help with RENA XP3!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[prosnow]

okay, i have my rena plumbed in like "fish" has his, both my in and out are @ the bottem of my tank, and i just woke up to about 20 gallons of saltwater on my bedroom floor it seems to be leaking out of the quick connect/disconnect i belive....anyone have any ideas how i can fix this, i thought it could be my seals or something but i'm not sure...could it be the pressure of water is just to much, and thats whats making it leak??

[midgetwaiter]

Probably you can't fix it, too much water pressure. Ehiems are built a bit better so that might help but I don't think I'd bet on it with anything bigger than 10g or so. I assume you are using this on the cube in your sig.

The whole idea makes me nervous, I had an aquarium maintenance company sub me to sort out a similar problem once. They had a ~100g (like 4 feet tall) tank that had the same kind of setup with the bulkheads in the bottom and rigid PVC that connected up a pump and an Ocean Clear canister. Whoever installed it the first time used schedule 20 PVC so after a few years it got nice and brittle and then somebody pulled on it too hard. The whole tank drained, no way to stop it. It was in a restaurant too, they had to close for 2 days.

What you need to do is put a standpipe in your bulkheads. Even with an Ehiem you are risking a big mess here, an o-ring failure, a hose letting go, the canister cracking or you making a mistake will all result in the whole tank ending up on the floor.

[fishface]

i've got 3 rena filters on my FW tank so i know all about the leaks! the first place i've found them to leak is outta the top motor housing...where the pump is located. if it's gonna leak, it'll fill up there but it takes around 1/2 an hour so you have to monitor it after the top has been off. it slowly fills then leaks out of the power cord hole on the side. i've found that you can lubricate the o-rings on the quick connect with a silicone lube that will help to create a better seal and hopefully fix your problem...plus it's non toxic. good luck and keep an eye on it for a bit. it's just one of the rena idiosycracies ya have to just live with... or get an eheim!

[prosnow]

maybe i'll give that a try whats the brand name of this lube, and where could i get some. thanks

[fishface]

i get it from work...i know dow makes some and you can get it at dive shops for lubricating o-rings, regulators etc. good luck!

[prosnow]

well i'll have to check out one of the local dive shops then, thanks