# air bubbles from canister



## khaki (Jan 12, 2008)

Hey i got an Fx5...and i unplugged it today to do a WC...and when i plugged it back in..air bubbles keeps blowing out...and still is...little tiny air bubbles...is this bad? :-?


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## alicem (Jul 26, 2007)

As long as the motor sounds ok and there are no leaks, it shouldn't hurt anything.
I would think the bubbles should clear by morning, if not, post back.

Had you just cleaned the canister when this happened? 
I'm not familiar with your Fx5, so I'm throwing an idea out here...
After you clean it, fill the canister with conditioned water before attaching the top and turning it on.
This way it would push less air through the lines (and tank) when you restart it.

hth,
Alicem


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## khaki (Jan 12, 2008)

*alicem*

this little tiny of bubbles are still blowing out (just got home from school). I have not clean it lately...all i did yesterday was move the inlet tube to the right a little and then bubbles started to blow out. I cant hear the motor so no sound. no leaks. but there are a lot of tiny bubbles in my tank.


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## alicem (Jul 26, 2007)

When you moved the inlet tube, you may have loosened a fitting/joint somewhere.
Try pushing the fittings together along the inlet tube and see if you find where it's slightly separated and letting air in.

hth
Alicem


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## khaki (Jan 12, 2008)

*alicem*

all the tubes are tight and nothing is loose.
i think i m going to try to open it up and refill it.


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## alicem (Jul 26, 2007)

Sounds like a plan. 
Good luck!


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## gherlevi (Dec 16, 2004)

Hey Khaki...

When's the last time you cleaned the filter media?

I'm running an FX5 on a 125 gallon tank. It will run about two months, and then tiny microbubbles will start exiting the filter. For me, it's an indicator that it's time to clean.

I've got a blue fine filter pad in mine. When I see the bubbles, I crack it open, and that pad is pretty saturated. Clean the media, hook it back up, and I bet those bubbles go away.

I chalk it up to a slightly annoying and effective reminder to clean the filter.


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## jboogerfinger (Apr 16, 2005)

Normally, on a canister, I would say to shake it around a little to clear the air pockets inside it, but if I'm not mistaken, the FX5 is supposed to stop every so often for a couple of minutes to allow for air to escape.


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## Rockydog (Oct 21, 2007)

The FX5 also shuts down every 24 hours for a few minutes to evacuate any air buildup. It sounds like you may have too much air trapped in there or it is sucking air from a poor connection.

If the filter needs servicing do it now if it doesn't break it down anyway and empty the water. Only put 8L or 2 gal in the can and plug it back in. It will run for a couple minutes then shut down and prime its self. When it is running you can tilt can back and forth to see if it expels anymore air.

Hope this helps, Rocky.


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## EHEIMFAN (Dec 13, 2008)

I had this happen when I cleaned my Eheim, all it was was trapped air pockets in the filter, mine would blow bubble and make a mild vibrating noise at the filter, just shook it lightly to get air pockets out, turned it off and then back on and everything was cool. I have no complaints about my canister filter at all though, this is the best one *** ever owned. Quiet, depenable so far and excellent quality and filtration.


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## EHEIMFAN (Dec 13, 2008)

This happened to me with my Eheim canister filter, when I did a water change and cleaned it, when I restarted it it blew bubbles on and off and made a slight vibrating noise. I shook it lightly to work the air pockets out, turned it off and then back on and it's working perfectly now. There is a lot of area in a canister filter for air pockets to get trapped so it could take a while for them to fully work out. Until they do get worked out you can get bubbles on and off and even get mild vibration noises from the motor.


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## EHEIMFAN (Dec 13, 2008)

Sorry for the double post, i posted earlier and it didn't show it going through, so I tried again and now I see I have two post. A moderator can delete my first one if they wish to.


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## Franceschi (Jul 5, 2010)

Hi guys;

I'm re-activating the topic, because I have a similar situation, although I know in my case the problem isn't caused by trapped air;
I have an Eheim 2078 professionel 3e (eletronic), and as the fx5 it does the self prime prior to it's start, and the self priming is really effective, you can see all the bubbles coming out of the canister while it is doing it's work;
In my case, what causes the bubbles is the flow direction angle in the canister's outlet; at first it was practically horizontal, about 1/2 inch above the water level, causing no bubbles but a lot of current; now I've set the flow direction more vertically, about 70 degrees down, still 1/2 inch above the water level, creating a "cascade" effect, but also generating lots of tiny bubbles throughout the tank;

Are this bubbles any bad for my tank? Should I reset it to the original position?

PS: my tank is 300L, aprox. 75G, with dimensions (in cm) 100/50/60 (60 is the height);


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## Franceschi (Jul 5, 2010)

Anyone?


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## Franceschi (Jul 5, 2010)

Hello? :-?


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## khaki (Jan 12, 2008)

I think you should start a new thread. people will probably catch it more.


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## Franceschi (Jul 5, 2010)

Ok then...

They always tell us not to start a new topic unless the subject has never been brought up, and then, when someone search the forum and find a related topic, nobody replies...


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