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Pump?

884 Views 5 Replies 5 Participants Last post by  Manolito, 
y84k
So I am trying to figure out what would be the best pump for my sump to return water back to the tank. Does anyone have any suggestions to a specific brand and or experiences. Also it would be nice to know which ones are quiet as this tank is going to be in my living room... The tank is a 92 gallon corner bow front. Also what size pump do I need exactly? I know you want to turn the water over 5 times per hour so that roughly 450 GPH then + tubing going back to the tank so I was thinking like a 500 - 600-ish GPH pump??
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Karlos5000
Sounds reasonable. Is the flow from the return pump going directly up to the tank? Or is it going to a filter (like the rainbow lifegard system)? If its going directly up, a Quiet one 4000HH would work great for you. If not your return flow will be a bit diminished and you may want a stronger return pump. The Quiet One pumps have graphs to help you predict the GPH given a certain head pressure.

http://www.pentairaquatics.com/products/detail/quiet_one_pumps.html
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mrkookm
y84k said:
So I am trying to figure out what would be the best pump for my sump to return water back to the tank. Does anyone have any suggestions to a specific brand and or experiences. Also it would be nice to know which ones are quiet as this tank is going to be in my living room... The tank is a 92 gallon corner bow front. Also what size pump do I need exactly? I know you want to turn the water over 5 times per hour so that roughly 450 GPH then + tubing going back to the tank so I was thinking like a 500 - 600-ish GPH pump??
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Well you have 2 choices external or submersible with the latter being the quietest.

If you go the submersible route the Danner Mag pumps are great as well as very reliable. In my experience I have had excellent service and prompt turn around time when parts needed to be replaced. I would suggest the model Mag 7 minimum for your needs as they loose ther flow quite easily when equipment is added inline and higher the return from ground level. The other downside is the additional heat added to the water. There are other submersible choices out there and I'm sure someone will chime in with their experience.

I own and use an external pump on my 90g tank and my experience is with Iwakis and Panworlds so these are the pumps I will suggest. You have other external choices as well but I will let someone else chime in with their experience. An Iwaki MD30RLT or MD40RLT or a Panworld 50PX or the 100PX should provide more than enough flow for your setup. Regarding quietness I gotta give it to the Panworlds as they are definitely quieter than an Iwaki and my personal pick of the 2, I highly recommend them.

good luck!
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B
Submersible pumps are --sometimes-- quieter than a external. I ran a Mag-drive 7 on a sump direct to the tank for a while, and replaced it with a Velocity t1 when I added some lifeguard modules to it. I can not tell that the pump is running at all other than touching it. The Velocity pumps run a little hot, most of the reef guys talk about the heat they add, but they usually run multiple (and large) pumps and mega lights. My heaters still cycle.

I started with a QuiteOne pump, I do not remember the model (1200?). It was a toy compared to the Mag 7, while the Mag7 was a decent but nothing compared to the T1. If you do not need a pressure pump, the T2 is a higher flow but not as much pressure.

The problems with a external is that they take more plumbing than the submersible, but once they are in installed I like them much better.
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y84k
thank you everyone for the replies! this is helping me quite a bit.
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Manolito
Most submersible pump will produce heat and heat up your water. The impeller tends to wear out overtime. If you want to go that route, just make sure you can find parts down the road.

I truly like Iwaki external pumps. I have been running this pump for 12 years straight - 24/7 - non stop.
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