# Wet dry or fx5



## Badrad1532 (Apr 15, 2006)

One of these will be paired with a fluval 405 and a hob biowheel, I need some questions anwsered since ive never had a wetdry, These will most likely be on a 180.

Price compairison between the fx5 and wet dry

Upkeep on both-whats eaiser to clean and whats just easier to maintain

Pros and cons of both

Which will be better

Like Ive said i have never even thought of having a wetdry filter and have no clue about them-also do wetdrys require pre drilled tanks at all


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## blazednosferatu (Feb 27, 2006)

Im glad you made this topic because im getting a 180g also and dont know anything about wetdrys, but have heard they are the best for large tanks


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## Badrad1532 (Apr 15, 2006)

ya i would like to get one if worth it, but if the fx5 is better then il get that


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## matc (Jul 31, 2004)

One thing I know is that a wet dry is very noisy. If your tank is in your bedroom, I would not consider this option. If money is not a problem I'd go with the fx5 or a eheim classic canister


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## Puff (Feb 14, 2005)

i have an eheim classic and really like it.

but ive heard the FX5 is REALLY sweet.


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## myles (Feb 27, 2005)

wet/drys arnt very noisey if u build them right


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## blazednosferatu (Feb 27, 2006)

So do you need to have pre drilled holes on the tank or what? Oh and how much do they cost and how much gph do they run about?


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## ICEE (Feb 3, 2007)

the only thing bad about fx5 is its as big as a shop vac


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## Inflade (Mar 24, 2006)

If you have the money, run 2 FX5. that would do the trick!


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## pistol (Oct 26, 2005)

that would be nearly $600 of filtration


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## curly (Jun 22, 2006)

I have an Eheim classic on one tank which goes on and on and on. On my P tank (100 UK Gallons) I have an Eheim 2126 Pro2 thermofilter and an FX5. 
The FX5 is so quiet, yes it is large but it holds an awful lot of media! Easy to set up and maintain. I had a problem with a bit of sand getting in between the impeller and bush which made a squealing sound but it was no bother cleaning it out. The impeller is the only moving part in the FX5 so very reliable. Even stops every 24hrs for 2 minutes to purge any air in the cannister.


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## Puff (Feb 14, 2005)

curly said:


> The impeller is the only moving part in the FX5 so very reliable. *Even stops every 24hrs for 2 minutes to purge any air in the cannister.*


that is a freakin SWEET feature. simple yes...but a very good thought on the part of the designers!

if i get a huge tank at some point ill defnitely get an FX5


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## SUS (Mar 10, 2007)

I would go with an FX5. Pricewise they are cheaper than a wet dry unless you build your own. Check ebay for the FX5 they are cheap on there.


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## RB 32 (Mar 2, 2005)

WET/DRY* >* OVER ANY OTHER FILTERATION


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## saltcreep (Jun 27, 2007)

RB 32 said:


> WET/DRY* >* OVER ANY OTHER FILTERATION


Im going with a DIY wetndry and a XP3.

Can't wait.....


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## boxer (Sep 11, 2003)

i built my own wet/dry. building it was fun and a bitch but it cost me $100. i dunno bout the canister filter but basically the wet/dry is fully customizable such as GPH. i get 420GPH on a 55g tank lol. i am thinking about making a DIY wet/dry for really cheap using common crap from wal-mart instead of having to cut acrylic pieces etc.

also wet/drys were loud for me but than some people introduced me to ways to avoid it and now my wet/dry is so silent.


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## louisvillain2.0 (May 16, 2007)

I have a wet/dry for my 180. You can get the tank drilled or use a hang-on overflow box if you don't like the idea of holes in the tank. My wet/dry is a DIY, converted a 3ft tank, has heavy and fine prefilter pads for mechanical filtering plus 700 bioballs with room for another 200 or so for the bio-filtering . Thats heaps more biofiltering than you'll get on any cannister. Maintainence consists of lifting out prefilter pads and rinsing them. Only thing is noise, it is in my bedroom so while the running water sound doesn't worry me it is noisier than a cannister.


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## -NBKK- (Jun 22, 2007)

pistol said:


> that would be nearly $600 of filtration


I paid 683.98 for my 2 Eheim 2028's.


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## clhay1 (Mar 25, 2007)

2 FX5's will most certainly provide you all the filtration you could require (unless you OVERSTOCK)


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## tiran (Apr 27, 2007)

go with two fx5 my 135g tank stays clean all the time pumping 1,200gphr with media awsome filters but for two yull spend at least alittle over seven hundred dollars for two i did with tax


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## Aaronic (Apr 22, 2005)

louisvillain2.0 said:


> I have a wet/dry for my 180. You can get the tank drilled or use a hang-on overflow box if you don't like the idea of holes in the tank. My wet/dry is a DIY, converted a 3ft tank, has heavy and fine prefilter pads for mechanical filtering plus 700 bioballs with room for another 200 or so for the bio-filtering . Thats heaps more biofiltering than you'll get on any cannister. Maintainence consists of lifting out prefilter pads and rinsing them. Only thing is noise, it is in my bedroom so while the running water sound doesn't worry me it is noisier than a cannister.


Bio-balls are one of the least efficient bio-medias.... Try packing a medium-large canister with some high quality bio-media and it would hold 10x the bacteria colony of your bio balls.


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## matc (Jul 31, 2004)

> Bio-balls are one of the least efficient bio-medias.... Try packing a medium-large canister with some high quality bio-media and it would hold 10x the bacteria colony of your bio balls.


Do you have any articles to back up your claims ?


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## barbianj (Aug 3, 2003)

Cliky


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## matc (Jul 31, 2004)

Cool thanks, I was planning to get some lava rocks for my wet dry but I'll go with the nylon pot scrubbies


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## barbianj (Aug 3, 2003)

Walmart sells the material .57 per yard in your choice of fabulous colors. Works great and cheap.


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## matc (Jul 31, 2004)

Thanks for the input I'll check that out


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## Puff (Feb 14, 2005)

so do you buy pot scrubbers to match the size of your filter? or can you just cut them up and chuck them in? i dont think ive seen pot scrubbers the size of my canister









are you saying walmart sells the nylon stuff by the yard??wtf? what section?


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## matc (Jul 31, 2004)

Yeah I don't really understand the yard thing...Anyway I will fill my bio tower with those nylon pads and it should be ok


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## Puff (Feb 14, 2005)

by the yard: aka like they sell fabric. its probably on a roll that they roll out and cut. i know they have the filter floss like that at my lfs. never seen the potscrubber nylon material though


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## skubasteve! (Feb 14, 2007)

Pot scrubbers FTW. They are extremely cheap, and work excellent while lasting years and years. I use them in the middle and top trays of my 2 XP3's and it only cost me like 5 bucks. Just make sure you get the nylon ones and not the metal/steel wool ones.


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## Doktordet (Sep 22, 2006)

I find the fx5 to be a simple, user-friendly, efficient and effective filter...go with it...


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## matc (Jul 31, 2004)

> by the yard: aka like they sell fabric. its probably on a roll that they roll out and cut. i know they have the filter floss like that at my lfs. never seen the potscrubber nylon material though sad.gif


Here's some nylon put scrubbers Puff : clicky

I don't see how wal mart could sell this by the yard lol so that's why I was confused but I'll just buy a few boxes of those things and stuff them in my wet dry


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## barbianj (Aug 3, 2003)

Sorry I didn't follow the post. The material at Wally World is sold in the fabric department. It is a little thinner than the pot scrubbers, but similar. I have never been able to find the actual pot scrubbers myself. I buy a bunch of it and just stuff it in my filters. Super cheap and works great!


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