Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I'm looking to get a Fluval 404. Running a Whisper filter now. Getting really tired of the waterfall sound. It does an OK job, bu t I'm thinking the canister should work much better. Trying to find out what media combinations work best. Any info would be appreciated.
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1 RES
2 pain in the butt cats

Dont get a Fluval, get a FilStar. They are 10 times better and have more room for media, easier to prime, and... just plain better.
Chris
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0.1 Red Eared Slider, 1.0 Common Snapper, 1.0 Bearded Dragon and a 55gal Native Fish Tank with a 6in LM Bass, 3 Crawdads and a Pleco.
I use to have a collection of Leopard Geckos that I bred, but have sold them.

I have two Fluval 404 canister filters. Each is on a different tank and I have had them now for over two years. I know others have had some Fluval horror stories, but I have not. I use bulk media when it comes time for a change...much cheaper than changing with the actual Fluval brand! I got both of mine for about $85 a piece. I went to Big Al's online (who has very good prices) and printed out info on their Fluval price. I then took that to Petsmart, who price matches, and got them for the $85 dollar price. Plus I didn't have any extra expenses with shipping etc, since I got them from a store.

I haven't had any issues with my Fluvals and they have cut my maintenance down significantly. The water stays clean and clear.

May be a dumb question, but what do you mean by "bulk media"? Where is the best place to get it? Thanks
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1 RES
2 pain in the butt cats

I buy my filter media loose, and put the pouches together myself. It's fairly easy to find in decent sized pet stores. I have seen the carbon come in either a plastic container with a screw top, or a milk-carton style container. I spoon it into nylon mesh pouches with a draw string at the top. It gets closed up, rised well and them put into the media compartment in the filter. I have kept the ceramic large particle media that came with the filter, since it has an indefinite life. For fine particle filtration I buy the bags of what I call pillow stuffing--it looks like the polyester white fluff you would use to stuff a pillow. I cut off a section, rise it well, roll it up, and put it in the compartment.

Just a suggestion--instead of the over priced media bags with the drawstring, I get a 10 pack of knee high stockings at rite aid or kmart or wherever for the price of one media bag from the pet store, dump the media in, and tie a knot in the top. I think it works better because the material is stretchy and fills the compartment better, and it's A LOT cheaper.

I've got the Fluval 304 and mostly love it. However, it is a royal pain to prime at times. As to flling the media baskets, I buy charcoal in bulk and use a nylon media bag. Another basket has a rolled up piece of blue filter fiber.