was having trouble with high nitrate so I put most of the ceramic tubes that come with the filter in the channel at the bottom then did all that you said I now have a 340 litre tank well stocked with happy fish and plants thanks .
Good stuff and I'm glad you and the fish are pleased with the upgrade.
I did the same thing
I did exactly the same as what is suggested in the video, spending a lot of money on biohome ultimate, and found the flow from the filter is reduced so much the waste builds up in the filter dramatically and leads to constant cloudy water. This causes a bloom of detritus worms within the filter (which find there way into the tank) and a lot of waste build up along the bottom of the tank itself.
Although the video's main point is to try and increase the maximum amount of surface area within the filter, an overload of media can cause problems.
Upgrading the existing sponges and ceramics is a fantastic peice of advise and I also recommend anyone buying this filter to do the same.
Instead of filling all the cavities with ceramics, I suggest placing a medium-coarse sponge in the inner circle (16.5cm diameter) and course sponge for the outer rim at the bottom, with ceramics in the smaller inner rim to use the empty cavities effectively. This doesn't compromise flow whatsoever.
The fine white wool stuff also does a good job when sat at the very top of the trays.
Would you be able to provide pics of what you did?
I know this is an old video and comment but you hit the nail on the head! These ideas are not tried out on tanks in real life! It is all well and good to in theory upgrade it and fill every space with media but practically sometimes these great ideas don't work.
I didnt take any at the time and would have to take it apart to do so now. I've made some adjustments over the last 18 months or so, see below.
- do not place any sponge in the middle circle at the bottom. It clogs very quickly and prevents the filter from working properly within 2 weeks after a full clean.
- do not place any ceramics in the bottom outer rim. They can get trapped in the propeller.
- synthetic wool at the top is optional. Depending on your bioload, you may be replacing this on a weekly basis. I stopped using it and found no reduction in water clarity
Your ideas are so helpful. Thank you so much!
@@danielsinclair7593 I was completely planning to do this and then got to thinking "I wonder what other people think" (and it made me miss the dislike button count) but I realized I couldnt be the only one second guessing filling the bottom.
What I did with my Fx4 since it handles ammonia and nitrites really well is I put it on my 75 gallon planted tank and adjusted the nozzles and flow to accommodate the plants. Plants help handle the nitrates and the Fx4 runs on a 75 very well. I also have two small sponge filters hidden in the back so that helps as well!
My first viewing of your excellent instructional video. I am new in my 'fish-keeping' hobby and don't understand all that jargon yet but will continue to watch until I do! Thanks very much for the links below, they will be very helpful in the near future!
Regards,
David O'D
By my calculations, perfect for a 75-gal tank. Thanks for the information.
Just added this to my 75 gallon turtle setup. The 8" Red Ear Slider Turtle was destroying hanging filter daily. This filter turned my tank into a river, so much flow. Running the stock setup, but I do plan to buy generic media to create filtration specific to Turtle life. I have two 4" goldfish in the tank, they love all flow!
What the reviewer is not aware or not told you is that putting in other 3rd party course, medium and fine foam plus other more biological medium is that the flow rate of the filter is severely reduced alot compared to the supplied media foam and ceramic rings. So you need to bear that in mind, if having reduced flow is ok for your size of tank.
The flow is only going to be limited compared to the stock setup when the fine pad gets clogged, which varies in time depending on the tank. The biohome is not reducing flow much.
Iv done this pump to mine and that’s exactly what happened it’s reduced the flow by atleast 1/2 if not more I’d say
I admire your effort with the video. Water will always take a path of least resistance so use of combination coarse/medium foam in the outer rings means that water will largely bypass the medium foam in favor of lesser resistance encountered in the coarse foam. i would suggest coarse foam only in the bottom outer ring then medium-only foam in the upper outer ring. I would use the finest filter pad in the bottom, not top, of the center bottom ring to catch small particulates before they interact with the impeller. Good job with the video!!
What would it matter if it catches the fine particles at the top or bottom? Top is better so it doesn't get in the bio-rings!
Really like your videos.
But honestly, I'm excited for the next update on the pond!
I just bought a used FX4. First thing I did was to throw out all the bio media. I have a 125 gallon cichlid tank with about 100 fish but I also have about 350 lbs of rock in there, for sure I don't need any more bio media. I just use the sponges and a big bag filled with carbon.
I am not sold on these to replace my EHEIM Pros in aquaria but for my 75 gallon red eared slider turtle tank the extra mechanical filtration and flow rate make it a better choice. thanks for the info on correctly stuffing it. I don't know why the manufacturers get it wrong...even EHEIM puts the fine filter pad on the wrong spot.
I just cleaned mine out. I have it on my saltwater tank. I did take similar steps of what you did. :)
I’m new to the hobby, and I’m curious as to why you believe the two trays don’t house enough bio media? I’m not saying you’re incorrect because I’m obviously still learning lol, but how do you quantify what the correct quantity should be?
(my other channel) I base the amount needed on the weight of media necessary to support enough bacteria to process the ammonia, nitrite and nitrate (a full cycle).
Those figures have been gained by having over a decade of feedback from thousands of people all over the world and I never used to state an amount which was needed until I was happy that the 10+ years of data was enough information to make that call.
This is from the Q&A page on the FilterPro site:
IS THERE A MINIMUM AMOUNT OF BIOHOME REQUIRED TO ACHIEVE FULL CYCLE FILTRATION?
Yes - Using 500g in a huge filter on a 500 litre tank will not reduce nitrate if all the other media is producing nitrate. When a sensible amount of Biohome is used the results are outstanding.
Through years of Biohome being used in all sorts of aquariums and ponds the recommended amounts of Biohome needed to see a good reduction in nitrate (full cycle filtration) are as follows:
(100 litres is approx. 26 US gallons and 1kg = 2.2 lbs)
Average community tropical aquarium = 1kg (2.2 lbs) per 100 litres (26 US gallons)
Average coldwater aquarium = 1kg (2.2 lbs) - 1.5kg (3.3 lbs) per 100 litres (26 US gallons)
Goldfish aquarium = 1.5kg (3.3 lbs) - 2kg (4.4lbs) per 100 litres (26 US gallons)
Predator aquarium = 1.5kg (3.3 lbs) - 2kg (4.4 lbs) per 100 litres (26 US gallons)
Large cichlid / discus aquarium = 1.5kg (3.3 lbs) - 2kg (4.4 lbs) per 100 litres (26 US gallons)
Malawi / Tanganyikan aquarium = 1.5kg (3.3 lbs) - 2kg (4.4 lbs) per 100 litres (26 US gallons)
Marine aquarium = 1.5kg (3.3 lbs) - 2kg (4.4 lbs) per 100 litres (26 US gallons)
Average mixed fish pond = 1kg (2.2lbs) per 200 litres (52 US gallons)
Average koi pond = 1kg (2.2lbs) per 150 litres (39 US gallons)
Ammonia and nitrite will be reduced at much lower amounts but full cycle filtration is the only 'proper' filtration therefore the figures above are for the filtration job to be done properly resulting in less water changes being required.
REMEMBER - It is always better to over-filter than under-filter as a filter with a larger capacity will react more quickly to any pollution incidents and process waste before levels rise above safe amounts.
When he says “kilo” it’s so satisfying….he says it a lot and I sometimes forget that it’s just referencing filter media 😅
No he is talking about weight of something
There are pads for nitrite, phosphate removal and also bags for other filter media like resins and zeo filtration as well as the carbon pads and foam and stone
Got mine on my 75 gallon saltwater tank for a year fish and corals doing great clean it out once a month plus my weekly water changes
I heard the Aquatop CF400 uv MK2 is better and it’s a lil cheaper too
This is a really informative video and I'm curious I have a red-eared slider that I just bought an FX4 for and I was wondering if you would change any of the setup that you just did. Turtles are extremely messy and I'm trying to optimize before I install everything.
Also wondering! I have a 100g tank and also just bought this filter… I’m adding more bio too
Just gone and purchased what I need for my new fx4🙂🙂. After being without a tank for a few years, it’s now time to invest and get back in the game 🤩
Thank you for this video. I'm about to purchase a new FX4 and put it on my 50g tank.
Nice one - I'm glad you found the video useful and best of luck with the tank.
Cheers for suggestions, bought yesterday this for my 60gallon tank, so now i know how make better performance for this filter
I'm thinking about getting this for my 350liter(92gallon), turtle tank that is about half full, since i have basking areas. I'm more concerned about mechanical filtration as turtles can make do without 100% perfectly clean(from a nitrite/nitrate standpoint) water. I could go with a 407 as well but for the extra 30 euros in my country i think the fx4 is a better fit.
I tried this set up in my FX4 and it ended up being too much Media. I removed the Ceramic Rings from the bottom and it worked fine.
Bio rings in the bottom has to affect water flow. I’m not going to try that.
Tou should be adding some purigen into the bottom tray at least you would have some chemical filtration plus you will get better water quality
Hello everyone. I did the spong pimp to my fx4 about a month ago. I checked it today and wanted to add the media to the cavity at the bottom.
I has able to get 1.6kg in each basket. My daughter helped me stack the tablets of biohome ultimate.
Be cautious when stacking trays together and insure top tray is fully seated into the bottom tray. Apparently mine wasn't and I had some muck to clean out.
The filter setup is working great
@pondguru that black round thin pad is fluval fine filter to print debris from enter pump motor. I agree with you and removed it and replaced with fine filter pad at the top tray.
Sorry for long comment however thanks for the information.
So glad I saw this video before buying this filter! Looks like I can do better after all! Thank you for separating truth from marketing!
I know these are older videos, but what I wish you would do is show the best filter setup possible. Like, what should we do? What's the best option? I don't have room for a sump, but still have a turtle that needs cleaner water and I don't wanna pay for a bunch of marketing and bad design I don't need. I'm sure I'm not the only one either 😅
In this series I just concentrate on the individual filter set ups regarding the foams and media but I'm intending to do one on the in / out / spray bar set up options some time in the future.
The video will show the flow by using the gel filter balls moving in the water as they are fairly neutral buoyancy.
The FX Series has always been foam heavy and having less space for filter media. I was going to purchase either an FX4 or an FX6 but I settled on an Eheim Classic.
Now I am beginning to replace my old canisters with Aquaels.
Awesome video Sir Richard. Looking forward to the next one.
Thank you again Richard I did try to give it a good clean before I sent it to you I should have left it open for a few days thanks again Michael
No worries and apologies for not getting the video uploaded sooner - I'm way behind on editing and have over 30 more still to do.
I'm glad you're pleased with the filter.
Hey I know this comment is 3 years old so you probably won’t notice, but can you let me know what sort of results you got from this filter before and after the upgrade? Thanks
I would love to see you pimp a Fluval G series filter, either a G3 or a G6.
Just want to say thank you for this information. My fish will be even more grateful from the sounds of your video. Keep on
Fanflippingtastic! I inherited an FX4 with zero media when I bought a used 400 litre tank last week, I wish I'd found this video before I bought a load of compatible media for it! At least I didn't have to pay genuine fluval prices I guess 😂 I will definitely be pimping my FX4 along the lines you have shown, can't wait!
Hi Richard Just Installed Your Fx4 Upgrade Kit And Im Well Impressed Thank You
I know this video is older but if you take one of those red trays it will fit in the bottom center with a bit of trimming off the top. This will give you some space for chemical media.
Hi. I’m looking at getting a new filter for a 240ltr tank. I was thinking of getting the Fluval 407 but some people say get this fx4. I have the 307 sat in the shed at the moment that come with the tank. Love watching your videos
Thank you
Mark
What is the intended stock for the tank? - that will dictate the size of filter needed.
Not heavily stock. It’s just going to have a common community tank. Ie platy, guppies and neon maybe some cherry shrimps. Thank you for your reply
@@user-sparky In that case the FX4 will easily be big enough as it holds 3kg of filter media - just avoid using seachem prime / safe if you are trying to achieve a full cycle (reduction in nitrate) since it will starve the bacteria and prevent a full cycle. If you think one day you'd like to have a heavier stock e.g. cichlids, discus etc. then the FX6 would be the one to go for as it holds 5kg of media giving you 2kg per 100 litres.
Of course there are other choices of filter which also hold a similar amount of media.
@@pondguru thank you very much I’m going for the fx6 with the spray bar. I normally use the
seachem purigen. Could I still use this or is there no need ?
@@user-sparky There is no need for any chemical media unless you need to use chemical media. See how it goes and if the clarity isn't perfect then go with a pouch of chemical media to clear it up. It will go last in the system so in an FX4 / 6 it would be in the bottom of the bottom tray.
Best of luck with the tank.
I will definitely reconfigure my FX4 on my malawi tank. Fortunately it works together with an Eheim 4+ 600 on my 450l tank, so it's enough "space" and power together ;). Thx & greetings from Austria.
Glad you done one of these, have mine set up like that apart from the settlement cavity, will add that next filter clean
Good stuff and I'm gla dyou found the video useful
So after all the gunk gets trapped in the Eheim ceramic ring centers (that can't be back flushed out), the vertical flow upwards to the center of the filter is suppose to shift horizontally black blue black blue giving you coarse fine coarse fine filtration as it ascends 🤔 I will say it looks pretty cool...and just think about all that money you'll save from not needing aquarium fertilizer by all the extra nitrates produced by the ceramic rings when feeding all your Plants...very thrifty 😉👌
I use several fx filters the red trays go straight in the bin all they do is take up space which can be used for media
lol, that's exactly where they belong - there's no point making filtration more complicated than it needs to be.
I was so tempted to buy this but so glad I opted for the fx6 with increased media capacity
I just hot one and did the upgrades. Only thing is the media I bought is a bit smaller. I mixed the two together and filled both trays with it. I hope it's OK. I start it up in the morning. Hope it dont effect the flow.lol
I wouldn't worry about that since the media has very little effect on flow rates for filters unless it is extremely small and packed very tight together (and clogged up with muck).
The fine white pad (when clogged up) is the factor which leads to the flow slowing down so when the flow slows down that lets you know that it needs changing and the filter needs cleaning.
It makes no difference where the fine pad is located in the filter trays as to how quickly it clogs but with this filter it should definitely be on the top of the top tray since water flows through the filter trays from top to bottom. Having the fine pad on the top allows the media to stay clean and effective.
@pondguru thanks alot. The fx 4 is up and running great. Did all the upgrades . Filter Foam didn't arrive in time so I'll add that on my first water change. Looking great so far except for the new tank cloudy cycle time but its only been 24 hours and it getting clear. I appreciate all the tips.
@@prockfisherman8661 (my other channel) Good one and best of luck with the system. It will settle down quickly once the media starts to colonize with bacteria.
Why do you use both coarse and medium foam on the top and bottom tray? Would it work better to have coarse on the outside of the bottom tray, and medium on the outside of the top tray, and fine pad in the middle of the top tray? Thanks for the videos.
I owned anfx4 but sold it after 9month I wanted one for a while n desired to get one n was disappointed in it don't get me wrong it is a beast has a ton a flow and keeps a 300ltr tank spotless but it has bypass issues it don't hold a lot of biomedia I had to add an eheim classic to my 300ltr tank as back up to hold more bio then I was cleaning the propellorn snapped the shaft I had to order a new propellorn and shaft for 35pound just to get a shaft which came broken as well as fluval don't package it right so the shaft is in the propellorn and rattles about in pagaging and there's a good chance most come this way so I ended up selling it the only fluval filters Iv got that I do love is my 207 and c2
Nice review. Really felt for you with the pong issue 😷 Now that's dedication to the cause.
Hi , I just got the Fluval X4 on a 75 gallon , where can i buy the foam in the US , preferably on amazon , not sure what it is called and what to look for , any help is truly appreciated!
I have my fx4 on a 220gal...and its perfect
Great Video. Placed an order for your FX4 kit. Going with some Eheim Mech Pro for the bottom (1 liter). Now just have to figure out how to cut my tank stand to fit this thing inside :), it's about 1" or so too narrow.
Thanks for the order. I wouldn't bother with the mech pro in the bottom as it could affect the flow from the drain pipe.
I put the media down there in this video as it was a suggestion from a viewer but I'm not convinced that it does anything or is needed.
@@pondguru Thanks got my box today. Do I need to pre-clean your media? I have the Ollie and Hutch Flipper Wildwood 55 gallon stand if you or anyone here can offer suggestions to modify. If I was building it from scratch I'd leave one of the rear one panels off and a middle shelf. Unfortunately mine is glued (even if not removing the rear panel now would be difficult). I am planning on using a 4.5" circular saw to remove what I have too.
@@alk3myst Ideally the media should be quickly rinsed with water you've drained from the tank or with treated tap water but it's not essential - any 'dust' will simply be fine sand generated during transit and will not harm anything. Either way as soon as the media goes into the system it will mature very fast.
@@pondguru Finally found the time to setup the FX4 (I had to modify my existing stand). Within minutes my 55 gallon tank was clear and has been clear a week now. I installed with a water bar since I like the sound of the trickleing and the reduced flow doesn't seem to be hurting anything. Your kit was a great purchase rather than having to buy too much of things. My trays were well filled and if I wanted I could manage to get some charcoal bags in the bottom tray (so far I don't think I need them). Big THANK YOU from Florida!
@@alk3myst (my other channel) Awesome stuff - best of luck with the tank.
A proper filter upgrade is the single most important investment for any tank.
Hello, I have a 6ft 125 gallon tank. Would you recommend two FX4's or two 407's for that size tank? I plan to keep mostly tiger barbs , loaches and a few panda garra.
Great filter Richard, See ya soon
I got a second hand FX6 and i threw those little red trays out immediately. they just waste so much space that can be used for BioHome Ultimate
I just added mine to a roma with biohome media lets see i may even add the spray bar also and using your media
Best of luck with that - the spray bar is a great idea due to the heavy flow of these big filters.
That was me who said about using that cavity
Nice one and thanks for that - I got your name totally wrong sorry about that, lol
My lack of short term memory means I always have to tell the truth which is definitely a good thing but sometimes it is embarrassing when I can't remember people I just interacted with, even if I only met them hours before.
Thats ok chap my memory just as bad so dont worry
Well done Mark I mean Matthew sorry 😜
What exactly do you mean by primary sediment media? What do you use?
Can this be done with an FX6?
One complaint of this filter is the clips that tighten up to hold the lid in place. Forever breaking & although they are only plastic they are expensive to replace. Been looking for metal ones but not had any luck yet. If anyone does know please post where they can be purchased. Great video tho thanks.
hi Richard, no one is ever going to own all of these filters, but I am really enjoying the series, well done and keep up the great work. I have a pond solutions canister filter on my 200l tank, set up your way and its fantastic, thanks
Your the man I just got an fx4 for my plant high tech 200l yesterday ready for pimping 😃
Great video Richard. As always.
Please guys don't copy this, I did and it's almost destroyed both my Fx4s. Putting a fine filter pad before all the ceramic clogs up something awful. You've been warned
Like you I binned the red trays as soon as I set it up ... what a waste
Ok coming soon is this kit fitted to the new fx4 just delivered i got the upgrade kit so looking forward to that and must say items turned up quick so thats Richard
(my other channel) - Nice one, I'm glad it arrived quickly as it was sent on a 24hr service. Best of luck with the tank.
Cheers Richard. Great video!
Couldn't you put a carbon pad in the central section under the trays so you don't use up space inside the trays.
Hello and thank you for your video's. I did recently purchase a Fluval FX4 and I am excited about it for the price point. I am definitely going to use some of your recommendations for the setup of the filter media. I did have one quick question. i usually use a pad of filter floss to help polish the water off. At what level would you recommend putting this in, top tray or bottom tray?
That is what the fine white pad is in the top of the filter in this video - it ensures that only clean water passes down to the filter media.
Another great video! :)
The different stages are just different types of sponges.
Anyway love your videos and Biohome :)
Almost. There are 5 stages (meaning 5 places of filtration) in the filter.
1) the outer sponges
2) the top of the red tray on the top basket
3) the bottom of the top basket
4) the top of the red tray on the bottom basket
5) the bottom of the bottom basket
5 STAGES, not 5 TYPES. :)
@@Sahadi420 I meant the coarse sponge is one type of sponge and one stage of filtration just like the medium sponge and the fine pad is. The filter has a 3 stage mechanical filtration with 3 three different types of mechanical media.
The red tray is irrelevant In the set up, you can take it out.
@@hendrikwirtz8418 the red trays are there to simply give you the option to separate the inside space in the basket. I have the red trays IN on the top basket of my FX4 and 6 to simply put in another sponge. Bio-home is under that sponge, and fills the entire middle area in the lower tray(s).
You're correct about the different sponges....I'm just saying Fluval means the "5 levels of filtration" are 5 different places you can filter the water.
@@Sahadi420 yes indeed that is what Fluval says and that are 5 places to filter the water :)
Thank You soo much for the video. I had a quick question. I've bought a tank that has the fluval 306 filter and the fx4 filter. I'm going to run them together for my tank 260l reef. Would i be able to just load one of the filters (fx4) with pure biomedia?? I'll load the 307 the way that you showed us in the previous video.
Great instructional video for upgrading FX4. Looking for a source for the large and medium
foam (in the USA)
I have a FX4 on the way for my 200L tank. In the cavity can I use the ceramic media it comes with instead of buying eheim mech?
I have the same question!
I've used it. I'm certain it won't make a difference. It's basically the same thing just slightly bigger.
Hi Gary. I set my fx4 up with the ceramic rings to start with. But twice the amount. (Used the ones from my old fx5 ) and seemed OK. But have now changed to bio home. Hopefully that will be better. Will keep you informed.
Is there any way you could do a AquaClear 30 HOB?????? I need you to do this one please I love you bro! Yeehaww!
I have a 270l salt water marine tank it comprises of 1 3 striped damsel 2 clown fish and one dog faced puffer also 4 crabs if they are still there I've got a all pond solutions ef1 but I am looking to buy a fluval fx4 I've seen your hack will it be OK in my 270l aquarium
(my other channel) Ideally you'd aim for approx. 2kg of media per 100 litres for a marine system so I'd say go for the FX6 all day. It will hold 5kg of media as opposed to the FX4 which will only hold 3kg of media. That is a massive difference.
How could this FX4 test so mediocre but the FX6 so good? With only one extra tray?
I have 2 fx4 on my 125 keeps my water cleeean
Hi, I have an 8,000 gallon Koi pond with an Oase Proficlear drum filter with 2 additional media sections with K1 and an end section which houses the pumps and the UV's. That last section also has 2 baskets which is for additional media not provided by the manufacturer and the choice is left to the user. I have no problem with my filtration but I have 2 empty baskets that could be filled. Would Biohome Plus or ultimate be beneficial? You state 1kg per 100 litres so I wonder if 5 kgs is actually going to do anything on an 8,000 gallon pond? In fact is any media in that small quantity going to add anything to that size pond? I would be interested to hear your views.
FX4 be good for a 75 gallon Heavy stocked African Ciclid tank? From what I gathered here it would.
Once again great video. I have a question pertaining to Seachem Prime. Does it kill off anaerobic bacteria as I've read on some forums? If so how do you recommend I treat my water that has chloramine in it? Thanks again. Got 4kg of Biohome going on in my two filters and so far so good but waiting for that "full" cycle to start.
I have been using prime for years. I test for ammonia/ nitrite weekly. I have had no problems with bacteria die off or ammonia/ nitrite spikes. My tank is well stocked. I dont believe prime kills off benifical bacteria. You could always email Seachem.
@@BONP1E I meant the ANAEROBIC bacteria that get rid of nitrates and complete the cycle as Pond Guru talks about.
by putting the biological material in the bottom there is no danger of washing away the good bacteria when we use the drain / load valve?
I have just bought a 650 litre tank second hand and plan on having it heavily planted but also quite a few community fish.
I was looking at this filter due to it being advertised as being suitable for this size but after watching your video, I have my doubts.
You mention cheaper filters that have more biological filter. What would you recommend?
BTW, I was given a 2nd hand AquaOne 2200 but found it extremely hard to get the top off due to how it's designed which is why this one appealed to me. In fact, one of the clips broken in trying to get the lid off due to the incredible suction it has.
Thanks in advance.
Another great pimp my filter! Are you going to be doing any of the sun sun / polor aurora filters?
I have a three hundred litre fish tank with two fish in it, a comet and common goldfish... the common goldfish is about 7 inches long and the comet is about 5 inches long... should I get the FX4, 5 or 6?
Thanks for the video. I'm about to do this to my FX4 this weekend. How often do you break the FX down to rinse out the foam pads? I do mine every two weeks now but I wasn't sure with this new setup how often I should do it.
Every tank and filter is different - ideally it should go at least a month when a filter is correctly sized for a tank but see what it is like then extend intervals if you think it would go longer after you've cleaned the filter. e.g. if you normally do monthly maintenance and think it would go 6 weeks try that and assess it from there, if you think it would go 8 weeks try that and so on until you find the sweet spot for your situation - no point 'cleaning' a clean filter.
I just purchased a Fluval FX4 for my 60 gallon cube tank. I’m going to set up the FX4 exactly this way. How often do I need to change the Eheim Mech, fine filter pad & course and medium bio sponges? Thanks!
So what's the next best thing to biohome filter media that you use because it can come to more than what the filter is worth⁉️⁉️
I run an FX4 on a moderately stocked 55 gallon (208 L) freshwater community aquarium. Based on the numbers in your description, it seems that I should be able to get full cycle filtration using the media you describe on my set up. My tank is well established and fully cycled. I have been using a combination of mechanical, biological and chemical filtration. Most of this is from the manufacturer. I have a couple of questions. First, how would you recommend adding in the anaerobic bacteria? Presumably, I have an adequate supply of aerobic bacteria in the current media. Second, how often if ever does the biohome media need to be changed? Thanks in advance for your advice.
Could u add a all pond solution canister like the 2.3 litre with more bio media thanks
On the oitlet side yes although you may need to fanny about with different fittings to get the FX pipe onto the booster.
Like your spin on it!
Where can you get the exact media your using also the correct name. As I'm ordering online
I bought a used one on eBay and had it relisted for sale the same day. The 2650lph is b@llocks too..unless it has no media inside. I bought it to replace a sun sun (a.p.s in u.k)304 with pre filter, running alongside a eheim 2080 (1700lph) and the eheim is way more powerful, plus the eheim has substrat pro in it and the fx4 has your media , which is way easier for water to pass as it doesn't stack as densely. I really wasn't impressed. Went by what fluval said the liters of the unit was. Held only just over half of the 304b as well. Don't see how they can justify the price against their own fluval 406 which holds the exact same amount of media but yet is rated for larger tanks, how? Where do they get their information from? Their own advertising? They only rate the 406 as up to 400ltrs ..so the more money it costs the more it will do lol? I've put the biohome back in the 304b until a used pro3 2080 comes up for sale locally, plus the eheim is only 25w so pays for itself in the long. I wish you'd design and make a filter, or in conjunction with a company do a filter together. I'd take a good few lol
I do have an idea to radically change the fluval FX6 but I have neither the materials or the free time to put into the project - I should probably send it down to Mark's Aquariums along with some drawings of what I would do and get him to make the necessary changes, lol
Fx for filter is rubbish I have it running on my 350 L tank and the pump just pulls through the sand straight through saw the tank is constantly murky we definitely are changing those filter pads thanks
Hey thanks for the tips, especially the Eheim Mech on the bottom of the canister! I’m going to try that! You indicated that some of the modern chemical media will mess up the biological side of things. Do you think Purigen placed in the bottom tray mixed with bio media would mess up the biological process?
I would say purigen will definitely
Can you do a video on api filstar xl I like them since they are simple but im curious about your opinion
Those foams dont look tightly packed in. I imagine water slipping by. Is water not directly forced through the foams?
Hi Pondguru
I was just thinking if the water comes up through the outside sponges and then down through the middle , would it not make more sense to b
Have just course foams around the bottom tray and just medium foam around the top tray, this would stop the water simply by passing the medium foam and spilling into the central baskets and quickly clogging the wool pad. In my experience water will always take the path of least resistance. What do you think?
The water flows from the outside though the foams horizontally not vertically. They hit both trays equally from the horizontal side. That is why you put coarse and medium foams in both trays.
Would you put the purigen in the bottom? I'm gonna add a small purigen andchemi pure bag? I'm just wondering since there is charcoal in the chemistry pure if it goes in the bottom? Thank you
Yes you can add chemical media in the bottom of the bottom tray if you need to.
Unless there's a problem with staining from bogwood or you need to draw in residual fish treatments you won't need chemical media when you have a suitably sized, well set up filter.
about to set up 2 Fluval FX6. If set up properly and more efficiently, roughly how many pounds of Bio Home Ultimate will fit in each FX6? I have 5 pounds already. They will be running 125 gallon tank.
Just one Question would this Filter work for a 100 gallons Discus Tank a will have Three Lifeguard filters to Add to my Tank. A few plants and 10 discus with 1/2 sand. Thanks
can you pimp a canister filter that is designed for small pond applications....say 100 to 300 gal gold fish indoor ponds. Also maybe something that is available here in the USA.......PLEASE
Hi have noticed that there is another space underneath the bottom tray, at the very bottom of the canister, looks about the right size for a bag of chemi pure or similar product. I am wondering whether you would know whether it is ok to utilise this space as well, or leave it empty?
I just got an fx4. And ordered all pimp up material, get them in a day or two. Thanks for the tips.
I wonder, i also got the fluval pads, for ammonia, nitrite and phosphate. Do i put them on the bottum on lowest part?
Thanks for the order. and best of luck with the tank.
Yes, any chemical media would ideally be after the biological media to give the bacteria living in the media the best chance at all the food it needs before the pads start to remove it.
@@pondguruah! Ok. Thanks.
Have another question. Watched some more videos and send the fx4 back, and ordered an fx6.
On fx4 on the bottom outside ring you put eheim mech. It has more room than fx6 you said. I wonder, do you still fill that bottom outside ring with eheim mech on the fx6?
@@visfanaat8188 The filling of the trench at the bottom of the filter was a suggestion from a viewer but it's something which I can't see much value in doing. If you use something in there which is too small it will clog the exit pipe - just leave it how it is and it will hold the heavy muck no problem. No need for media there.
@@pondguruok... i will leave it out.
Thanks for the great answers mate. 👍🍻
@@visfanaat8188 That was a suggestion from a viewer but I personally wouldn't bother adding anything into that bottom ring since adding something which is too big or too small could interfere with the drain feature on the filter.
Would the fx4 be able to be pimped out to a dr Kevin Novak anoxic filter Bcb type deal? Maybe load the trays with the baked clay and a laterite core? Not sure if too much oxygen would get to it. The water needs to flow around the clay, not through it.
My fx6 did come with the junk orange trays