Mounting hardware breaking down. Why???

[dgasmd]

A few months ago, I bought 8 tunze streams 6200. I ahve had them running continiously in the tank at full blast without the controller. I also got 8 magnet sets to hold them. They ahve been running for probably 4-6 months. Int hat time, I have had 3 of the sliding parts that slide over the tunze and 3 of the marget parallel bars that hold the stream hardware break on my while running in the tank. I don't understand this and wonder how common this is. They have all failed in the same 2 spots too.

I always thought the mounting hardware to these things was horrible, but now it is also easily breakable with normal use? Why is this happening? Is this common? If it is common, how come it has not being addressed yet? I have ended up using superglue to hold them together permanently as I refuse to buy any of this stuff on a product so new.

Any comments or suggestions???

 

[twon8]

did you put the screw at the top of the swivel arm? I am assuming you got the larger magnets, the 6200 requires the larger magnets. I just installed a 6200 yest, so you're getting me worried.

Im not clear on what you mean by magnet par. bars? Did the stream fall from the break?

 

[dgasmd]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7835782#post7835782 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by twon8
did you put the screw at the top of the swivel arm? I am assuming you got the larger magnets, the 6200 requires the larger magnets. I just installed a 6200 yest, so you're getting me worried.

Im not clear on what you mean by magnet par. bars? Did the stream fall from the break?

Yes, I got the bigger magnets as I ahve 3/4" glass too. I installed them as per instructions. The magnets have 2 vertical plastic pieces over which the grooves in the mounting part attached to the tunze slide allowing the pump to "hang" from them. My tunzes did not hit the bottom or fall as their cord has limited range for that very same reason.

 

[twon8]

ok, so the things on the magnet that hold the swivel mount piece in place broke?

a rudimentary diagram

magnet----->------swivel mount----->swivel arm------->-----tunze
---------break here-------------------------------------break here?

which other piece broke? the swivel arm that slide onto the top of the tunze

 

[Putawaywet]

Just talking out loud here (so to speak) but any chance your lighting and the subsequent UV exposure could be causing the plastic to become prematurely brittle?

Brett

 

[dgasmd]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7836237#post7836237 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Putawaywet
Just talking out loud here (so to speak) but any chance your lighting and the subsequent UV exposure could be causing the plastic to become prematurely brittle?

Brett

Possibly, but doubt it. The places where they are breaking are at points not exposed to light. Then again, how is a product intended for reef tanks have such a classic fault? Mostly what I want to know is if this is something very common I just never heard of before or am I the only lucky one with a bad batch of holding hardware? Is there anything to do about it?

 

[rvitko]

I have never heard of this before. Do you have any pics/part numbers because your decriptions are not very clear.

 

[dgasmd]

I currently have 2 with the same faults. I will take them out in the morning and take several pictures of the problem areas so it is easier to see what I mean. I also want to know if this breakdown issues are covered by the warranty of the stream and the magnets.

 

[dgasmd]

OK, so here are a couple of pictures. Sorry they are not the best quality as the pumps are in a very hard place to photograph, and I have not had the time to take them out yet. I will take them out in a few minutes.

Problem #1:
This has happened in 2 sets of magnets so far. On the picture there are some arrows pointing to the 2 small plastic tabs over which the sliding section of the mounting hardware goes over. They are both broken off, so the pump's hardware slides over them, but there is nothing preventing the pump from falling forward and out.

Problem #2:
You can see this bar where the snail is sitting slides in the groove that is in the top of the pump's body. I am not 100% sure if it is the grove in the pump itself that wore out or the 3 small tabs on each side of this sliding bar pointed by the arrows. I will let you know for sure when I take them out in a few minutes. This is the second of these to happen just like it.

So, is any of this stuff covered by the warranty so that I can get it replaced?

**Sorry about the snail's moment. I think its girlfriend just moved out with the 8K children and he was feeling like he was in a bad situation.:lol: :lol:

Roger:

I went to the tunze site. Problem #2 is: Swivel arm T.stream Part# 6080.400. Problem #1 is actually the marget itself as the plastic part os part of the magnet housing.

 

[rvitko]

For the magnets, I have never seen those break. If you will send them in I can probably get them exchanged but I don't understand how that could happen. I would need to talk to someone at the factory. The inside and outside magnets are identical so the simplest solution is to just install them so the inside one is outside and the outside one is inside.

As for the slide in arms. I have seen this before when people try to push them in from the top rather than slide them. Also, sometimes people slide them in such that only a couple of the tabs slide in, the rest are above the grove and then the hold is very poor. I can replace those.

 

[dgasmd]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7849660#post7849660 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rvitko
For the magnets, I have never seen those break. If you will send them in I can probably get them exchanged but I don't understand how that could happen. I would need to talk to someone at the factory. The inside and outside magnets are identical so the simplest solution is to just install them so the inside one is outside and the outside one is inside.

As for the slide in arms. I have seen this before when people try to push them in from the top rather than slide them. Also, sometimes people slide them in such that only a couple of the tabs slide in, the rest are above the grove and then the hold is very poor. I can replace those.

Roger:

I had done already with the magnets what you suggest above. However, it seems to me this will happen again in the future as it has already happen twice with 2 different magnets. As far as the slide arms, I put some crazy glue gel in them and slided them in place. after it dried in place, it seems to be holding so far. I know they were all in completely because I had to take the front screens off to be able to put them in. From looking at the last one I just chaged, it seems all of the tabs were worm almost equally, but maybe one or two more. That is why it would come off.

For now it is all working. However, I will contact you in the future if anything else breaks. I just find it pretty frustrating to have paid over $4K for powerheads and magnets to have their $2 parts break so easily.

 

[rvitko]

I am sorry but you are the first person to have this problem with the magnets- at least the first to say something so I am at a loss as to how this could happen. I suppose it isn't impossible that the magnets were thin but for the only 2 to go to the same person is not logical.

I would have happily replaced the sliding arms, I have seen this a couple times. I think it is a bit much though to say they break easily. I just don't get that many claims for broken parts.