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experiences? quality? satisfaction?

might get more help on the "technical tinkering" forum. Lots of clever & helpful people there know all sorts of kewl stuff.

Good luck with your research.



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~~~ My fish blow kisses at me all day long ~~~

ClaptonIsGod:

I have not had direct experience with a Fluval 304, but I do own a Fluval 104 which is similar, albeit smaller.
In my many years in the hobby, I have not owned or tried every single model manufactured. So far, best I can say is that I've not yet come across the perfect external filter. That's not to say that the models out there are severely lacking. there have been several advances made over the years. They are just not 100% absolutely perfect.
The one evermost important feature not yet available in any filter is self-cleaning.
Back to the Fluval. The 304 is a larger version of the 104. I'll give you my feedback on the 104. It is a very easy filter to maintain. I like the sponges which come with it. The meadia bays are great, but I find the top cover of the upper media bay hard to close. That's where I put the ceramic rings.
The hose locking/connecting mecanism works vary well and is troublefree.
I've always been leery of the corrogated hose. With all those nooks, it seemed like it would easily gunk up. But so far, I've myteriously not had a problem.
I don't like the priming mechanism. It's a real pain to prime.
The pump itself is very quiet. Can't hear it at all.
As a filter, it filters well. The only meterial I use are the sponges (coarse filtering), filter floss (fine filtering), and the ceramic rings (biological filtering). I have the 104 on a 20L and the water is always crystal clear.
Overall, I'd recommend this filter, but give a thumbs down on the priming mechanism.
-Wayne

I have a 304 fluval.

First, the hose looks corrugated from the outside but is perfectly flat inside, so there's no excessive gunk in the hose, unless after 6 months you flex the hose and releases the gunk that actually collects.... BUT ANY HOSE WOULD END LIKE THAT, so there's no problem with the hose.

When it filters is great, no.... I mean GREAT but it has two downsides: The canister basket is fragile when not cared properly. Every month I have to lube the sealing o-ring and the basket edges where the filter sits to prevent the use of force to close the filter. I have broken a basket that then was replaced.

The other problem is with the primming mechanism, for taking out the air. It doesn't works well. Usually I've got to fill the filter's basket almost to the top to make the fiter work when plugged.

Oh, I almost forgot. Its a bit tricky but necessary to lube with vaseline the Aqua-stop valve rings, because some disassembly is needed. This valve closes the hose flow to prevent spilling water from the hoses when its disconnected for cleaning.

....... And then the result is for an Eheim. I don't have an Eheim but I have heard those are sturdy, the primming mechanism works well and it works wonderful, just as the Fluval but without the little downsides the Fluval has.

Don't go cheap and get an Eheim. Period.

I think its a great solution for the money, but you'd better get an Eheim Pro filter.

i have a fluval 404 - same thing.. but bigger. overall i'm really satisfied with it - i bought it off my aunt for really cheap, so i can't complain. the impeller cover is broken right now (it has 2 clips to hold it into the motor, but one has broken off) so it's really loud, but as soon as i fix that it will be quiet again. and like sharpix says - the priming mechanism does NOT work (wish i had just thought of filling the filter with water though... instead of sucking on the end of the tube )
the other problem i see is that the hoses are really hard to attach/detach from the pump. everytime i have to clean the media i cringe, because the assembly with the hoses won't come out easily, and is even more difficult to reattach (which means i clean the filter less than i really should)
anyway - i definately think its worth the cost. if they weren't so expensive, i'd definately pick up a couple more for my other tanks!!! (starving student here... don't have the money... )

The trick to priming any Fluval MSF Series canister is not to fill the canister after cleaning...

After the hoses are locked down the canister will start to fill automatically. Some primer pumping can be done if required after the canister is plugged in.

One side of the cover on this series should be pressed down then clamped and then the other side pressed down and clamped.

Using the clamps to force the cover closed may crack the blue lever clamps.

Silicone lube should be used on all rubber o-rings, not Vaseline which may rot the seals.

--garyroland.

I agree with Garyroland i have all fluval 404s on my tanks and they work great. once you lock the hoses back on the hoses fill the canister back up. ive never broken any of mine t5he trick to all things working properly is to know how it works. if you broke one you didnt do it right.

how often should I clean it ?

How often a canister filter is cleaned always depends on the bio load and size of the tank...

Large fish, large waste. Smaller species, a few, may demand a clean filter every two weeks whereas the large specimens may require more frequent canister cleans.

Many factors come into play determining when to break down a canister for maintenance. Some watch for slower water output while others may choose to schedule regular cleanings, dirty or not.

I've found that canisters, since the debris is trapped inside, should have a regular scheduled date for cleaning.

If someone should ask you if there is a perfect filter made, don't hesitate to answer "No".

--garyroland.

Clapton is God

If I remember correctly in Chat you stated you had a mix of sand and a pebble sub base.

You have just set up the tank.

The filter is still new.

Am I correct inn all of these?

Also several explained to you to remove the carbon as you did not want to wreck it as it cost too much to replace.

As far as how often. I recommended you do it after about 24 hrs to make sure you remove all the fines and pay special attention to the impellar reason being that if any fine sand left it "could" do some damage to the impeller.
Sand naturally "can" contain glass and many other cutting bits and pieces.

Cleaning after that will depend on your tank and its inhabitants. I do a full pull down every two months.
I have a Eheim Pro2 and a full UGF as well.
A very good point was raised you "must" use a silicon grease (not the silicon oil) around any rubber seals if not when you go to do a pull down the rubber will stick and possibly tear.



Keith

Last edited by keithgh at 14-Dec-2004 22:41

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I switched everything up totally. I have a geo systems substrate black, and mopani drift wood. The filter was turned off while the other stuff was in the tank, it looks sweet now, both water and aqua scape ! thanks for the replies guys

I have a 304 and a 404 on two different tanks. I bought the 404 based on the good reviews I found here at FishProfiles. I later bought the 304 because I was so pleased with the first one. I have had no problems with either one and have had them for a year and a half or better.