Problems with Eheim 2215

[axl]

Hey,
did a wc this arvo and noticed there wasn't much flow coming out of the outlet so i gave it a clean and checked the shaft, propeller etc. I also cleaned the outlet pipe as there was some gunk in there. I primed it back up again and the filter keep making noises with hardly any flow coming out.
I gave the cannister a shake to try and get the air out as there were small bubbles coming out of the outlet. Do you reckon the propeller needs replacing and the cannister is only 11 months old.
Whats yours thoughts and I also tried to re prime it 4 times with the same results

Cheers Tim

[ILLUSN]

Re prime you have air in it best way is to have your taps mounted near the canister undo the top tap and suck on the hose you will get a mouthfull of water it won't kill you. If flow rate drops usually the hoses are dirty

[axl]

thanks for that do you have the taps on the inlet open?? I'm assuming you do. Is the cannister on when you suck on the outlet???? Will 1 big suck generally get the air out or do you keep on sucking on it until the air is out???


Cheers Tim

[axl]

just tried sucking on the outlet with the taps open on both inlet and outlet with water slowly coming out. Re-connected it after sucking and still making noise and no water coming out of outlet.

[taksan]

To prime a Eheim classic perfectly every time

1) completely empty the canister of water.

2) connect up to the inlet and outlet double taps and open both sets of taps

3) Suck on the outlet pipe until you hear the canister filling with water

4) once the canister has completely filled, close both sets of taps.

5) disconnect the outlet tap

6) put a bucket under the outlet tap so its lower then the canister body

7) open both sets of taps and allow the water to fill the bucket you will hear gurgling as the extra air is expelled.

8) close the taps and reconect the outlet

9) open both sets of taps

10) plug in filter and turn on

Sounds complicated and eventually you will skip 4 &5 and go straight 3-6.
Take about 3 mins
Works EVERY time to air, no noise , no issues !

[axl]

thanks for the instructions when you place a bucket beside cannister do you disconnect the outlet and the turn on tap on the cannister or outlet tap that goes into the tank????

[ILLUSN]

Classics fill under siphon as taken has said the canister MUST BE EMPTY. Open both sets of taps suck on the OUTLET tap. You will hear gargling as the canister FILLS ie goes from empty to full. Once full turn off both taps reconnect the OUT PUT. turn on taps.

At this point you can disconnect the intake and reverse flow into a bucket to expell excess air. Generally I don't bother

[axl]

the cannister is completely empty and i suck on the out pipe until i cant suck anymore and the cannister only half fills i think then there is water in the outlet pipe. So i cant suck on it because of the water in the pipe and i haven't had these sort of problems before, normally its easy. Last time i just turned on the taps and it filled without sucking on the outlet pipe turned it on and its was fine. Whats going on with it???

[axl]

had the cannister going with the outlet taps disconnected and I ran it from cannister outlet into bucket. Half filled the bucket and the water was only coming out slowly so im not sure how fast it should be coming out and then i reconnected outlet taps and its still making noises and no water coming out of the outlet. I'm very confused

[ILLUSN]

the cannister is completely empty and i suck on the out pipe until i cant suck anymore and the cannister only half fills i think then there is water in the outlet pipe. So i cant suck on it because of the water in the pipe and i haven't had these sort of problems before, normally its easy. Last time i just turned on the taps and it filled without sucking on the outlet pipe turned it on and its was fine. Whats going on with it???

your getting an airlock somewhere, did you remove all pipe from the tank and clean them? if not you have air in the hose, you'll have to drain and start again.

your original problem of reduced flow is caused by dirty houses, remove all hose from th tank and clean with a tube cleaning brush 2215's us 12mm hose on intakes and outputs these need to be cleaned at least once a quarter if not once every 2 months.

starting with clean empty hose and a clean empty (no water) canister reconnect everything as usuall

disconnect the output taps, suck on them till you hear water start to flow into the canister.

as water flows into the canister re connect the OPEN output taps back together, water will continue to flow in the input hose to th canister, you should hear air rushing our your spray bar.

once the canister is full (no air rushing out) you should be able to see water in the OUTPUT hose, this is when you turn on the power.

a little air is normal this will work itself out over a minute or so

if you still have priming problems turn off the power.

move the spray bar so it is below the water line

close the INTAKE tap disconnect and put in a bucket (the filter side of the double tap) open the tap, gravity will pull water through the OUTPUT into the bucket, wait for the burp of air once you hear this re connect and your good to go.

remember these filter work on a SIPHONIC flow, gravity pulls water into the canister up to the head then the pump pushes water out .

THE PUMP DOES NOT SUCK WATER EVER! all it does is push it. this is why these filter last so long, It cant push water if there is an airlock

[axl]

I'm so frustrated right now, i didn't everything you said in your last post and still nothing. I even tried disconnecting the inlet and filled up the bucket then reconnected it and still the same problem. I have emptied it 6 times, still the the same noise and its coming from the pump head. What to do next and the only hose i cleaned was the outlet. There is nothing come out of the outlet only a few bubbles every so often.

[taksan]

Pipes must be empty ... outlet and inlet.
Canister must be empty.

[axl]

all the pipes, cannister are empty and when i suck on the outlet pipe nothing happens the cannister doesn't start to fill. I suck on it as hard as i can and nothing happens. Why isn't the cannister staring to fill???? All the taps are open as well. Once i suck do i re-connect the outlet pipe straight away???

[ILLUSN]

now were getting somewhere, ok so hoses are empty canister is empty, all taps are open correct?

when you suck on the outlet hose you get nothing? it should be easy to inhale if not you have a kink or blockage in your hose if your hoses are clean then it must be a kink, straiten out the kink and your away.

priming these filter should just be one deep breath thats it.

[axl]

after having trouble sucking on the hose i left it at the top of the tank and come back 1/2 hour later and the hose was filled with water. I think the cannister was filled also and next i let the outlet run into the bucket and no air come out. So i reconnected the taps and turned on the filter and its still making that churning noise and there is no water coming out of it. I can see tinny bubbles coming out of the outlet but that's it.

[ILLUSN]

ok with the filter running disconnect the spratbar and suck on the hose till water starts gushing out.

[axl]

Ok finally got all the air out of it buy sucking on the outlet for a while and the filter sounds all quite again. My only concern is that the water is coming out slowly and i don't know if its normal???? Here is a video of how fast its coming out and i don't have it attached to a spray bar as it runs straight through the diy background. Thanks for all your guys help its awesome to get advice on here straight away. Here is the link is this normal flow????

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qz_wm2HJcSo

[ILLUSN]

to be honest that flowrate looks a little low, from memory the 2215s flow at ~350-400l/h so maybe run a bit into a bucket and do some maths, if it is super low maybe it is your impeller but they should last more then a year.

[axl]

will do a bucket test tonight i need roughly 6ltr in a minute and i dont think thats going to happen. Does the propeller affect the flow rate??? All the pipes are clean so i cant think what else it could be. I have ordered a propeller to see if that makes a differences.

[ILLUSN]

Most Likely it will strange the impeller died so fast

[jannie_s]

fine air bubbles that keep coming out of the outlet whilst pumping water normally indicate a blockage on the pump inlet side or blocked filter media, my fx5 had the same problem untill i removed the polish pads and all good now. That flow on youtube looks to weak, what is the height from the filter to the top of the tank because if it is to heigh it will also affect the flow. If no blockages in pipework or housing what media are you using.


Hey,
did a wc this arvo and noticed there wasn't much flow coming out of the outlet so i gave it a clean and checked the shaft, propeller etc. I also cleaned the outlet pipe as there was some gunk in there. I primed it back up again and the filter keep making noises with hardly any flow coming out.
I gave the cannister a shake to try and get the air out as there were small bubbles coming out of the outlet. Do you reckon the propeller needs replacing and the cannister is only 11 months old.
Whats yours thoughts and I also tried to re prime it 4 times with the same results

Cheers Tim

[BigDaddyAdo]

The flow rate is very low. My 2213 has a lot more flow than that.

[axl]

just did the bucket check and it was roughly 2.8ltr per minute way under what it should be. It can only be the propeller then can't it. All the pipes are clean and there' no kink in the hoses. Its only 11 months old and it wasn't going for 3 months of that period. Very strange and is it worth contacting them where I purchase it from to tell them my problem.

[axl]

the measurement is roughly 820mm long from top of tank to outlet on cannister. Im currently using the media that come with the filter order is

green circle thing on top
fine white filter pad
bio media round little balls
blue pad
ceramic noodles
green circle thing on bottom

It was working fine when i setup the tank nearly two months ago there was plenty of water coming out of the outlet. As i said earlier there is no king in the hose and pipes are clean. What is going on ?????

[ILLUSN]

Must be the impeller or a blocked fine pad I'm assuming you changed the white wool at each clean try the the new impeller when it arrives

[duckeo]

You can also try just running the top section of the filter (the pump) from a bucket of water - hold the pump just above the waterline so that the red o-ring is at the top of the waterline.

Plug the filter in (might need another pair of hands as this can be tricky) and the water coming out the outlet should be near full power as there are no taps or gravity involved, it's just he power of the pump.

BE VERY CAREFUL not to drop the whole pump into the water at this stage!

If this works at full power keep checking your other bits, if it doesn't it's an issue with your impellor/pump.

[taksan]

Impeller shaft not seated correctly.

[jannie_s]

Remove the 2 pads and run the pump,see how you go


the measurement is roughly 820mm long from top of tank to outlet on cannister. Im currently using the media that come with the filter order is

green circle thing on top
fine white filter pad
bio media round little balls
blue pad
ceramic noodles
green circle thing on bottom

It was working fine when i setup the tank nearly two months ago there was plenty of water coming out of the outlet. As i said earlier there is no king in the hose and pipes are clean. What is going on ?????

[axl]

tried the pump head in a bucket tonight and after a minute or so there was excellent flow coming out, so the propeller is working fine and the hoses are clean. I tried reconnecting it and the same thing happened again slow flow coming out. Why haven't i got good flow??? Could it be the white course pad at the top of the filter???? Intake pipe is roughly 1 meter long and the out pipe is about 800mm long.

[jannie_s]

take the 2 polish pads out and see, if that doesnt work take all the media out and see


tried the pump head in a bucket tonight and after a minute or so there was excellent flow coming out, so the propeller is working fine and the hoses are clean. I tried reconnecting it and the same thing happened again slow flow coming out. Why haven't i got good flow??? Could it be the white course pad at the top of the filter???? Intake pipe is roughly 1 meter long and the out pipe is about 800mm long.

[axl]

pads were out and that didnt work next i will try just water no media

[axl]

righto tried the filter with no media, no pads and still the same poor flow. What does this mean???? Whats going on with it???/ It must be the seal in the cannister, i must have an air leak somewhere. If it works in the bucket (sealed) it must be where the pump joins the cannister. I try some sticky tape around the cannister to see if that works.

[ILLUSN]

i think youve got a restriction somewhere is your intake mounted within your background? try it with the intake in the tank not in the background

[jannie_s]

everything else elimenated now must be a restriction like you said


i think youve got a restriction somewhere is your intake mounted within your background? try it with the intake in the tank not in the background

[axl]

Righto guys tried the filter going with the intake in the main tank and guess what...................... Still the same Poor flow and the filter sounds fine. I think I'm going to pull everything down tomorrow and start over again and see if the problems is in the taps. I will put some vase in the taps and the o ring as well.

[axl]

Pulled the whole filter apart and went over everything including the taps and connections. Put vase on all the seals, o ring turned it on and there was finally good flow coming out of the outlet. Don't know whats happened but i think the filter is good again. Thanks for all your help

[ILLUSN]

Did you find what was blocking it?

[axl]

no i didn't mate i pulled all the hoses off and reconnected them, checked for cracks etc The only thing i noticed was the L shaped pipe at the bottom was a little loose. Would the vase have helped on the taps and o ring???? Hopefully it was just air getting in somewhere and i have fixed where it was getting in. What a long week it has been with the filter. Things we do for these beautiful fish

[axl]

you wouldn't believe it the flow rate has dropped again. I have got a new propeller coming and i will try that. Is there anyone i can ring who might be able to help????

[BigDaddyAdo]

Maybe the vasoline temporarily blocked off the air leak.

[axl]

do you reckon it could be the o ring???? Should i try taping the cannister around the seal and if that works its the o ring causing the issues.????

[duckeo]

Did you try my suggestion? This will rule out pump or pipes very quickly.

[ILLUSN]

If it were an airleak you'd have water on the floor if theres no water you have no leak.

[BobbyBruce]

Hi Axl,

I should have dropped in to see you as I was passing through last Saturday, didn't know you had a problem then though. I hope you are well above the water folw.

In regards to your filter. If it was an air leak you would have bubbles coming through with the water. If it was a problem with your seals then you would have water all over the floor.

Did you remove the impeller and clean the housing? This area of your filter can become really grotty and reduce the capacity of your impeller to pump the water through. As you have ruled out obstructions within your pipes/tubing this is the only other problem I can think of.

Good Luck,

Bob

[axl]

Do you mean clean where the impeller sits and the housing in there???? Or somewhere else???? I did try the pump in a bucket and after a minute or so there was excellent flow coming out. So that means the pump head is fine and does that rule out the housing been dirty then?????

[BobbyBruce]

Hi Axl,

Yes, pull out the impeller and clean the inside of the housing. It can be quite dirty in there which may reduce the speed at which your impeller can rotate. Use a torch to have a good look into the housing to ensure that you are able to get all the rubbish out of there.

Regards,

Bob

[axl]

Well that was interesting i just did the bucket test with not taps and about 1.1 meter of hose for each and the intake would have been 500mm down from where the bucket was sitting. I had the bucket on the chair and i measured out the ltr's per minute which come to 10ltr of water. Thats a huge difference considering it was 3.8ltr per minute before. Is that test saying there is something wrong with the taps???? I might have to make up some diy taps with garden hose connectors and taps. These will be stronger than these crapy eheim taps

[ILLUSN]

Most likely, you did push the tube cleanig brush through the taps right? the insides of the taps end up a trap for algae and gunk.

Did you try the filter with just the naked hoses in your tank (ie not in the cut outs in your backrground), if you get good flow with a naked hose in a bucket its sugesting to me that it just cant get enough water into the intake in your tank.

I'll be doing a full clean of dad's (my old made in west germany) eheim 2217 next week end might try and youtube it. there really is no decent tutorial on how to do a propper clean a filter just a heap of crappy ones with shortcuts and bad practice.

[axl]

I haven't cleaned out my hoses with a cleaning brush as i don't have 1 all i do is run hot water through the hoses to get the gunk out. The inside of the taps look clean. I didn't try the naked hoses in the main tank and i have tried with the intake in the main tank and it made no difference to the flow. I put 2 diy taps on the filter and im still only getting 5ltr per minute of flow. It is has cut in half in flow and you can see that. The 2217 is setup at the other end with a uv sterilizer thorugh it and there is no issues with water getting through.
So in summary the filter was given 10ltr per minute with naked hoses outside and now its given me 5ltr per minute with the new taps.

[axl]

just tried the intake in the main tank and it the flow rate was 6ltr per minute is this ok with a 2215, if you go off the 620ltr per hour it should be 10ltr per minute. Its flow rate outside with naked hoses was 10ltr per minute and this is nearly the same setup as it was outside only difference is the taps. Im nearly ready to have a eheim 2215 for sale

[ILLUSN]

Ok a couple of things here.

when we say clean the hoses we mean use a brush hot water wont shift everything, when your done they should look like new, eheim hose will last 10years easy. got to your LFS spend $12 on an aquaone tubecleaning brush.

The factory sec of the 2217 is 1000l/h
The MAX real world flow of a 2217 is 600-660l/h (1m head height I know I've measured it and repeated it over 10x)

The factory spec of the 2215 is 620l/h The real world flow of a 2215 is only ment to be 350-400l/hMAX!!!!!!!!!!!
filters are rated EMPTY with NO MEDIA at 0 head height an average filter reaches 45-50% an exceptional filter will reach 60-70%

eheim classics are great filter they reach over 60% of flow rating , they last forever all that ever wears out is the impeller and o ring they cost nothing to keep running.

now as you said testing the filter in the tank with just a naked hose gives 6l/min or 360l/h if your filter is full of media this is PERFECT everything is where it should be.

If you scrub your hose and do it religiously when ever you see it not bright translucent green it will flow somewhere between 350-400l/h (at ~ 1/2 h max)

If your filter is empty then you have a problem, the 2215's biggest weakness is it uses 12mm hose basicly a 1mm build up of alage in ANY PART of the length will drasticly reduce flow (again the filter work on siphonic filling gravity pulls water in pump pushes water out) any restriction to the inlet will greatly reduce the outflow of the filter (hence 2217 16mm inlet 12mm out = infintiely better)

as i've said before i have classics that were bought just after i was born, they are over 20years old and still going you cant beat that, no other filter (except my fluval 303) has EVER come close to that.

An eheim classic is something that you hand down to your kids just like my 2213 that Dad gave me when i was 12, I'll be giving it to my son Eddie when he sets up his first tank.

[axl]

thanks for all your help and info mate as i live in a small country town i have to buy everything online. Which 1 of these are better the set of brushes or the Aqua One brush double ended 1m or Aqua One hose cleaner brush magiclean 1.9m.Here is the link and i reckon the aqua one hose cleaner brush magiclean might be the go maybe.

http://www.onlinepetwarehouse.com.au/?page=69&list_cat=124

[ILLUSN]

i use the aquaone 1m double ended, great brush and $6 is dirt cheep,

[duckeo]

An eheim classic is something that you hand down to your kids just like my 2213 that Dad gave me when i was 12, I'll be giving it to my son Eddie when he sets up his first tank.

Too true! 2 2213s at about 10 years still going strong, and a 2217 at about 5 years old.