A self-cleaning, automated apparatus with a filter for fluids includes a nozzle unit assembly that has a first tube inside a second tube. Each of the tubes has a different pattern of one or more slots or holes. One tube rotates while the other is fixed, so that part of the pattern of one coincides with the other at times, resulting in a jet of cleaning fluid that removes debris from a filter. The filter is rotated so the jet can reach all parts to be cleaned. The pattern of the rotating tube may approximate a helix and the pattern of the fixed tube may approximate a line.