Pump advise

[jokermgp]

I'm in the process of putting up a 135 gallon FOWLR tank. The tank is RR so the pumbling will go underneath it. I'm putting in a CPR aquafge pro/skimmer and a wet/drive filter. The CPR aquafge pro needs to have no more then 400 gph running though it. I'm thinking that a Mag Drive 500 would work for the CPR aquafge pro and a Mag Drive 1200 or 1800 work work for the wet/drive filter.

I'd like a lot of water movement in the tank. Do those pump sizes seem sufficent. I like the Mag Drive product line but I'm also open to suggestion in terms of water pump brands.

At this point I'm not planning on plumming the CPR aquafge pro and wet/drive filters together. Water flow would go to and return from each seperatly. Is that the best way to go or should plan on having them in line?

Can I get some love on this question?

Cheers...Michael

[kwjones]

Originally Posted by jokermgp

I'd like a lot of water movement in the tank. Do those pump sizes seem sufficent. I like the Mag Drive product line but I'm also open to suggestion in terms of water pump brands.

Can I get some love on this question?

Cheers...Michael

Probably the easiest way to accomplish lots of flow in the display tank would be to build a closed loop system. Personally I like the external system designed by Melev over at Reef Central. It's simple and effective and you can configure it any way you want to meet your needs. Here's the link to his website... http://www.melevsreef.com/closedloop.html.

Another option would be to have holes drilled in the tank for a closed loop.

I think the minimum recommended turnover rate for a display tank is 10x's the volume of the tank, so you're looking at 1350 gph minimum. So you may want to look at pumps that after head pressure and friction loss will produce around 1500 gph or more. Again, the 1350 gph minimum applies to what you want to keep in the tank.

Picking the brand/style of pump is up to you. Some people like submersible pumps, like the Mag drives, because they can also be plumed inline, but have been reported to contribute to additional heat in the tank. Some people prefer inline pumps over submersible, because they can be quieter and air cooled wich means less heat gets transferred to the tank.

What you want to keep in the tank will help you decide how much water movement, and what type. There are many different ways to move water. Some use SQWDs, spraybars, wave timers and a bunch of other things I can't remember the name of because I don't have them...something like "Ocean Motion" devices?

Another option to think about, if you want massive amounts of water movement with gentle flow, would be eductors or Tunze power streams.

HTH,

Kevin

[jokermgp]

Thanks for the feed back. The tank is drilled with two overflow corner weirs.

A 400 and a 1200 should be enough for 10x turn over, but for the 20 or so extra bucks I'll prolly get a 1800. I can always add a valve that can be closed down to the plumbing it I think that the output is to much, or I can split it.

I'll read over the material in the link you sent me. I hadn't thought about the heat factor on the pumps, but since I'll be running florencent bulbs I should be able to keep the water tempature at a safe level, particularly if I'm carefull with my heaters.


Cheers...Michael

[kwjones]

Yeah, the submersible pumps like the Mag drives are water cooled. I've heard some reported problems with noise, heat, leaks, failures, but have not experienced any myself.

2 corner overflows. Do you know what they're rated for, as far as GPH?

I look at it this way...If each overflow is rated for 600 gph, then I need a pump that after head loss and friction, will pump close to 600 gph from the sump to the main tank. If I want more flow than that in the main taink, I need a closed loop or more powerheads. I don't think sumps need to have huge amounts of flow, but that's just a personal preference.

Are you thinking of using the 1800 for a closed loop pump? Splitting it would be a good idea, but since it's not a pressure rated pump, puting a valve on it to restrict flow might not be such a good idea. Restricting non-pressure rated pumps can shorten it's lifespan.

For Mag drives, a lot of us recomend using larger plumbing than what the pump is threaded for. I think the Mag 18 is 3/4" threaded, so I would recommend puting 1 1/4" or 1 1/2" plumbing on it. It reduces the amount of stress on the pump, think more flow with less restriction.