Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I've heard some good things about Tetra's filters and I wanted to try one out so I bought it. I have a 3,650 gallon Koi pond with two cheap biofilters that exploded a week ago. Cheap plastic and those foam filters are a bad mix. Anyway, I just added some vegetation, a Tetra UV clarifier that seems to work fantastic, and some good conditioner. I installed the biofilter and have it connected to a 3600gph with 1 1/2" flex hose. I followed the instructions and had it primed and ready in no time but not before a super sharp piece of plastic that is called a "water jet" cut the underneath of my bicep with surgical precision while I was putting the two halves together. Yes, it still hurts while I'm typing this. Take caution when putting this together. Lots of sharps are inside.
This filter is attractive and the turn valve for backflushing is pretty cool. I like it! However, the directions state to backwash- "keep the pumps running and remove the cap from the backwash connector. Turn the dial to "clean" to start a backwash". When I tested this theory the dial was on "Pond" and I removed the cap as instructed but water started coming out rapidly. I turned the dial to "Clean" and it came out full force, as expected. When I turned it back to "Pond" the water does not cut off completely. There was still too much coming out to put the cap back on and I had to shut the pump down to do it. This is a total failure because I cannot connect a permanent drain/hose to it. I think there's obviously a problem with the valve and I'll be talking to Tetra about it. The build quality of this filter is absolutely fantastic (looking) and I see I can add a UV to it easily if I decide to later but the valve is my only issue right now and it's a bit disappointing. I'd give it more stars if it worked right. I'll be sure to return here and post performance in a few months as well as the result of my calls to Tetra.
UPDATE: Tetra blew me off!!
I called and a customer service agent wasn't sure if water was suppose to come out of the backwash port under normal operation. She checked with her supervisor who said it was normal. I beg to differ considering the instruction manual shows this unit in a "tub" configuration, in the ground, with hoses connected to all ports. Hoses... if I used this configuration I would drain the pond in a few hours. What really gets me is the output shuts off completely when the dial is on "clean" but the backwash wont shut off when the dial is on "pond". I ended up putting a 1 1/4 ball valve on the backwash to get around this shabby design. Seriously, I don't recommend this filter due to the bad design of the backwash dial. I am changing my star rating to "2" because Tetra support wasn't confident or attentive to my question. It is now obvious why Tetra included a threaded end cap for the backwash port. It's cheaper than fixing the dial.
UPDATE: Email response from Tetra
"The filter is designed to either have a ball valve like you installed or the supplied cap to prevent back pressure that may cause seepage from the waste water outlet. This will vary depending on the amount of of pressure supplied by the pump and the amount of resistance from the outlet of the pump returning to the pond."
This is potentially a dangerous and bad design. If you forget to open the ball valve and turn the filter dial to "Clean" you could easily rupture something. I was expecting the Tetra dial valve to function similar to a "pentair". Instead, you'll have to turn off the pumps, remove the cap, connect a hose adapter and a 3rd hose then perform a backflush. Or if you have a ball valve make sure you have it open beforehand and closed after.
On the other hand, the biofilter is working very well even though my father forgot to close the ball valve and drained about 500 gallons from the pond before he noticed. It's a learning process.
BTW: This is for ponds up to 4000 gallons even though a type-o in the add reads up to 2500.
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Tetra Pond Bio-Active Pressure Filter BP4000, Ponds up to 4000 Gallons
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