Dolphin Hydro Vortex™
Standard 4,000 Gallon Filter
Dolphin Hydro Vortex™
4,000 Gallon Filter with
HydroFlush™ Backwash System
Dolphin Hydro Vortex™ Features
Download Hydro Vortex™ Owner's Manual
Download HydroFlush™ Owner's Manual
The Dolphin Hydro Vortex™ is the most efficient and Easy To Clean waterfall filter in its class. Hydro Vortex™ waterfall filters are the World's FIRST and ONLY Completely Backwashable waterfall filters. It is the mid-size version of the revolutionary Patent Pending Hydro Vortex™ series of completely backwashable biological waterfall filters. Designed by Russell Watergardens, they are designed for easy routine cleaning simply by opening its included drain valve and reversing water flow through the filter.
The HydroFlush™ option uses your existing pump and a 3-way valve to reverse water flow through the filter. Cleaning a Dolphin Hydro Vortex™ filter is as easy as opening its drain valve and turning the 3-way valve to HydroFlush™.
Each Dolphin Hydro Vortex™ Backwashable Waterfall Filter Includes:
- Dimensions: 32½" tall x 31" wide x 30¼" front to back.
- 25" wide waterfall opening.
- Handles flow rates of up to 8,100 gph (135 gpm).
- Recommended to 4,000 gallons of pond water.
- Round vortex chamber.
- Settling cone.
- Media chamber.
- Two Solid Brass 2" female threaded inlets.
- Solid Brass 1½" female threaded bottom drain outlet.
- Lower diffuser grate.
- Upper diffuser grate.
- Stainless Steel screws and nuts.
- Liner gasket flange.
- 10' of 1½" heavy duty flex PVC drain pipe for clean out.
- 1½" Stainless Steel Lever PVC shut-off valve.
- 7.32 cubic feet of Easy to Clean Hydro FilterSilk™ media.
- 2,708 Total SSA (Specific Surface Area).
- Metabolizes up to 54,160 mg ammonia per 24 hours
- Metabolizes up to 541.60 g fish waste per 24 hours
- Supports up to 2,274.72 g total fish weight in 4,000 gallons of water.
- Solid heavy duty rotational molded HDPE construction.
- 1½" PVC male pipe adaptor.
- 2" PVC male pipe adaptor.
- 2" PVC male plug.
- Tube of fish safe 100% silicone sealant.
HydroFlush™Backwash System
The Optional Dolphin HydroFlush™ System Includes:
- 2" 3-Way diverter valve.
- 2"-1½" PVC reducer bushing.
- 15' 1½" heavy duty flex PVC pipe.
- 10" Round Valve Box
- 1½" heavy duty bulkhead fitting.
- Two 1½" PVC male pipe adaptors.
- One 45° PVC elbow.
- One 90° PVC elbow.
- Two 1½" flex PVC pipe stubs.
Yes! I want to buy an Easy to Clean
Dolphin Hydro Vortex™ Waterfall Filter!
Compare cleaning a Hydro Vortex™ filter with cleaning "Pad-&-Media-Bag" style waterfall filters.
An Easy to Clean Dolphin Hydro Vortex™ biological waterfall filter lets you build beautiful water garden ponds up to 4,000 gallons in size.
The water garden in this photo actually has four Dolphin Hydro Vortex™ filters with a total of 16,000 gallons of water!
An Easy to Clean Dolphin Hydro Vortex™ filter allows you to build an Easy to Clean Hybrid Pond™.
The Hybrid Pond™ in this photo features three Dolphin Hydro Vortex™ filters and 12,000 gallons of pond water.
The Easy to Clean Dolphin Hydro Vortex™ filter also allows you to build beautiful pondless waterfalls like this.
Whether you choose a water garden pond, a Hybrid Pond™, or a pondless waterfall..........they will only be as beautiful as you can maintain them. A clean water feature is a beautiful water feature.
Cleaning a Hydro Vortex™ filter is this easy......
Yes! I want to buy an Easy to Clean
Dolphin Hydro Vortex™!
With the optional HydroFlush™ System for your Hydro Vortex™ filter - your pump cleans the filter for you! Here's all you have to do:
- Open the Hydro Vortex™ filter's drain valve.
- Turn the 3-Way diverter valve from the "FILTER" position to the "BACKWASH" position.
- Water will "jet" upward into a highly oxygenated froth on top of the filter. The water will fall back down onto and into the filter. With the Hydro Vortex™ filter's bottom drain open, all the sediment and detritus will rinse downward and out of the filter's drain pipe.
- When the water exiting the drain pipe runs "clear" - the filter is clean!
- Turn the HydroFlush™ 3-Way valve back to the "FILTER" position.
- Close the Hydro Vortex Filter's Cleanout Drain and enjoy your waterfalls!
With the 3-Way Diverter Valve in the "BACKWASH" position - water will jet upward out of the filter into a highly oxygenated "froth". The height of the oxygenated froth is determined by your pump's flow rate. The higher the flow rate, the higher the froth. Some water splashes out of the filter's perimeter, and this is considered "normal" - but if too much water splashes outside the perimeter of the filter, throttle back the 3-Way diverter a little. With larger pumps, water entering through the HydroFlush™ froth jet can exceed water exiting the bottom drain. When this happens, and the Hydro Vortex™ filter starts to "fill up" with water, simply unplug the pump and let it completely drain again then restart the pump. Depending on your total fish and organic load, it may take 3 to 5 HydroFlush™ cycles to fully clean the Hydro Vortex™ filter of all detritus.
This photo on the left clearly shows you what is being backwashed out of the Hydro Vortex™ waterfall filter. Cleaning any type of filter on a regular basis keeps that filter performing at its peak of efficiency - waterfall filters are no exception! The HydroFlush™ Backwash System lets you backwash your Hydro Vortex™ waterfall filter simply by turning two valves!
When the water exiting the Hydro Vortex™ filter's backwash drain pipe runs "clear" - the filter is clean! Now simply close the bottom drain valve and switch the HydroFlush™ 3-Way diverter valve back to the "FILTER" position and you're done!
Hydro Vortex™ Waterfall Filters are Super Easy To Clean!
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Hydro Vortex™!
Hydro Vortex™ Waterfall Filters are also Easy To Plumb!
Attaching plumbing to the Dolphin is super easy because of the Dolphin's two "molded-in" solid brass female inlet pipe connectors and one solid brass female drain pipe connector. Simply apply a small amount of fish safe 100% silicone sealant to the threads of the PVC male pipe adaptors and hand thread them into to the Marlin.
No big wrenches or Channel-Loc's are required. (The fish safe 100% silicone and the PVC male pipe adaptors are 
included free!) Once the PVC male pipe adaptors are threaded into the Dolphin, glue flex PVC pipe into the adaptors. Super fast. Super easy.
What Does a Vortex Do?
A vortex inside your filter means that you'll have cleaner, healthier water than all the other brands of filters that don't have a vortex. Why? Because a vortex "spins" water, and spinning water causes particulate matter to settle in the center of the vortex. If the spinning water vortex is above a settling cone, the spinning water vortex will cause particulate matter to settle down into the bottom of the cone. If the settling cone has a drain at the bottom, then the sediment can be easily flushed out. That is the Hydro Vortex™ filter's design! Water enters the filter parallel to the radius. This uses the pump's force to cause water to "spin" into a vortex. A settling cone is below the spinning water vortex, and a drain is located at the bottom of the settling cone.
The following photos clearly show you what water does inside a Hydro Vortex™ filter. This is a newly installed Hydro Vortex™ filter to demonstrate what the filter does with dirty water.
Do a "Vortex Test" yourself!
Take an ordinary round 5 gallon bucket. Fill it with water. Go outside and grab a pinch or two of dirt. Sprinkle the dirt into the water that's inside the round 5 gallon bucket. Now stir the water in a circle with your hand or a stick. The following photos demonstrate what will happen:
See how the heavier particles settled into the bottom center of the bucket? You just witnessed the power of a vortex. Spinning water causes debris to move to the center of the vortex where gravity then drops it downward. Hydro Vortex™ filters are the only waterfall filters on the market designed with a true vortex concept. No other brand of waterfall "box" can compare. When looking at waterfall filter boxes, ask yourself: "Where does the dirt go.......and how do I clean it?". Only Hydro Vortex™ gives the answers to those questions.
The Hydro FilterSilk™ inside the Hydro Vortex™ filter will trap the free floating light weight debris that isn't heavy enough to settle downward into the settling cone. Both the settled debris, and the trapped debris, are easily backwashed out of the Hydro Vortex™ filter during a HydroFlush™ cycle.
The Hydro Vortex™ family of biological filters have the highest SSA available of any filter in their size ranges. A higher SSA means the Hydro Vortex™ filters support a higher number of fish in your pond than other brands of biological filters. The vortex inside the filter spins particulates out of the water into a settling cone for clearer water. The drain on the settling cone allows for simple, easy, quick, and complete back flushing of sediment and detritus from the filter. Unlike other brands of biological waterfall filters, the Hydro Vortex™ filter allows you to clean it without having to remove the media from the filter!
The Hydro Vortex™ filter completely hides the media from view and allows for rocks and gravel to be placed on the top for a more natural look than other brands. A Hydro Vortex™ filter does away with heavy, messy, difficult to clean lava rock and filter pads!
In this photo you see the Hydro Vortex™ filter during construction of a waterfall. (See the finished waterfall in the photo below) Notice how the filter's design allows for real rocks to be placed right up to the Hydro Vortex™ filter for a natural looking waterfall. Also, notice the Upper Diffuser Grate. The Upper Diffuser Grate serves two purposes:
- To hold the Hydro FilterSilk™ media inside the filter.
- To hold rocks and gravel on top of the filter to hide it from view.
This is the completed waterfall that you saw under construction in the photo above. Notice how the natural stone makes for a more natural waterfall than the plastic waterfall lips found on virtually all other brands of waterfall filters. Also, notice how the Hydro Vortex™ filter's Upper Diffuser Grate holds river rock that completely hides the filter from view.
The revolutionary Dolphin Hydro Vortex™ filter features a round vortex chamber, a cylindrical bottom settling cone, two solid brass female threaded inlet vortex jets that forces water to swirl within the vortex chamber, a solid brass female threaded bottom clean out drain outlet, 10' of drain pipe, a ball valve, one 2" male pipe adaptor for an inlet pipe, one 1½" male pipe adaptor for the drain pipe, one 2" plug for the inlet that is not in use. A second 2" male pipe adaptor can be substituted for the plug when two pumps are used with the Marlin. Lower Diffuser Grate, Upper Diffuser Grate, easy to install flat liner gasket flange, Stainless Steel screws, Stainless Steel washers, and self biting Stainless Steel nuts, tube of Fish Safe 100% Silicone sealant, and 3.66cubic feet of Hydro FilterSilk™ media that has an SSA of 1,354. No additional media is required!
Hydro Vortex™ filters are designed for periodic gentle back-flushing of fish waste, mulm and detritus instead of the massive disruptive heavy annual pressure washer cleaning required by typical "Pad-&-Media-Bag" style box waterfall filters. Don't be misled by the claims that say biological filters only need "annual cleaning" - the health of your fish may be at stake. All filters, no matter what type or brand, benefit from periodic rinsing of fish waste, mulm & detritus. "Pad-&-Media-Bag" style waterfall filters are not designed with bottom clean out drains for ease of cleaning and routine gentle back-flushing. Soiled filters can cause adverse water quality issues that can encourage algae growth, and fish disease.
Yes! I want to buy an Easy to Clean
Dolphin Hydro Vortex™!
Biological filters - of any kind or brand - that are not periodically back-flushed, will eventually plug with fish waste, mulm and detritus (the build-up of bacterial waste that looks like brown goop).
If the fish waste, mulm and detritus isn't periodically back-flushed it can clog the filter media - no matter what type. Clogged filter media can cause the water to start "channeling" around the filter media within the filter. This means that water is finding a "path of least resistance" around the clogged media. Water that "channels" around the filter media doesn't get filtered. Water passing around the media through channels causes other areas within the filter to have stagnant, non-moving, oxygen-free, water. Areas within the filter that don't pass oxygenated water become anaerobic (oxygen deprived) and encourage pathogenic species of bacteria like Aeromonas and Pseudomonas to take over the filter and eventually the pond. This can result in sick, diseased, and/or dying fish. This is why fish disease is relatively high in typical water garden ponds compared to traditional koi ponds. Koi pond filters are back-flushable, "Pad-&-Media-Bag" style water garden filters are not. The Hydro Vortex™ is the only waterfall filter on the market that comes standard with a back-washable bottom drain.
Another reason for periodically back-flushing the biological filter: As the fish waste, mulm and detritus (brown goop) that builds up on the filter media gets more than ¼" thick, it tends to break off and get flushed into the pond over the waterfalls where it builds up on the bottom of the pond as organic sludge. This will then require an annual "clean-out" of the pond that requires the removal of all the fish from the pond, removing all the water, then pressure washing the entire pond while pumping out all the mulm and detritus organic sludge that has accumulated on the pond bottom throughout the year.
Routine back-flushing of the biological filter throughout the year can prevent this messy, time consuming job. "Pad-&-Media-Bag" style waterfall filters do not give you a bottom drain back-flush option. In fact, their instruction manuals tell you to perform annual "clean-outs" instead.
Ectoparasites such as flukes and protozoa that attack your fish thrive in ponds with high organic loads caused by the mulm and detritus organic sludge on the bottom of the pond. If you can remove the mulm and detritus regularly with your filter before it releases it to the pond, you will dramatically lower the level of sludge in the pond, which will take the living environment away from the parasites, and the result will be less parasites biting your fish. Your fish will thank you!
For the best fish health and true nitrifying bacteria colonization, biological filters should be periodically flushed free of fish waste, mulm and detritus to provide a clean environment in which the bacteria live and thrive.
Periodic back-flushing of your biological filter prevents the build up of anaerobic zones within the filter itself, and helps prevent Aeromonas and Pseudomonas outbreaks within the filter and pond that can lead to fish death. Hydro Vortex™ filters are designed for ease of routine back-flushing and cleaning without disrupting the good bacteria or the nitrification process.
Rocks and pebbles hide the upper rim of the filter from view, and the flat liner gasket flange allows waterfall rocks to be stacked right up to the face of the filter for a more natural appearance than plastic waterfall ledges. Unlike the square, flat sides of "Pad-&-Media-Bag" style waterfall filters - the Dolphin's round body shape resists "caving in" or warping when backfilled with soil.
The Hydro FilterSilk™ is a revolutionary filter media developed by Russell Watergardens that combines high SSA - Specific Surface Area (61 SSA per square foot) for bacteria growth, tremendous open space that resists channeling, and fine particulate removal for unsurpassed water "polishing" and conditioning. Hydro FilterSilk™ doesn't have to be removed from the filter for routine back-flushing! No more lifting out the heavy lava rock bags, or the messy job of pressure washing the filter pads of "Pad-&-Media-Bag" style waterfall filter boxes.
The photo on the left shows the HydroFlush™ backwash Froth Jet. The photo on the right shows how the Froth Jet is concealed with river rock on top of the Hydro Vortex™ filter.
Hydro Vortex™ is the Easiest to Clean, Easiest to Install,
and Easiest to Conceal waterfall filter on the market.
Yes! I want to buy an Easy to Clean
Dolphin
Hydro Vortex™!
Compare cleaning a Hydro Vortex™ filter with cleaning "Pad-&-Media-Bag" style waterfall filters.
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