Fixing Eheim Everyday Fish Feeder

[redfishbluefish]

I now have three Eheim feeders that aren’t working.

1. Display is OK, but motor doesn’t turn
2. Display looks like hieroglyphics, but the motor works.

3. Flat out dead, dead….does nothing.


So the first two are getting power, but one or more parts aren’t functioning. The last one, being totally dead, I was hoping it was simply a power problem, and that’s the one I opened up.

The four very small phillips screws on the back side allow you to slide the front/sides off exposing the insides. To my surprise, the battery pickups were totally corroded. Now I want to point out that this never fell into the tank or saw saltwater. After I lost the second feeder, I was so concerned about splashing or popping bubbles, I raised the shelf the feeder sat on and now use a “feeding pipe” to drop the food into the tank. I talked about that HERE.

My guess is that a battery leaked and caused the corrosion. Here’s how it looked.

I used DeOxIt D5 to clean up the contacts along with a couple Q-tips.

And actually after seeing the picture, I went back in and cleaned a bit more using Isopropyl Alcohol.


Put it all back together and to my surprise and delight, it now worked. Who would have thought.

 

[hdsoftail1065]

Great job bringing it back to life! Been tossing around a feeder and looked at Eheim. What is the average lifespan in your experience on the feeders before they stopped working? Everyday use or when you travel?

 

[redfishbluefish]

Great job bringing it back to life! Been tossing around a feeder and looked at Eheim. What is the average lifespan in your experience on the feeders before they stopped working? Everyday use or when you travel?

Only when we travel. And I have no idea how long they last....I've been doing this for maybe 15-16 years and purchased these three over the years. This one was an easy fix. The other two I don't believe are easily fixable.....blown screen and motor that doesn't work.

My original thought was the bubble popping water splashing on these when they were close to the water surface is what did them in. That's why I moved it up high and away from the water. The one with with blown screen is stained or delaminating....can't tell....in the corners and edges.

I don't know what that is....and it's not dirty...it doesn't come off.

 

[dwest]

Great job bringing it back to life! Been tossing around a feeder and looked at Eheim. What is the average lifespan in your experience on the feeders before they stopped working? Everyday use or when you travel?

I’ve run one 24/7 for at least 3 or 4 years now. A second one is used a few months a year. I replace the batteries once a year. I think they are great.

 

[hdsoftail1065]

Thanks for the feed back! Going to pull the trigger

 

[dwest]

Thanks for the feed back! Going to pull the trigger

Once you determine the size of the opening, use a piece of tape on the slider to secure the opening size. This will make more sense once you get the feeder