Fluval FX5 review?

[illumnae]

Has anyone used a Fluval FX5 for a period of time? I'm thinking of upgrading to this filter for my 4x2x2 planted tank and the Eheim Pro2 2028 is really struggling to keep up. it's rated i think 1050li/hour and after including media and gunk it's probably closer to 800-900li/hour (someone on another forum did a test on an eheim pro3 and contrary to popular belief, eheim does overrate its filter speeds as well, just not as much as other brands do) which is only 2x my tank volume per hour...too low right?

My cabinet is designed badly and i can't fit another one in (or i would have already). Eheim Pro 3 and Pro 3e are out of my budget so i can't switch to one of those either

can anyone shed any light as to how the Fluval FX5 performs, and if possible comment on whether i'm doing the right thing by upgrading the filter, or should i be doing something else?

[eddy planer]

Has anyone used a Fluval FX5 for a period of time? I'm thinking of upgrading to this filter for my 4x2x2 planted tank and the Eheim Pro2 2028 is really struggling to keep up. it's rated i think 1050li/hour and after including media and gunk it's probably closer to 800-900li/hour (someone on another forum did a test on an eheim pro3 and contrary to popular belief, eheim does overrate its filter speeds as well, just not as much as other brands do) which is only 2x my tank volume per hour...too low right?

My cabinet is designed badly and i can't fit another one in (or i would have already). Eheim Pro 3 and Pro 3e are out of my budget so i can't switch to one of those either

can anyone shed any light as to how the Fluval FX5 performs, and if possible comment on whether i'm doing the right thing by upgrading the filter, or should i be doing something else?

Fluval FX5 is still as pricey as Eheim 2028 or a little more...

If your buget arent allow you to purchase Eheim, so what is the point think of getting Fluval FX5.

For my 4ft tank is still well maintained, using Fluval 404 canister which is 1/4 of the price of Ehiem 2028 and another Hailea external pump of 1300l/hr to pump water from 4ft tank into a pre filter cansiter then to chiller to 4ft tank. Which means i still using 2 cansiters to have my 4ft tank a well maintained planted tank. The total cost of 2 reliable filter system is still cheaper than Fluval FX5 or Eheim 2028 by 1/2 or alittle less.

hope this will help you...

[illumnae]

Thanks for your reply =) As mentioned in my original post, my cabinet is poorly designed and thus cannot fit a 2nd canister. If i could, i would have bought myself a Fluval 404 or even a Jebo canister as a 2nd filter to increase flow but unfortunately that is not an option for me.

This really makes me regret not going to a proper tank maker and instead buying a discounted off the shelf tank from a local farm. Poor design makes it such that i'm so limited in my choices.

As for my budget, it doesn't allow for the Eheim Pro3 or Pro3e series ($600+ last i checked), but i can afford a Fluval FX5 especially since it can take over my 2028 and my 2028 can be either used for other purposes or sold 2nd hand.

so given my limited circumstances, what do you think? =)

[eddy planer]

Hi,

Since you want to option for Fluval FX5 due to space constraint. What about your C02 supply and chiller? where are you putting them? This Fluval FX5 is huge cansiter like the size of home washing pail.So is there any space for your Fluval FX5, C02 cylinder and chiller for poorly designed cabinet?

If you have problem, use back your Ehiem 2028 and purchase both external pump of 1300l/hr(SGD 40-45) and pre fliter canister ( size of water bottle about SGD 26- SGD35)
(tank> pump of 1300l/hr > pre filter canister > chiller( if you have one) >tank.

I'll place the pump of 1300l/hr on top of Ehiem 2028 and the pre filter cansiter to mount to the cabinet or place it on top of Ehiem 2028. This will work as good as Fluval FX5 but less space constraint.

Hope this will help you.

[illumnae]

thanks for the suggestion =) the reason i had no space for a 2nd canister, but with space for a fluval fx5 is this: my tank cabinet has a middle partition that splits it into 2, and the left side cavity is further split horizontally into 2 shelves. as such, half of the cabinet is basically redundant/used for fish food and electrical power tabs. furthermore, only 2 1.6 inch holes are drilled into the tank for filter pipes to go out, and one of the holes is in the side where the shelves are. also, as the tank has no frame structure, but is supported wholly by the wooden planks making up the sides of the cabinet, i dare not do drilling of more holes in case the integrity of the cabinet is compromised. all that i've dared to do is to drill another 1.6 inch hole in the middle partition so that electrical wiring for the solenoid and eheim 2028 can reach the power tabs.

and that's why i can't have 2 canister filters...firstly, because 2x 2028 takes up more floor space than 1x fx5, and secondly, because of the holes limiting the number of hoses i can fit out of the cabinet into the tank. as it is, getting the 2 eheim hoses through 1 hole is already a really tight squeeze. with the fluval fx5 i'll probably have to thread one hose through the middle partition and out of the hole in the power tab side. this is possible because the fluval hose is ribbed and thus doesn't kink. no way am i gonna fit a normal hose through that route without it kinking.

hope that explains my situation somewhat =) i learnt the hard way to get all future tanks from a reliable tank maker and not some locally distributed china brand with a shady reputation =\

i'll definitely take your method into consideration if i can manage to thread the hose of the pump/prefilter through the partition and out of the power tab hole. otherwise, i'll probably have to use the FX5. another added benefit of the FX5 is that i do get added biofiltration, which can only do me good as my tank is overpopulated!