Fluval Evo 13.5 Chambers not filling up.

ScottyD36

Well-Known Member
View Badges
Joined
Jun 7, 2020
Messages
575
Reaction score
282
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I have a Fluval 13.5 Evo. I recently upgraded my chambers. I added a In Tank chamber basket to Chamber 1 and 2. In chamber 1 I have filter floss, chemi pure blue and bio balls. In chamber 2 I had modified refugium with Chaeto in it. I had the stock pump with the tank which was fine but I felt it didn’t have enough flow so I upgraded to a Eheim 1000. Originally for the first week on full power I was having no problem but then after the week the third chamber has little to no water in it to make the pump work effectively. I then lowered the output to about 3/4. It was working fine and now I am having a similar problem where the third chamber is just not filling up fast enough and the pump is shooting air bubbles out into the tank. Also because of this my heater is now in the main display instead of in the third chamber. I am looking for any help or advice here because I am getting very frustrated. As my set up sits right now. Chamber 1 filter floss, chemi blue elite then bio balls on bottom. Second chamber at the bottom of the In Chamber basket is sea lettuce. Attached is pictures of each chamber. So basically I need help with my whole In chamber setup and filter so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I may just put the stock pump back and use a power head. Thanks for any advice or help.

image.jpg image.jpg image.jpg
 

juanrmattos

- Frag Plug Hater -
View Badges
Joined
Jun 13, 2014
Messages
589
Reaction score
982
Location
Miami - Florida
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I think the logical answer would be you need more water to maintain the level... Unless the rim is overflowing, then something is blocking the flow, the pump sure has enough draw to keep circulation.

Are you covering for evaporation?
 

Neoma

New Member
View Badges
Joined
Mar 16, 2015
Messages
21
Reaction score
6
Location
United States
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I have a Fluval 13.5 Evo. I recently upgraded my chambers. I added a In Tank chamber basket to Chamber 1 and 2. In chamber 1 I have filter floss, chemi pure blue and bio balls. In chamber 2 I had modified refugium with Chaeto in it. I had the stock pump with the tank which was fine but I felt it didn’t have enough flow so I upgraded to a Eheim 1000. Originally for the first week on full power I was having no problem but then after the week the third chamber has little to no water in it to make the pump work effectively. I then lowered the output to about 3/4. It was working fine and now I am having a similar problem where the third chamber is just not filling up fast enough and the pump is shooting air bubbles out into the tank. Also because of this my heater is now in the main display instead of in the third chamber. I am looking for any help or advice here because I am getting very frustrated. As my set up sits right now. Chamber 1 filter floss, chemi blue elite then bio balls on bottom. Second chamber at the bottom of the In Chamber basket is sea lettuce. Attached is pictures of each chamber. So basically I need help with my whole In chamber setup and filter so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I may just put the stock pump back and use a power head. Thanks for any advice or help.

image.jpg image.jpg image.jpg
could you just place the pump lower and run a pvc to outlet?
 

GoReefin

Well-Known Member
View Badges
Joined
Dec 9, 2020
Messages
888
Reaction score
1,003
Location
California
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
There is a small hole on the bottom of the black divider. You should plug it up with some silicone

Here is a little youtube video I made when I set my system up. You can see I have one siliconed and the other is not.
 

Servopkg

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Mar 31, 2020
Messages
127
Reaction score
86
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Yes, I second the comment to check that the plug in chamber 2 lower section is secure. I glued mine in, run Intank media basket in chamber 1 and all is balanced. I have a Tunze Auto top off unit...one of the best things I added to my tank to adjust for evaporation! Highly recommend it.
 

Easy Reefing

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 9, 2020
Messages
352
Reaction score
740
Location
San Diego
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I think u just need to add more water . As water evaporates, the third chamber water level is gonna lower because that’s where the return pump is . The manufacturer put a hole in the second chamber so the water level will never go down too low .
 

saltybees

Well-Known Member
View Badges
Joined
Jan 2, 2021
Messages
516
Reaction score
796
Location
lake country
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
You probably have too much stuff in chamber 1/2 and the pump isn’t able to pull water quick enough to keep the third chamber full..try taking a few things out. Wouldn’t surprise me if somethings blocking water from getting through 2 into 3, it’s just a minor baffle.
 

cmoore806

Active Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 6, 2020
Messages
322
Reaction score
231
Location
Bay Village, OH
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I have just filter floss and a bag of carbon in chamber 1 in the inTank media basket and some Seachem Matrix in Chamber 2 and my Chamber 3 will get low but not all the way to the bottom. You need to periodically clean out the intake weir and make sure water can flow between the chambers (make sure sponge isn't growing over the openings, keep the filter media bags fresh, and I can imagine adding a lot to Chamber 1 and 2 will slow the flow enough to cause your chamber 3 to be that low.
 

jmaville

New Member
View Badges
Joined
Jun 24, 2022
Messages
2
Reaction score
25
Location
USA
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Same issue... I topped the tank of with water and it looks like it is corrected now... I have the small black hole plugged as well. The 3D printed skimmer part when I added that chamber 2 and 3 water level sunk. Now all 3 chambers have the same amount of water maybe chamber 1 slightly more. They all sit a little lower than the tank itself. This is my first tank so I hope this fixed the issue.
 
Back
Top