Questions/Opinions on the FX5

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stierwalt3

New Member
So I have a couple questions about the FX5

1) Is it worth the $100 i'm going to pay for it....It's only a year old!?

2) Would it be wayyy too much filtration for a 72Gal bow front?

3) Is there anything I should be looking for when I go pick it up...seeing how its a used filter and all?

Thanks in advance! :D
 
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Spyral

New Member
1) Yes..for sure

2) No, I have one on my 72 bowfront and it is awesome!

3) Make sure all the hoses are there, the valves, the intake and outlet and the cover/oring. Make sure it seats correctly and the top isn't cracked. Make sure the baskets are inside it. If possible, run the filter before you pay for it.

4) If you don't take it, I will.

Good luck!
 
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larry.beck

New Member
+1 to Spyral. And if you do those things and it passes the test, but you decide you don't want it, I'll take it. 8)
 
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stierwalt3

New Member
:lol!: Ya I couldn't believe the price either!? :shock: Now I just hope the guy doesn't change his mind on me!

Ok thanks guys I'll keep you all updated!
 
DMD123

DMD123

Administrator
Staff member
Contributing Member Level III
I run two FX5's on my 210g. I think a single on a 72g bow would be perfect. I would do a spraybar mod to it to ease up on the current.
 
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hbluehunter

New Member
X2 what Spyral said.. I have 2 plus other stuff on my 300 and like them alot.. If possible try and run it to make sure it's motor is ok.. Probably too much work to take the impeller out to check that..:)
 
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stierwalt3

New Member
hbluehunter said:
X2 what Spyral said.. I have 2 plus other stuff on my 300 and like them alot.. If possible try and run it to make sure it's motor is ok.. Probably too much work to take the impeller out to check that..:)
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Cool thanks I'll see what I can do....I'm meeting the guy today!
 
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stierwalt3

New Member
OK I picked up the FX5 today! It's missing some clips, suction cups, the t-handles, and he couldn't find the spray bar mod...but everything else is there and it pushes water like crazy! So I think I still got a deal! Anyway does anyone know of a good place to pick up some FX5 parts??

BTW I knew this thing was BIG,but man this thing is HUGE! :shock:
 
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protocl

New Member
Aquarist World - the last time i was there, they had an extensive array of parts for many kinds of canisters. Should call and ask for Michael.
 
DMD123

DMD123

Administrator
Staff member
Contributing Member Level III
stierwalt3 said:
I knew this thing was BIG,but man this thing is HUGE! :shock:
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That's what she said!

Sorry could not resist!

When I got my FX5 I had that "WOW" moment and had the thought 'do I really need two of these on my 210g?' They are pretty monstrous!
 
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Spyral

New Member
Parts are available at Aquarist World and APFP as mentioned. However, I find at Aquarist World, if Mike isn't there..good luck..lol. Same with APFP, if Kevin isn't there, good luck!
 
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sounguru

New Member
I looked at an FX5 for my 75 but being the cheap dirty old man I am I could not justify the price with other canisters out there that were a lot less. Now if I could have snagged one at that price I would have.... ;)
 
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Spyral

New Member
sounguru said:
I looked at an FX5 for my 75 but being the cheap dirty old man I am I could not justify the price with other canisters out there that were a lot less. Now if I could have snagged one at that price I would have.... ;)
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No canister out there filters like it does. the amount of water it pushes is amazing.
 
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sounguru

New Member
Spyral said:
No canister out there filters like it does. the amount of water it pushes is amazing.
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900 gallons per hour is overkill in my mind I'm not into the larger really messy fish to be honest. Turning a 75 gallon tank over 12 times per hour is gonna create quite a flow and when doing heavy plated tanks or tanks with smaller fish, unless they are fast flow fish it is a little much. It can be turned down using valves and spray bars,but hey that is more than I wanted to do. My tanks (or tanks in the past) turn over on average of 0 to 5 times per hour and I find it to be quite sufficient.

I'm not a fan of the over filtration school of thought unless you are running a Fish only tank with larger messier fish. I'm more of a balanced tank kind of guy where everything works together to achieve a healthy environment.

Every fish keeper has their own ideas and ways of doing things if I could have picked one up I would have but split it to run 2 if not more tanks and slow down the output into each tank. There is no question that it is a good filter just that there are cheaper options out there that can do just as well if setup correctly, but for 100 bucks it is a huge steal.
 
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