# Fluval C3 HOB power filter likes dislikes!



## jldean23 (May 11, 2012)

I just ordered this filter for my new tank believe it or not i got this 39gal tank with stand lights etc for free from work and might even get the other 39 too and maybe another 55gal dont know yet but we will see...

It came with a 2 bay big whisper and a 2 bay 350 marineland bio wheel dont want to use whisper to loud and bye the time i get bio-wheel new impeller i can buy i new one so i did.

The filter i got was a fluval c3 power filter want to know if u guys have one like or dislike this filter looks better than any i have ever seen its a 5-stage filter
2 mechanical, 1 chemical and 2 biological filtration for it is ingenious like other filters you get byepass and everything inbetween from media. They block water flow with divider and make a special path so no matter what water has to go through sponge first then you have chemical and finally you have a wet/dry drip tray like on a sump type it pumps clean filtered water after it is cleaned through media etc up to top of drip tray for it drip over c-nodes probaly same as ceramic rings to build bacteria colony.

i meen youtube fluval c3 power filter you can see what i meen i have never seen a filter like this like a canister filter on a hob some ppl say its alot better than the aquaclear similar but way different anyone used it check out design let me know what you guys think thanks....

also finished my second 3-d background for this tank got it silicone in tank earlier.


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## Pablo B. (Aug 3, 2012)

I have been an avid user of Aquaclear filters for the last twenty years or so using from their mini's to their 500's (110's now) and have LOVED them, but these new Fluval C series filters I became very intrigued with when they first came out after seeing them and reading about how they work. I now own two C-3's and a C-4 for my 75 gallon tank (which also used an Aquaclear 300/70 model I have converted into a biological only filter with a sponge cut in half and a layer of Seachem Matrix atop the sponge and then a bag of mixed media (Fluval C-nodes, Azoo bio-glass rings, and some Biomax in there as well) atop the Matrix to keep any smaller pieces of the Matrix from floating out. So far it has worked really well. Lower maintenence and when it's time to clean, just use the tank water and squeeze out the sponge and carefully drop rinse the media in a bowl and use my fingers to circulate to get the big pieces of grime out (if there is any.....usually not much at all) and then rinse the mixed media bag.

Now on the C-3's and the C-4.......I LOVE these filters as they have a great design with that built in wet/dry drip chamber which works well when you keep that top sponge strip clean of being clogged up and you'll see what I mean if you get one as the water accumulates and runs over the songe and doesn't 'soak' into the sponge to drip into the chamber so make sure you wash that once in a while with tank water when doing a water change. I just bought new ones and changed them recently and am awaiting for the build-up of 'good bacteria' to grow back into them. On these filters, you never want to change every thing you can change at once. You want to stagger them I would say a month apart in change intervals......that is where I have had my personal best luck with them. I think Hagen did a great thing in making these as an addition to their Aquaclear line-up of filters. On my C filters though, I put in Seachem Matrix in the wet/dry chamber versus the C-nodes that they give you for it. I am just "sold" on the Seachem Matrix product. Have had very good luck with using it per testing on the tanks regularly and have seen a noticeable drop in nitrates versus not using the poduct according to my journal I keep of daily records of the tank parameters since it was put up over a year and a half ago. Although I am also using three canister filters as well as a Emperor 400 along with the C-4 and the Aquaclear 300/70 I was talking about with the "conversion", the tank's water seems to be very healthy oxygen-wise and on the Salifert O2 test kit it always registers a 15mg/L (ppm) and rarely fluctuates from those numbers. I would like to think it is because of one.....all of the surface agitation I have with the HOB filters and the return lines from the canister filters and two.....the Seachem Matrix, the Eheim Substrat Pro, and the Azoo bio-glass media that I have in two of the canister filters solely making them biological/mechanical filters at best along with the Aquaclear 300/70 which is converted to a biological/mechanical filter only.

Getting back to the C-series filters.......sorry about going off on a tangent there. I think that they are top notch personally and would recommend them to my best friend or a family member. Only thing I changed on all three of mine was going to a regular sponge for the intake versus using the poly/sponge which IS superior in getting minute contaminants out of the water BUT they become clogged too fast and cleaning/rinsing them out always "fluffs" up the poly side of the sponge and messes it up if you aren't SUPER light on the cleaning/wringing it out. I just chose to use the regular sponges and if you don't like carbon and you want to use something else in that chamber as well, I am sure you could put whatever you would like in that area in a filter sock/bag.

Sorry for the story......just giving my two cents here.


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## jldean23 (May 11, 2012)

ohh your good glad someone finally answered post thought maybe no one had this filter only 3 reviews in the product reviews section i have always used cascade filters or biowheel got bigger tank have a sunsun canister filter on it i just thought a smaller sunsun canister than the one on my 55 was to big so i was looking around and fount this one i was amazed with the what i call canister+more in a hob the blockage so all the water has to go through sponge first is amazing design plus the wet/dry feature if only other ppl new about this filter to put on their tank instead of the antique whispers penguin and etc i love it i am cycling my new tank with it now.

And the Seachem Matrix never tried it you like it better than the c-nodes or ceramic rings and the sponge are you just using a original aquaclear sponge will it fit in the c-3 if so which one.

i have never used aquaclear to be honest i thought they were cheaper style than whisper i didnt know they were like the c3 or i would have used them years ago its just in the aquarium world hagen really done their homework on this one if everyone would youtube that guy i seen who shows the in and outs of this filter when i seen it if you are looking for more a guy on amaz__.com lol because of the rules i cant put all of it on there you can message me ill send link and this is no joke a c3 for 34.71 free shipping on eba_.com closest was like 47.99 but its doing well so far hope it does good just hope more ppl get how good it is......


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## jldean23 (May 11, 2012)

and also how much seachem matrix would i need to fill maybe 2 times 250ml or 1L size which one thanks


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## Pablo B. (Aug 3, 2012)

Are you talking about adding Seachem Matrix to the C-3 chamber? If you are, you cannot add a whole lot because the chamber is pretty small to start with. On the one that I have matrix in, I went through the whole one liter jar and picked out the smallest pieces and used them inside the chamber. There was a fair amount in there......just as much as the C-nodes that they supply you with. If you have ever really dug into reading or then using Matrix then you know it should be ten times better than the c-nodes that come 'stock' with those filters. Here is a link to Seachem Matrix that you can read............

http://www.seachem.com/Products/product ... atrix.html

If you are talking about how I use the matrix in my Aquaclear (also made by Hagen) filters, that is a different story, as I cut the stock sponge in half so it's a little smaller and there is more space for more matrix media. Then I like to have a mesh bag filled with assorted media such as Azoo bio-glass, the C-nodes I didn't use, Aquaclear biomax media, and whatever else I may have laying around to use that fits the bill. This bag of assorted media helps keep some of the smaller matrix pieces stay put and not wash up and over the filter into the tank with the flow of the filter. I have this set-up on two tanks and so far it has seemed to be working like a charm. I do test my water parameters quite often and they have been spot on and excellent for some time now and even if I go beyond a water change interval by chance or go an extra week or so without touching the filters (the other ones that have replaceable media), it seems like the biological filters I have set-up as the two Fluval 205's with Seachem Matrix, Azoo Bio-Glass, and Eheim Substrat Pro inside of them as well as the Aquaclear with the matrix in it and all three of them used solely as a biological and mechanical filters, it just makes the water so much better for the fish per testings every week. I keep log notebooks of all the readings of testings, water changes, filter insert changes, filter cleanings, temperature fluctuations on days where the weather is abnormally colder or hotter outside, and whatever else might happen within one of my tanks.

Remember when you change your water to sometimes clean/wring out the "sponge" atop the wet-dry trickle chamber as the water NEEDS to get through that sponge to drip down onto the media below. I made the mistake of letting one go too far one time and the water was just rolling over the sponge and not really 'soaking' through to trickle downwards, so make sure you pay attention to that. It's easy to forget that part of the filter. I bought extra inserts for the tops of the wet-dry trickle boxes for my two C-3's and my C-4 recently and let me tell you what a difference it made after half a year of neglect (maybe cleaned it three or so times?) on the one filter! Once the new "sponge" was put on, the water was soaking and dripping as it should have been onto the media below in full force. Not a little drip here and a drip there when it was "plugged" up from not being maintained as it should have been. Luckily it was only one C-3 that this was happening on and not all of them.

Sorry for the loooooooong rant here. Just started going then couldn't stop. LOL!


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## 748johnd (Jun 30, 2007)

Pablo, thanks for the detailed description of the C filters. It was very informative and interesting. I love the Aquaclears and was thinking about trying a C-4 and now I will. Thanks again.


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## Pablo B. (Aug 3, 2012)

No problem! I think the C series are a great HOB filter and out of all of the filters I have used......Whisper 60, Tetra Whisper EX45, Penguin Bio-wheel filters, Emperor 400, Aquaclear filters of every size, and the Aqueon Quietflow filter.......the C series is one of the top filters IMO that there is for HOB filters. Although you can never take the place of the versatile Aquaclear series of filters as I LOVE them as well, the Fluval C series has a different approach at filtration with how it circulates and how it's made. Plus, there isn't any other filter out there with a drip wet/dry chamber with media inside of it. No....it isn't a huge chamber but it is large enough to collect a fair amount of culture/good bacteria to reside on what is in there, IMO. I like to use one of each on my tanks for HOB's, but then I am a huge fan of over-filtration. :wink:

Plus one more thing......you can change the sponge and the chemical media sliding trays separately without disassembling the whole guts of the filter and do it while it's running as well. The wet/dry media box lifts right off and then you can pull the chemical media tray/holder right up and do the change and put it back together without having to touch the sponge and vice versa.....which I thought was pretty cool. You'll see if you get one.


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## jldean23 (May 11, 2012)

i love mine it is doing good best i have ever used i just wanted to start this thread so other ppl know how good this filter is

and the seachem is not to small to fall through holes in drip tray if it is that good i would rather use it than the c-nodes


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## Pablo B. (Aug 3, 2012)

I think you'll like the filter a lot. :thumb:


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## halffrozen (Sep 24, 2011)

Had a C3 on my 40GB and also a C4.

C4 is now on my 75gal with a 2217. Awesome combo!

Great filters!

Super quite easy to maintain!

I recommend them when ever I can!


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## jldean23 (May 11, 2012)

good to see no one has had any problems yet!!!!!with their c-3 or c-4


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## halffrozen (Sep 24, 2011)

Ok, well ONE thing is a PITA...

Priming them after large water changes. Takes just the RIGHT angel of the intake filter to get a good enough suction for it to get going with a few helping of cups full of aqua.. lol

But really.. not THAT big of a deal really...


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## jldean23 (May 11, 2012)

if that is the only drawback ill take it but i have turned mine on off for diffrent things and it act just the same as any other hob to get started lol


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## Ensorcelled (Mar 1, 2011)

I used a C4 for awhile on my 60 in addition to a AC110. Overall, it is a pretty nice little filter and does a superb job at filtering. The only thing I didn't like was how small the filtration area was compared to say an AC70. Overall though, I would recommend one but not over the proven Aquaclear. My opinion might change if they make a comparable size to the AC110, but that probably won't happen! :wink:


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