Marineland Bio-Wheel Emperor 400 Aquarium Power Filter HELP

[alexglass10]

Hi Everyone,


I now have purchased two (2) Marineland Bio-Wheel Emperor 400 Filters with zero success. I have followed all the instructions and watched multiple videos. I thought this was supposed to be a very simple filter to setup.

The first one made a terrible loud sound when plugged in. I thought the water level was not high enough, yet I filled it up to the brim and it made the same noise.

The second one makes a quieter noise, but the bio wheels do not spin, therefor I do not think it works.


Can someone please give me advice I am desperate at this point. Thank you!

 

[FJB]

I will address the second filter first. If the filter does throw water out but the bio wheels don’t spin, either you need to rotate the spray bars to change the angle at which the water hits the wheels; to do that, simply rotate the knobs on the side (one for each wheel). Alternatively, the wheels may not be properly positioned on the plastic holders. If the filter is not delivering water, the impeller assembly may not be positioned quite right.
For the 1st filter (and for the 2nd possibility on the filter above), the impeller assembly is certainly not correctly positioned. Note the assembly has a cage which holds the impeller; remove the assembly, open the little lid, reposition the impeller, close the lid, insert assembly and try again. Another possibility is to play with the little pulley that controls strength of flow- I find it does not work well at the lowest, nor at the highest, but better in either of the intermediate positions. Don’t know the reason but this is a fact.
Good luck. I prefer Aquaclear filters, buthave some Emperors and they are fine filters once one gets to know their idiosyncrasies.

 

[alexglass10]

I will address the second filter first. If the filter does throw water out but the bio wheels don’t spin, either you need to rotate the spray bars to change the angle at which the water hits the wheels; to do that, simply rotate the knobs on the side (one for each wheel). Alternatively, the wheels may not be properly positioned on the plastic holders. If the filter is not delivering water, the impeller assembly may not be positioned quite right.
For the 1st filter (and for the 2nd possibility on the filter above), the impeller assembly is certainly not correctly positioned. Note the assembly has a cage which holds the impeller; remove the assembly, open the little lid, reposition the impeller, close the lid, insert assembly and try again. Another possibility is to play with the little pulley that controls strength of flow- I find it does not work well at the lowest, nor at the highest, but better in either of the intermediate positions. Don’t know the reason but this is a fact.
Good luck. I prefer Aquaclear filters, buthave some Emperors and they are fine filters once one gets to know their idiosyncrasies.

Hi. Thank you for the quick response. Where exactly is the “little pulley that controls strength of flow”

also where exactly is the impeller cage?
Thanks
-Alex

 

[fishorama]

FJB gave very good advice! I'm not sure if it's the case with Emperor biowheels, but some HOB filters are not self priming. You need to add water to the filter box before starting them or there will be all kinds of noises...& possibly the siphon won't be able to start.

The impeller sits in a hole or well, it's the part that spins to create suction. They have 5 or 6 fins on a metal rod with a magnetic ceramic looking tube at the bottom. Sometimes it's hard to get them "seated" correctly. There should be little plastic caps at both rod ends, they may or may not stay on the rod when impeller is removed. Not a big deal but you need to make sure the rod is all the way attached at both top & bottom. Be gentle but firm. I hope that's not too confusing...

 

[FJB]

Hi Alex. I don’t have 400’s anymore, but it is identical to the 280’s shown below. The entire impeller assembly, with pulley, impeller and outlet to the spray bars is a single unit. The bottom is a little lid that allows removing and cleaning the impeller. Repositioning it is usually the source of the problem.

The pulley (gray) is at the top right. The lid to the impeller cage is open in this photo. The next photo shows the pulley as it looks from the top of the filter. Push it to the last position, then gently pull it up 2 notches. It should work better. But first make sure the impeller is placed correctly on the assembly and then the whole assembly placed in correctly. It is rash not to Getty right, but there is a sweet spot. Good luck.

 

[FJB]

Yes. Fish órame is very much correct. Filter must be filled up with water )by hand).

 

[fishorama]

Thanks for the great filter pics FJB. I didn't understand the "pulley" thing, lol. I'm not sure I get it all the way...Can you tell it's not a filter I've actually used? I was talking in general terms of HOBs...& can I say that's a more "lame" impeller than any I've used? (but maybe just as effective) No "fins" to clean? LOL. It looks much more complex...but maybe not more effective than Aqua Clears or even Whispers & a couple others I've tried...But with more places to clean? Meh, not so much...

 

[TwoTankAmin]

I had an Emp. 400 on my first tank along with an undergravel filter. But I had to remove the undergravel and I replaced it with an AquaClear 200. This all happened in 2001. In 2002 I got my second AC, a used 150 (it went on a different tank). I have both those ACs running today. I liked the Emp. 400 but it died after about 8 year or so. So I replaced it with another Emp 400.

They had made several changes tothe Emp. since my first one and from the minute I took it out of the box I was wary. I did not like the mid-level intake feature. When I put it on the tank and started it, it was noisey and I could not make it not so. I had it on the tank about 20 minutes before I took it off, dried it all out, boxed it back up and returned it. I got another AquaClear- another 200.

I think Marineland, under its new ownership, had made a pretty good filter into one I would no longer use. The AC design is unchanged in 20 years. They have made the plastic thinner is about it. They also cosrta lot more- my AC 100s cost me $9.99 and the price for the rest was similarly low. I also acquired a number of them used.

The only other hang on filters I have used and liked was the Eheim Liberty. I tried one as a cheaper alternative for ACs as their price had risen substantially by then and they had gotten thinner. I use every size of AC made and the largest Liberty was 200 GHP. Most of my ACs are 200 and 300s with a bunch of 150s close behind. Since I like the standardization of the ACs and the sharing of motors and other parts within several different models, AC was way too versatile to give up.

One more thing, I just went poking around and saw the Emperor Pro 450. That looks to be a better choice to me. It costs a bit more but from the vid I appears to be a better design if it functions as advertised. it has a media basket you can load any way you want and not cartridges. The motor is placed such that it is self-priming. I am not sure how filled a tank must be for this function to work. I has a flow control, more surface area for the bio-wheels and an "improved" spraybar that is supposed to be less likely to clog.

 

[alexglass10]

Great thanks for all the quick replies, if I am unable to fix these filters can anyone recommend a similarly priced or cheaper alternative?