Equipment Review and Discussion :: something is in my tubes for my xp3

[Turtle_Turtle]

i noticed yesterday that there was a thin layer of stuff in the input and output tubes. It was off white and it has black spot in it

Heres some pics


also the tank is starting to stink

I tried replacing everything in the filter but nothing

[SpotsMama]

I guess I'm not understanding the photos. Can you point out the intake and outtake tubes?

[Turtle_Turtle]

they are actually both the intake but the out take is the same way

[Turtle_Turtle]

something else i am worried about is that i am going on vacation on saturday and i am wondering what will happen if i dont do anything about it

[Kallistos]

It's just gunk, algae, etc building up in the inside of the tubes. It happens to my xp3 all the time, there's nothing to worry about, there's barely anything in your tubes so you should be fine. You can easily clean them out be running a towel through the tubes. I did this by untwisting a metal coat hanger, tying a rag onto one end and just pull it through.

Hope this helps

[DavidY]

They also sell flexible brushes that you can run through the tubes to scrub out the insides. The coat hanger idea is pretty cool too!

[Turtle_Turtle]

ok so it can wait a week, phew

[octpusgirl8]

When i clean the insides of my filter tubes, it's amazing what i difference it makes in the amount of water it puts out. It never seems like a thick layer, but it pumps a lot more water once i give it a good cleaning. it's a hassle though, so i don't do it everytime i clean the filter.

[marisa]

If you wait long enough, the debris will build up to a point that the tubes will start cleaning themselves. I've cleaned the tubes using a small brush tied to a string that I pushed through with a dowel. The flexible brushes weren't long enough to push through the tube.

[Kallistos]

I'm sure if you went outside and if you have a pressure washer you could wash it right out, but beware the gunk will go flying everywhere. The hanger method that I use works pretty well, the pictures you provided show extremely minor gunk, you should see my tubes sometimes....hehe yeah I'm lazy