# Fluval 305 help needed



## tranimal (Nov 21, 2007)

My filter stopped pumping water after its cleaning yesterday. I am not sure what happened, but it was working fine before I took it apart to clean. The impeller seems to be working fine as well. The darn thing just won't pump water in. Any suggestion would be greatly appreciately. You can just also tell me to buy a new filter, which I am hesitant to do.


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## cah925 (May 18, 2007)

Here's a list of stupid questions in my effort to help-
Is there any water in the filter? Sometimes, I fill my filter with tank water to get it started.
Have you tried the manual primer?


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## alang (Nov 25, 2007)

After cleaning my 305, it takes quite a lot of priming to get it going again. Even after it seems to be going, it will stop and need to be primed again once or twice. A slower action on the priming pump lever seems to be more effective.

How old is the filter?


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## tranimal (Nov 21, 2007)

I bought my filter used, but it was in pretty good condition. First I used the primer, but it didn't seem like the filter filling up with water. Then, I filled the canister manually with water, but still nothing coming out. I wonder if I have a leak somewhere.


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## robbob2112 (Oct 7, 2007)

Making the leap of faith and assuming you haven't got air in the lines and are properly primed, just no pumping... 

First time I cleaned my 305 I didn't get the lid for the impeller back on correctly and it was binding up.... must make sure it is on correct and that the shaft the impeller rides on is showing through the little hole in the impeller lid...... ALSO... remove the impeller and gently hold the magnet part... then see that the fins will not turn independantly.. (they should not)...


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## Tourney (Jan 9, 2007)

Just a thought, but i would check the intake strainer on the bottom of the hose in the tank to make sure it's not clogged up with rubbish. I've got a Fluval 205 and regularly check the strainer for that reason, after i realised a few months ago why mine was not working very well. Since then it's not been a problem.


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## robbob2112 (Oct 7, 2007)

Tourney said:


> Just a thought, but i would check the intake strainer on the bottom of the hose in the tank to make sure it's not clogged up with rubbish. I've got a Fluval 205 and regularly check the strainer for that reason, after i realised a few months ago why mine was not working very well. Since then it's not been a problem.


 
Good point, on the 305 the intake strainer has a ball type checkvalve that I take apart and clean regularly... it is between the strainer and the bottom of the intake tube... between the loose pieces of seaweed that I feed the fish and the bits of plants the the pleco tears up mine needs cleaning every other water change. If that is blocked so that it is open then you can loose your prime in the intake tube pretty easy and have a lot of air in the lines.


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## Crystalview (Aug 10, 2007)

I was having the same problem. Went to web page and they said they have a air lock problem. My flow rate would slow or stop after unplugging. Sometimes the impeller would make noise. It gets air in it to easily. I used a small pump to prime it. It does take awhile to get all the air out. We found that if before you unplug it to lift the two shut off flaps on the hose unit. It stops any syphoning from happen. Go to the web site and they give other idea's. What a pain


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## mott (Nov 23, 2006)

An easy way to prime is to make sure can is empty and then just suck on the outake( sounds nasty and it is)until it fills up.


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## Crystalview (Aug 10, 2007)

I have a lot of air in mine I could not suck that much air. I vac my tank with a magnum hot shot so I just put input to output. But as I said I tried the version of shutting off valves first and it worked too.


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## mott (Nov 23, 2006)

^^^You only need to suck for a few seconds until the water flows into the can.


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## Gatekeeper (Feb 20, 2007)

Take off the intake strainer and jam a powerhead in there to force flow in, that is if you have one laying around. That will certainly bleed out all the air. I do this for my eheim all the time. never tried it on my fluval, but i am sure it will help out.


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## tranimal (Nov 21, 2007)

Thanks for all the suggestions. Will try them all when I get home from work tonight.


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## Paul1 (Feb 1, 2011)

Hello all, i think i may have a problem with what i'm doing when i set them up, i had one and i took it apart which i assumed is why it didn't work when i put it back together, so i went out and bought another one, all though i can't get the water to pump in to the filter, i tried filling it with water and it still didn't seem to change the out come, i'm wondering what im doing wrong? Any responses would be great.


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## bluecheese (May 22, 2009)

Filling the canister with water is not enough. You have to prime the filter. That means water is going through the intake into the filter. Plug the filter in to get the impeller running, and pump the manual primer like a mad month fo.


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## Jeff5614 (Dec 29, 2005)

Is the Aquastop open?


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## cott (May 26, 2007)

This is an old thread but an ongoing problem so I decided to post. I have two Fluvals 305 and my problem with one has been constant. I could not get it going again today and after an hour went in search of help leading me to this thread.

Like others, I did everything. Tried priming slow, tried priming fast. Checked the strainer unit to make sure it was clear of crud. Got really ticked off and removed the hoses and cleaned them. Took the stupid canister apart 10 times at least. So here I am! After reading Mott's post #9, I decided "why not". I sucked on the outlet tube two times and the filter started!!!!! I didn't get water in my mouth, thank Gawd, but must have sucked out an air bubble.

Thanks Mott!!!! And no, Mott is no relation to Cott! LOL


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## Jimmyblues (Dec 16, 2010)

*Re: Priming The Fluval 305 After Cleaning It*



tranimal said:


> My filter stopped pumping water after its cleaning yesterday. I am not sure what happened, but it was working fine before I took it apart to clean. The impeller seems to be working fine as well. The darn thing just won't pump water in. Any suggestion would be greatly appreciately. You can just also tell me to buy a new filter, which I am hesitant to do.


 

I've got two Fluval 305's and I had the same situation occur after I cleaned them out. The mistake I made was to remove the Fluval ribbed hosing to clean that as well.

This broke the suction from the filters which required them to be fully primed again.

I don't clean these filters the same way any longer. 

Instead, I just remove the filter itself and leave the 305's hoses in my aquariums.

When I reinstall the filters I make sure their seals are OK and that the units are not leaking before turning them back on.

There was a time when I used to clean my 305's once a month when I was using carbon, seeing that the carbon had to be replaced anyway.

I maintain heavily planted aquaria and the carbon leaches nutrients from the water column that my plants need, so I am better off without it.

It's been a few years now since I've used carbon in my aquarium filters. I just keep the mechanical and biological filtration (which can be used repeatedly for years on end) in these filters now and they work quite well this way. This has enabled me to run these filters for months before cleaning them.

I only clean the 305's once or twice a year, and I'm not concerned about them becoming "phosphate factories" since my plants will use up any excess phosphates in the water column.

One thing to be aware of if you choose to not remove the Fluval ribbed intake and output tubes is that they become loaded with detritus over time which will get blown back into your aquarium once you turn your Fluval 305 back on after a cleaning.

Since I only clean these filters once or twice a year, I setup my Vortex D-1 diatom filter (using it without the diatom powder) using it as just a high speed mechanical filter just before I clean the 305's. This way when I turn them back on the D-1 removes the detritus from the hoses of the 305's so that the detritus does not pollute my aquariums.

When you are a fishkeeper, over time you learn many different ways in which to make your maintenance system more efficient, which serves to make this incredible hobby even more enjoyable.


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## PlantedVirgin (Feb 17, 2012)

I use Fluval 405's on my discus display tanks and clean them bi-weekly or when I notice the output has slowed down. Discus eat alot and even with all the water changes, their bio load can be incredible. Also, I do clean the hoses once every 6 months with bleach/water mix very hot. Then run aged tap water through them, air dry for a couple hours and reconnect.

With discus you have to have everything cleaned more often to prevent anything bad getting into the water.


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## Jimmyblues (Dec 16, 2010)

*Re: Fluval 305 Not Priming*



tranimal said:


> My filter stopped pumping water after its cleaning yesterday. I am not sure what happened, but it was working fine before I took it apart to clean. The impeller seems to be working fine as well. The darn thing just won't pump water in. Any suggestion would be greatly appreciately. You can just also tell me to buy a new filter, which I am hesitant to do.



I have a pair of Fluval 305s and a 106. The only time I have a problem with them priming is after I remove the intake tube to clean it. It takes awhile to get the filters to prime again after this. The best thing to do when this occurs is to make certain that the valve is completely open. 

Then, instead of just plugging the filter power cord in, insert the cord and then pull it out a few times quickly. Oddly enough, this seems to build up pressure better than just leaving the power cord plugged in.

These filters are idiosyncratic. They sure have their quirks. However, when they function properly they really are some of the best canister filters on the market.

It's also a good idea to replace the Aqua Stop fitting ever few years, because it warps, which eventually makes it very difficult (if not impossible) to fit the Aqua Stop back onto the top of the canister after it's been removed for a cleaning.


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