Sound proofing a cabinet with a canister filter in it

[jasonwilks]

Hello all, I was wondering if any of you have any experience with sound proofing a canister filter. I currently have my canister filter in a cabinet under my 180 gallon fish tank. I have already hanged carpet inside the walls in the cabinet, but that only helped just a little bit. It seems that most of the sound the canister is producing is low frequency sound. I think I am going to build some kind of structure around the canister filter to block the low freq. sound coming from it. Anybody have any suggestions on material I should use? Or any other tips?

[Owlbehere]

Maybe the stuff they use in cars with large custom speakers?

[Northernguy]

Whatever you use will need to be installed in layers.
Layers of most dense board or fabric will stop the noise.Foam underlay works!

[lowlight]

I would use the the foam that looks like an egg carton shape wise. Like the foam that some people put on top of a worn mattress or maybe some 1/4-1/2 inch Styrofoam on the inside of the cabinet. I wouldn't cover the filter with anything as it could affect the temp and the motor might run to warm.

[Lady Hobbs]

What kind of canister are you using? I use Fluvals and they don't make a sound and others report the same with their Rena's so I'm curious.

[Gil klogher]

Yeah realy, I also use fluvals. you can get (2) fluval canister filters for only 230 bucks each and they will be your best bet.

[bushwhacker]

i've got 2 rena xp3's that are dead silent

[mediamonster]

My two Cents, i have 1 Rena XP3 on my 46 gallon bow front tank and it is just out in the open see picture. it makes no sound at all.
19763

I also have 2 Cascade 700's on my 150 gallon tank, they are in the stand and make little to no noise.

If you are looking for a material to sound proof with i would use either Dyno Mat (that is what they use in car audio) or i would use fiber egg crate like the ones they use in cheep studio setups to dampen noise. If you incase the filter i would put a small computer style fan in there to keep ambient air circulating around the filter.

[SunSchein89]

Dynomat is the stuff you're looking for that they use in cars. I used it to stop a lot of vibrations for my subs in my car. Most cars actually have it under the car to reduce road noise. Look around in car stereo stores for the stuff, it works really good for vibrations and low frequency stuff :22: .

[WhiteDevil]

Carpeting.

[Lady Hobbs]

First of all, canisters are not supposed to make so much noise that insulation of the cabinet is necessary. I would check into why your canister makes this noise. Does the impeller need cleaning or is there sand in it. Is their air in the canister from being too near a bubbler? Something isn't right here.

[mediamonster]

I agree with lady H. Investigate the problem don't just find a way to mask it. Mine made allot of noise when i had air in it. My air pump makes more noise than my filter.

[terrapin24h]

my fluvals make a hum. Or rather, the crappy stands i have accentuate and amplify the normal noise of the filter. If i set the filters outside the stand on the rug, no issues. Try setting the filter on a folded towel, and hanging something on the inside of the front of the stand(ie on the cabinet doors). Also, make sure the filter is not touching the walls of the stand. I hate my crappy store bought stands.

--chris