Return pump recommendation

[Atlanta Aquarium]

I'm currently using a Mag24 as my return pump. It's extremely noisy. Any return pump out there that is not as noisy?

[Amici]

Is their an option to go with an external pump? Or does it have to be submersible.

[Victor626nj]

eheim but dont think thye make one that big unless you have two over flows and can get two of them

[Skriz]

if you can go external, I love the dart. It's small, SILENT, and efficient.

[JetChris]

Yes Dart pumps are the way to go, Im running a snapper for my CL and I cant hear it. Iwaki also makes a great pump.

[Cameron]

I thought the Dart and its line was a low pressure pump though and not good for running on a return.

How much head pressure are you running and how big is your tank/sump Rit? I know your tank is big and I believe your sump is as well, but you probably don't need to be pushing that much water through your sump. You can probably get by with a much smaller pump with no real change in effectiveness in the tank. Would be cheaper as well.

[mysterybox]

You can use extra flex tubing and cut two pieces the same length as your pumps.Then take two tie straps and secured them to the pumps using the holes on the pumps. This can be done outside the sump as well.

[James S.]

I have a Dart Pump Rit if you would like to try it. Im selling it for $150. But you are welcome to try it first. Im using one for my return on my 600. They are almost completely silent. It has a 2" Inlet and a 1.5" outlet. So you would need to plan your return plumbing around that.

[James S.]

Originally Posted by Cameron

I thought the Dart and its line was a low pressure pump though and not good for running on a return.

As long as the sump is under the tank the Dart pumps are Ideal on larger tanks. If your going from a basement to a First floor display then You are correct this pump would not be sufficient. The good thing about the Darts is you can use a ball valve and reduce the flow as much as you want and it wont effect the pumps performance. It also reduces that Wattage from what I have read. Im going to be doing some testing on mine to confirm that.

[Big D]

Rit, if you don't want to replumb for an external pump, you could go with an Ocean Runner 6500. They move a lot of water and pull a lot less wattage than a Mag 24 which will help to keep your heat down. Also, you could go with a Laguna pump. They have some very impressive numbers as well.

I've got a couple 6500's in the basement I'm not using right now, let me know if you want to trade one for something.


David

[Atlanta Aquarium]

Charles, I was thinking of using inside the sump since that is how it is plumb right now. External pump could be an option but not right now.

James, I'll let you know if I decide to go extrenal pump route.

David, you got PMed.

[EnderG60]

it will be well worth the effort to plump for an external pump. What pump you get will depend on how far it needs to flow back to the tank. Personally I like panworld or CL pumps for returns since they are pretty quiet and reliable.

If you dont have far to go though I would look into a sequence pump(dart and the like)

larger mag drives are pretty loud, and put alot of heat in the water. But they work pretty **** well

[Cameron]

Originally Posted by 46bfinga

As long as the sump is under the tank the Dart pumps are Ideal on larger tanks. If your going from a basement to a First floor display then You are correct this pump would not be sufficient. The good thing about the Darts is you can use a ball valve and reduce the flow as much as you want and it wont effect the pumps performance. It also reduces that Wattage from what I have read. Im going to be doing some testing on mine to confirm that.

I had read in other posts that the design of the Reeflo pump doesn't work well pushing water in a pressure system and causes the pump to wear much faster than a normal pump. I thought the design was to speed up flow on a non-pressurized system.

As for the wattage, that trick may only work when there is no negative pressure on the pump.

[Schwaggs]

Originally Posted by Cameron

As for the wattage, that trick may only work when there is no negative pressure on the pump.

Cam, you lost me on this one... how do you restrict flow without causing back pressure?

[Cameron]

Some Reeflo pumps were designed for a flow neutral environment (the Dart is an example) which simply means they are built to work with the flow or with no flow and they speed up what is there. Reverse flow (i.e. gravity) or high head pressures work against the design of the pump. Now Reeflo pumps are little tanks so I doubt it is a problem under 8-10' of head pressure and given their industrial build I doubt anyone would notice any longevity problems, but they aren't designed to push water up hill. Sequence does sell other Reeflo pumps designed to work in high head setups though.

Anyway, restricting the flow of the pump may only work if it doesn't have to overcome gravity to do it simply meaning that putting a ball valve on a flow nuetral horizontal setup (closed loop) could cause the motor to slow down and less wattage to be pushed. Pushing water uphill may completely negate that effect... not sure though.

This is all sketchy on my part because I haven't really looked at the design of the pump and I am just going on other threads I have read so double check me on everything.

[purpleGORILLA]

Yeah, you can't beat a Dart Reeflo. I recently switch out my Gen X Pcx-40 to the Reeflo, now the only thing I hear are the overflows...