Rena filstar-leak prone?

I can only speak from my personal experience.

I've had two Rena XP3 for about 12 years. I also have a newer XP XL, and I really don't see any difference in quality between the two. The parts all look identical.

I have had a few small leaks over the years, and usually just draining and re-seating the top will fix it. Make sure the baskets are stacked square, and there is no pressure when it latches. It should latch very easily with almost no pressure at all.

Another time I had a problem when I moved where the unit was located under the tank. The hoses had a little pressure on them, and weren't hanging straight down. Quick adjustment and it was fixed.

Any other issue is usually related to the seals. Every three or four years, I replace of all of the gaskets. You can buy a kit and I recommend replacing them all at the same time, whether you think they need it or not. The usual culprit is actually the very small ones on the quick disconnect itself. I put a little Vaseline on the new ones, and that usually does the trick.

And while you don't see the leak, I'm sure it is coming from the motor/quick disconnect area. It's not leaking out of the bottom. I'd dry everything very, very well. Then drain the filter, and put it back as usual. Stay there with a flashlight. Once you see any water under/around the unit, you should be able to trace it back up to the source.

And as a good practice I always put steel clamps on all the connections, as they much more reliable and create a tighter seal than the plastic ones that come with the unit.

Good luck and I hope you get it solved.

well,I get kinda spooked by intermittent leaks,especially when I've had it happen on 2 different units.There's water on the floor,and a gallon or 2 missing from the tank,and the filter and fittings are all dry.

So I went and splurged for an eheim model 2271,sold as pro250.I hate to have the tank with no filter other than the sponge filter.I'll set it up tonight when I get home.I shut down the misbehaving unit,just cause I'm nervous about what it might do while I'm at work.

We have a mountain climate,and so things tend to dry out a lot more here than other places,so the o rings etc may have gotten dried out a bit.

well,I got home and opened the eheim and set it up.Re-used the old hoses with clamps for now.

After taking it apart and setting it up,this thing is on a whole other level.Way more engineering into it.they give you a full canister full of media as well.even with this being the smallest eheim,it has 3 baskets,bottom is completely full of plastic media,middle has a full bag of substrat pro,and the top one has the foam.

the latching for the hoses is positive,clicks into place,and ball valves on the hose inlets to open and close them.Adjustable flow too.

Large clips holding the pump head on,I know these will never snap off.I see why the eheim has so many fans.It might just have another.

I am very impressed with the quality,completeness and engineering in this.