Submersible Pump

[MSUJenn]

I'm in the market for a submersible pump for my 180. The only ones I could really find were Eheim's and the Mag Drive Pumps. I don't think an Eheim would be enough as the highest one I could find looks like it only puts out about 900gph. The pump on my 29g is rated at 840gph not counting head loss. I haven't done the headloss calculator yet, but I'm leaning toward a mag drive pump. Probably the 1800 gph one. Are these good pumps, or does anyone have any better suggestions?

[slandis3]

I like the older magdrive pumps. The newer ones im not impressed with. I have an old mag 5 thats atleast 6 years old that i have never had a problem with. I bought a mag 18 and i had to replace the impeller after 6 months.Is there anyway you can drill your sump and run an externall pump?

[MSUJenn]

Hmm, I might be able to drill the sump, but it's glass, so I'm not sure. It says the bottom is tempered. And I've got my plumbing half way done, so I don't really want to redo it. Are there any other submersible pumps that are decent?

[lightningfront]

I use a ViaAqua 4900 on my 125 freshwater and I'm going to be using the same VA4900 on my 46 reef tank as well. I have never had any problems from it. The 4900 is 1321GPH without head loss. They make a larger one the VA8000 is 2200GPH.

[Viggen]

If you want internal I would do a eheim, possibly 2 if you need more flow.  They are under-rated & take head loss quite well but definantly not as powerfull as a mag18.

That being said I tried a mag7 on skimmer & I couldn't take how loud it was.  I use a velocity t4 external pump which is silent..... I use a mag24 (or is it a mag18) on my ponds, & I can hear it 10-15 feet away thus for me I would never put one in my house.  

I would drill the tank (I think Joel can do it if you do not want to mess with it yourself) & get a nice quiet external pump.  I really like the velocity line, they are silent!!!! but not the most powerfull at 1200 ish gph.  If you want more then that (& more then a mag18) I would do a sequence snapper which I beleive does 2400-2800 gph & are suppose to be VERY quiet!

[Amstar]

humm i know someone who has a reeflo snapper for sale.. brand new cheap also   

[MechanicalEngineer]

I had a Mag 5 which I hated since it started having problems right after the warranty expired.  For the money, I couldn't beat a Mag 12 with a 3 year warranty (the lower sizes only have a 1 year warranty.)  Most of the people I talked to in forums stated that the 3 year warranty pumps are good quality...but the lower warranty pumps just kinda work for a year.  My Mag 12 isn't obnoxiously loud...and it's in our living room.  It comes with a vibration-damping foam piece which is supposed to help with the noise (I forgot about it and didn't use it.)

Since the pump will be in your fish room...who cares if the pump is loud?  You won't hear it from the other room.  Mag's are inexpensive...and if you get the longer warrantied one, if something goes wrong...have a new one shipped out.  Just my $0.02.  I won't argue that the Eheim's aren't awesome...I just couldn't justify the cost/performance value.

[Amstar]

I agree.. if the pump is going to be in your fish room noise really isnt an issue and mag-drives are not that loud anyway.

[JoeAyers]

Drill it and go with a snapper. You'll be happier in the long run I think.  I'm fairly sure I have the bit for a 2" schd 80 bulkhead and could help you drill it. It's not really that hard and you'll know how to do it if you want to drill anything else.

Joe

[Amstar]

With a snapper it also runs at a very low wattage.. something like 98 watts.  You can even dial the snapper back (restrict the return) which will cause it to run at an even lower wattage.

[Joel]

I like the mag drives and ehiems pumps both (I like ehiem better) but I don't think either are the best idea. I have a mag - 24 on the acrylic tank by the front counter and it doesn't move as much water as I wish it did, that tank only holds about 150 gallons. With submersibles, you most likely need to run two pumps to get the flow rates you need.

I agree that an external pump is the better way to go. If your sump is not hard plumed to the tank yet and it can be slid out from under your tank, it would not be that difficult to drill it for an external pump. If you want to route, I'm happy to help you if needed.

LMK,

Joel

[MSUJenn]

I'm stumped, but I think I want to do this the right way. Joel, do you have everything to drill it? Could I just drop it off at your store sometime? I really have no desire to learn how to drill it myself, maybe if it was acrylic. Also, how can I be sure that it isn't tempered?

[cloran]

this might help...http://www.alysta.com/books/fishtank.htm
worst case contact the maker and ask them or find their website

[jeremyt]

i have had good performance from rio hyper flow. They are energy efficient and do not produce much heat at all.
Their titanium impeller shaft, ceramic bearings and high-impact plastic make them reliable, long-lasting pumps.
Rio HF pumps are some of the strongest pumps available in such a small package.
Have a 6 ft. power cord

but only 180 day warranty, i have used mine much longer than that no problems

[MSUJenn]

I actually have a rio hf14 on my 29 gal, but I don't think I want one for my 180. It's all I could find locally at the time when I was setting up that tank, and I was too impatient to wait for shipping.

I'm trying to get Matt on board with an external pump. He's an engineer at A.O. Smith, so you'd think he'd want me to use a pump with one of their motors, but... he's giving me a hard time for changing my mind at the last minute.

Also, when I looked up the snapper pump, it said it was for tanks up to 180 gal. Are there other snappers rated for bigger tanks? I'm planning on throwing a couple of tunzes' in the main tank for circulation, so as long as it is enough to circulate a decent amount through my sump, I guess it doesn't matter?

[Amstar]

by what I have read so far on the snapper for the bigger tank (the 150 for me the 180 for you) it will not create alot of flow due to the size of the tanks, plumbing etc.  however I have also read that you do not want to much flow through your sump.  I have also read and been told that if I am going to create "flow"/water movement with various powerheads then the snapper will be just fine because the water movement is created by the powerheads.

[JoeAyers]

What kind of turnover are you looking for through your sump?  Once you decide look at the flow curves for the pumps. If the snapper is too small move up to the Dart.

I usually shoot for 5Xs which would be ~900GPH for a 180. A snapper will push that and then some through. I use a snapper on my 200 and have it dialed back. I plan to use the extra pressure to feed my CA Reactor and Media Rectors as soon as I get off my lazy behind and get them plumbed in.

[rmstevensiii]

Agree on Joe on this one... 

I would not think that you'd want your main circulation to be driven entirely by your overflow and return pump. 

A.)  It would need to be a high-flow pump, which from an AC consumption perspective, would be pretty inefficient, compared to PH's. 

B.) Using a pump with an extremely high flow rate thru your sump will reduce the nutrient export capability for any macros/mangroves that you place there. 

C.) A high-flow internal pump, will add some heat to your system, which you probably will not want or need.

If you want to bump up the flow in the main tank, without adding PH's in the display, you could always incorporate a closed loop.  With a closed loop, I would think that you would be able to design a system that met your flow needs very efficiently (multiple drains, multiple returns, and a SCWD, SeaSquirt, or Oceans Motion unit).

Just my .02,

Mitch

[MSUJenn]

Thanks for the replies everyone. Unfortunately, I think I'm going to go with a submersible pump (and probably kick myself later), due to the fact that Matt is being a brat and doesn't want me changing the plumbing again. The drains and returns are already hard-plumbed in, and the return lines would have to be moved for an external pump. He already had to redo the baffles once for me. The sump and tank will be in my unheated basement laundry room, so heat from a pump isn't really an issue. I'm also going to put a couple of tunze streams in the main tank for circulation. Hopefully it will be ok for a FOWLR.

[Secondgen]

Maybe take a look at the Quiet One pumps by Pentair Aquatics Jenn. I have one in my sump, and they are both reliable, and quiet running. They are also energy efficient.

[rmstevensiii]

I can 2nd the Quiet One.  I've run the 4000 as my return pump since 3/07 and I've had no probs with it whatsoever.  The tank is in our living room, and you cannot hear the pump at all.  It's rated for 1017 gph @ 0' and only draws 50 watts per the spec sheet.

My .02...

Disclaimer:  Items in post are based on my personal experience.  Your mileage may vary.