Being pro-active about potential canister filter leaking.

[Utar]

I am ever so slowly getting my 55 gallon up and running, but I have a concern about a potential leaking canister filter. Thinking about installing my canister filter inside a large plastic container beside the 55 gallon stand. Then some how installing a float that when the water gets up in the container it will cut power to the canister filter. Truely I don't know how to do this, so any ideas.

 

[EJohnson201912345]

You could use something like this:
https://www.amazon.com/HydroCheck-W...ks-20&linkId=8c5adff813f9cc33a7b4ee73059de7cb

This would allow you to place the disc in the tub and then plug the filter into the plug on the unit, don't know what type of plug you use but hope this helps!

 

[Utar]

You could use something like this:
https://www.amazon.com/HydroCheck-W...ks-20&linkId=8c5adff813f9cc33a7b4ee73059de7cb

This would allow you to place the disc in the tub and then plug the filter into the plug on the unit, don't know what type of plug you use but hope this helps!

Thanks for finding this for me, this is what I was looking for.

 

[EJohnson201912345]

Thanks for finding this for me, this is what I was looking for.

No Problem!

 

[Jonmott]

Only problem with that is that turning the filter off will not stop it from leaking, might actually be worse depending if it’s leaking at the motor head Or not, some people drill a small hole on the intake pipe avoid a total Tank drain.
Putting it in a bin should help some like you want to do, if it’s a slow leak at least it will help.

 

[DoubleDutch]

Only problem with that is that turning the filter off will not stop it from leaking, might actually be worse depending if it’s leaking at the motor head Or not, some people drill a small hole on the intake pipe avoid a total Tank drain.
Putting it in a bin should help some like you want to do, if it’s a slow leak at least it will help.

I agree. Even without power the syphoning / gravity will take over in case of a leak.

 

[Utar]

Yes I agree what you are saying, the leak can possibly drain the entire tank. In that case if I don't catch it in time, well that is really bad. But I want to setup so that I have sometime to catch it, and do something about it before it gets all over my hard wood floor. If it has the alarm on it, EJohnson gave me a link to that device, then hopefully it will wake me up if this happens while I am in bed.

 

[kallililly1973]

As above said i think a small drill hole on the intake an inch or 2 below the water line can avoid a major leak issue.

 

[Utar]

As above said i think a small drill hole on the intake an inch or 2 below the water line can avoid a major leak issue.

Now I understand what you are saying. I was confused at first, dumb me I was thinking that the hole was drilled through the intake at the canister. duh That didn't make sense to me, but now it does. Thanks for clearing that up for me, that is what I will do.

 

[Islandvic]

I was very hesitant at first before buying out first canister filter.

Never had them leak so far.

I think a large percentage of leaking is due to operator error, poor maintenance or not giving the filter a good visual inspection after taking it apart for cleaning and before putting it back together to run it again.

Some good insurance is to buy a set of stainless steel hose clamps to secure the hoses to the hose barbs on the intake/discharge pipes and at the connection points on the motor head. This will ensure the hoses dont slip off and will give them a nice tight fit.

Also, I like to run a q-tip over any o-rings, seals, and gaskets to clean them off each time the canister is removed for cleaning. Doing this cleans the rubber surface and also gives you a chance to visually inspect the rubber surface. Look for nicks, gouges, tears or deformities on the rubber.

Afterwards, I will use new q-tips or my finger to apply some food grade silicone lube on the rubber. Danco Weatherproof Grease and Superlube Oring Silicone Grease are options, but there are dozens to choose from.

Also, not being in a rush and taking your time while disassembling and re-assembling the canister will help prevent leaks.

Sure there are times when a canister component will fail and could not be prevented, but those are rare.

Or you can just skip using a canister filter and use a pair of large sponge filters and a good sized HOB filter.

For example our 65g community tank only has a single large sponge filter, a Tidal 75 and a Top Fin Silentstream 75. Water always stays clear and cycled properly.

 

[Utar]

I was very hesitant at first before buying out first canister filter.

Never had them leak so far.

I think a large percentage of leaking is due to operator error, poor maintenance or not giving the filter a good visual inspection after taking it apart for cleaning and before putting it back together to run it again.

Some good insurance is to buy a set of stainless steel hose clamps to secure the hoses to the hose barbs on the intake/discharge pipes and at the connection points on the motor head. This will ensure the hoses dont slip off and will give them a nice tight fit.

Also, I like to run a q-tip over any o-rings, seals, and gaskets to clean them off each time the canister is removed for cleaning. Doing this cleans the rubber surface and also gives you a chance to visually inspect the rubber surface. Look for nicks, gouges, tears or deformities on the rubber.

Afterwards, I will use new q-tips or my finger to apply some food grade silicone lube on the rubber. Danco Weatherproof Grease and Superlube Oring Silicone Grease are options, but there are dozens to choose from.

Also, not being in a rush and taking your time while disassembling and re-assembling the canister will help prevent leaks.

Sure there are times when a canister component will fail and could not be prevented, but those are rare.

Or you can just skip using a canister filter and use a pair of large sponge filters and a good sized HOB filter.

For example our 65g community tank only has a single large sponge filter, a Tidal 75 and a Top Fin Silentstream 75. Water always stays clear and cycled properly.

I ordered a tube of Super Lube off Amazon, and have greased the o-rings on both my canister filters. I also used metal hose camps on the hose connections because I didn't feel secure using the provided plastic ones. kallililly1973 suggested that I drill a hole below the water line of the plastic out tube, so I did that. Both the canisters are setting in a large plastic tub. I am so glad I have them in the tub, because I already spilled quite a bit of water in the tub when taking the hoses loose.

I had watched the video where the guy says to drop the cheaper kind of bio-media in the bottom of the canister to breakup the water flow entering the filter. I did this on both the small pre-canister filter and the large main filter. Now as I sit here I can here the darn things rattling around in the bottom of the pre-filter. So I am going to remove those, it is quite noisy.

I am getting the hang of using canister filters, and feel they will provide cleaner water, with longer times between maintenance. Only time will tell.