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Return Pump recomendation

D

DaveK

The Iwaki is an excellent pump. You'll never regret getting it. I usually figure a typical overflow can handle 600 - 700 gph or so, so the pump isn't way over the top as far as the amount of water it can move. However, you don't need a pressure rated pump, and you may not need that much flow through the filtration system. A pump such as an Iwaki MD 40 RLXT, or something similar would give slightly less flow, and not be pressure rated, but would also cost less, and consume less power.
 
Phyl

Phyl

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
When we were pumping from under the stand we were using a Mag 12 with the impeller from an 18. That pushed about 1500gph which was perfect for keeping the dual overflows quiet. Anything less than that and it was noisy as all get out.

I don't feel like the Hydors push a long enough water flow to cover the tank span you're looking at (even x4). I would be inclined to use Tunzes or Vortechs.
 
D

DaveK

Edward771 said:
thanks for the suggests guys.
Now the question is should I get one of these http://www.oceansmotions.com/store/...id=32&osCsid=acbb557df13876358a8afa7567cfe1b6

or 4 Hydor 4s. Or 2 vortex
http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merc...=PROD&Product_Code=ET-MP40W&Category_Code=Eco

damn thank god i have 18 years to save for Madelyn's college.
Click to expand...

The Ocean Motions device is interesting in that you can create a lot of directed flow, but it it requires a lot of plumbing. The Hydor and Vortex units are good also. However if you are looking for fantastic random flow, and money is no object, I'd recommend a pair of Tunze Streams and their Multicontroller. Here is a link (Offsite) -

http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem~idProduct~TZTS24.html

As you can see they are out of sight expensive, but I have yet to see anything that gives better all around random water flow.
 
C

Carlo

You've gotten some good advice Ed here in the thread.

I'm inclined to say go lower flow on the return and higher flow in the tank itself. I'm not a fan of high flow through the sump. I prefer much slower flow through there then most people would advice. My thought behind this is that most of the "dirty" water in the tank makes it's way to the top and then down the overflows. I prefer to make SURE every drop of it gets process properly in the sump/skimmer. Hence running a slower flow. I like and use the Iwaki 40s myself as they are among the quieting pumps you can get and last a long, long time due to there design.

I've got a brand new 40 still in the box that's never been opened. After you fill it up we can try it on your tank to see if the flow is correct or not. If you like it you can buy it from me or pickup your own. Either way you'll have a good idea flow wise if you want/need more or less. Should be a good test and you're welcome to use it for a few to see if it's the right pump or not and base your decision around it.

I've got 2 closed loops on Wavy Sea Plus's in my 265 with a few Hydor 4s and it's adequate but still not as much as I'd like. I've been thinking of ripping down the tank and redoing it and working the flow better. I notice lots of settlement in and behind the rock work that I want to handle better.

Billy give me a couple of educator that really seem to help a lot on the closed loops. They really get the water moving a lot more then you typically get from just the 1" returns. The Sea-Flo mods for maxijet 1200s seem to really work well. I've also been playing with them a bit too. They deliver about 1200-1400 gph of flow that is more concentrated then a Hydor 4. I think they are actually a bit better for use in a 265 as there is so much more area that typical pumps don't cover well as the flow gets to weak.

Vortech pumps are nice but quite expensive and personally I don't think they really are worth the money (flow per dollar) unless you have money to burn!

The Oceans Motions boxes seem really nice but I've never used one. Billy makes great use of these so really I'd check with him for 1st hand knowledge on them and pump suggestions to go with it.

One of the things I'm thinking of doing in my redesign is maybe making use of some bigger Mag Drive/Pond Master pumps directly in the tank (maybe with educators) behind/in the rock work. You won't be able to see them but they will kick out a lot of water flow when needed. My thought was to run a couple of these once or twice a day to kick up the debris behind/in the rock work. They could be run on a timer as needed so they wouldn't contribute a lot heat or electricity wise to the tank but will do a great job keeping things stirred up. I've got a few laying around so...

I think one of the biggest things you need to think about is substrate. This will probably affect you more then anything else. It's definitely a much harder challenge to design the flow when you have sand in the tank!

Sorry I couldn't be more helpful but I just thought I'd share some experience and possible suggestions I've been thinking about. Maybe give you some additional ideas to think about and of course mention the test pump you can try/use.

Carlo
 
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