3162 Noise

Variant · Jan 31, 2022

Hello,

I bought a brand new 3162 filter and it has a humming noise that I believe is generated when the filter is held in place qith the magnets. I am using the blue rubber feet but the filter sounds like a small mini fridge running all the time.

Is this normal? I assumed it qould be quiet like my DC powerheads and skimmer but this filter has a constant humming sound that can be heard throughout my living room.

Dont want to assume something is wrong here but would love to know if this should be expected or not.

rvitko · Jan 31, 2022

I can think of a few possiblities.

Try it held in hand and see if it still hums and vibrates, if so, something is amiss with the impeller, it could just be something in the impeller well, even air.

If the glass it is mounted on is fairly thin, it could also be the pull of the magnets, this would only present then when it is mounted, make sure the rings are on the magnets and facing the glass and try a thin pad between the magnets and glass on glass 3/16" or less.

Variant · Jan 31, 2022

rvitko said:
I can think of a few possiblities.

Try it held in hand and see if it still hums and vibrates, if so, something is amiss with the impeller, it could just be something in the impeller well, even air.

If the glass it is mounted on is fairly thin, it could also be the pull of the magnets, this would only present then when it is mounted, make sure the rings are on the magnets and facing the glass and try a thin pad between the magnets and glass on glass 3/16" or less.

Will try both out to pin point cause of noise.

Also, is there a way to block the intake flow from the bottom (via tube in the back) so that 100% of intake flow is through surface skimming?

rvitko · Jan 31, 2022

If you slide the strainer up the pipe this will all but completely close the bottom flow, in general I would leave some bottom flow unless the filter is virtually empty as it will struggle to get enough water otherwise. The key to good surface skimming is depth, if you set the filter too deep, you get a lot of water right below the surface and don't skim the film.

Variant · Jan 31, 2022

rvitko said:
If you slide the strainer up the pipe this will all but completely close the bottom flow, in general I would leave some bottom flow unless the filter is virtually empty as it will struggle to get enough water otherwise. The key to good surface skimming is depth, if you set the filter too deep, you get a lot of water right below the surface and don't skim the film.

So from what I can see, the pipe sticking out of the filter on the bottom is short (0.5-1"). Then you have a the strainer that is ~1.5-2". So I'm not sure what you mean by sliding the strainer up the pipe since it looks like the strainer is either on the 0.5-1" tube connection or off of it. There doesn't seem to be a "sliding" mechanism.

rvitko · Jan 31, 2022

The pipe pulls down from inside the box, it is pressed inside all the way for shipping. You may need to push it from the top, but it slides in and out and the strainer slides up and down the pipe.

Variant · Jan 31, 2022

rvitko said:
I can think of a few possiblities.

Try it held in hand and see if it still hums and vibrates, if so, something is amiss with the impeller, it could just be something in the impeller well, even air.

If the glass it is mounted on is fairly thin, it could also be the pull of the magnets, this would only present then when it is mounted, make sure the rings are on the magnets and facing the glass and try a thin pad between the magnets and glass on glass 3/16" or less.

So the filter is making the humming sound in handheld position and makes the humming noise. The type of noise is something reminiscent of the humming noise you hear when you go to your local fish/aquarium store. I also moved the pump itself around to allow any trapped air out and doesn't look to have any trapped air. Also, the air is able to purge out on its own at startup when I first put it in water after having removed it.

Is a replacement impeller covered under warranty or should I just ship the unit out to Tunze to get repaired / looked at?