# [Wet Thumb Forum]-Eheim 2028 sucking air?



## TortoiseBoy (Dec 30, 2004)

Hi folks,
I just got an Eheim 2028 and set it up for the first time last night. The priming took some getting used to, as stated in other threads, but it did work for me once I filled the cannister with water. After I set the filter up, it would slowly spit air bubbles out the outlet. I thought maybe it was just purging air out of the top of the canister or out of the reactor I have inline with intake, so I left it all night. This morning, it is still doing the same thing. The simplest explanation is a slightly leaky o-ring on the main seal between the canister part and the motor part. I did grease this seal before I put the thing together, but maybe not enough. Anyone have any ideas about what I can do here? Since I bought the unit online, I can't really just take it back for a different one. Thanks in advance for any help.

TB


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## TortoiseBoy (Dec 30, 2004)

Hi folks,
I just got an Eheim 2028 and set it up for the first time last night. The priming took some getting used to, as stated in other threads, but it did work for me once I filled the cannister with water. After I set the filter up, it would slowly spit air bubbles out the outlet. I thought maybe it was just purging air out of the top of the canister or out of the reactor I have inline with intake, so I left it all night. This morning, it is still doing the same thing. The simplest explanation is a slightly leaky o-ring on the main seal between the canister part and the motor part. I did grease this seal before I put the thing together, but maybe not enough. Anyone have any ideas about what I can do here? Since I bought the unit online, I can't really just take it back for a different one. Thanks in advance for any help.

TB


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## Roger Miller (Jun 19, 2004)

Any seal or tubing connection on the suction side of the pump could cause the problem. The cannister seal is the biggest so the most suspect.

I don't know that greasing that seal is a good practice and probably should not be necessary. I don't have to do anything to mine. Make sure the O-ring itself is not twisted and that the seating surfaces are clean and smooth. Also, be careful when you seal the cannister to keep even pressure on the seal.

If reseating the cannister seal doesn't work then look for leaks elsewhere. A lot of times when a leak sucks air while the pump is on it will also leak water when the pump is off. You can turn the pump off and look for small water leaks to tell you where the problem is.


Roger Miller


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## TortoiseBoy (Dec 30, 2004)

I actually ended up calling Eheim North America on their toll free number. They answered right away and told me that the seals may be the problem. They also said that my particular version of the 2028 had not been made for 8 months or so and that it probably sat on the shelf for quite a while before I bought it. They said that the seals may just take a bit of time to settle back in and that I should grease them all a little bit. Turns out that there are seals around where the hose assembly inserts into the motor part, too. 

Another problem I think I was having is that the filter is right next to the tank meaning there is very little head for it to work with in priming. I put the filter on the floor and started it up that way and it is working a bit better now. The motor itself is nearly silent and the thing just makes little bitty pick-pick-pick sounds like tiny bubbles are in there. You can't hear it from 6 feet away and there are no bubbles coming out of the output. I know they are supposed to be silent, but is this silent enough? I just want to make sure that my brand new pump is working flawlessly. Thanks for any more input and thanks for your advice, Roger. 

TB


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## Roger Miller (Jun 19, 2004)

When clean and new my 2028 was completely silent. The best way to tell if it was running was to check for flow in the tank. The filter itself vibrated very slightly when it was running, but you could only tell by touching the filter and concentrating on it a bit.

With time and slime buildup the filter has become a little louder. I inject CO2 into the filter intake but even with that the filter itself makes nothing more than a very low humming sound. The filter is in the cabinet under the tank. In order to hear the filter I have to open up the cabinet and put my head down to the filter level, practically in the cabinet.

It sounds like yours is making more noise than mine.


Roger Miller


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