garden hoses

[Randy]

Im tired of lugging water buckets for water changes. I want to pump water into the tank through a regular garden hose with a waterbed pump. does anyone think this will be a problem? Any comments or suggestions welcom. My back is getting bad and I can carry or pour buckets of water much longer.

[Doug1]

Couple problems I can think of right freom the start. I'm not sure if a waterbed pump would be salt safe. Assuming you are going to use a submersible pump in your salt water you're gonna pump into the tank, you will need to use a pump you can thread a pipe riser into then using a threaded nipple put a barb fitting on that. Use a barb the size of the hose you use i.e. 3/4 hose. Cut the end off and slip it on the barb and clamp it in place. I wouldn't use hose fitting adaptors cause thy are metal,usually brass and its the kiss of death for a reef.
Speaking of hoses, don't use a cheap garden hose, you need to get a drinking water safe RV hose, the cheap ones aren't certified for potable water, I wouldn't risk it.
How far and how high do you have to pump the water, what size tank are you working with and what amount of water change at a time did you have in mind. Need to know to suggest a pump that will work

[Randy]

Doug,
Thank you for your reply. I have several tanks that I need to work with. I have a new 125 gal tank I want to use for a reef tank. The waterbed pump instructions said it would be ok for "semi-corrosive" fluids but I did not think about the effect on the tank. The waterbed pump has metal inside the impeller area. I was going to cut the metal ends off the garden hose and use plastic replacement ends. What is the difference between a garden hose and a potable water hose? (I drink from my garden hose when Im working in the yard) I was going to use a "in line" type pump not a submersible. I store water in 55 gal water storage barrels and would have to pump it about 40 feet. I go to a relatives house to help them with their tank and want to pump ro/di water into a barrel in my trailer then into their house. I thought about using a Mag-Drive, a Little Giant, or a Hydrothruster pump. But the waterbed pump I found is 12v battery operated and I thought it would work well in the trailer. I looked at RV type 12v pumps but they are a lot more money than the waterbed pump. Any suggestions? My back is killing me and I do NOT want to give up my hobby. Thank you.

[bill-e]

I've seen posts from people using 12v bilge pumps during power outages. As for the garden hose, yes, I would use plastic instead of the metal (brass) ends and I personally wouldnt worry about the potability rating as that most likely has to do with the outgassing of the pvc/plastic being a carcinogen.

[wuelfman]

i use a hose for water changes
i mix in a 55 plastic drum in the garage
drains the water outside
and when its time to fill the tank i use a rio 2100 to fill the tank
i have cut both ends of and paid about $15.00 for 50 feet (yes it is a good hose)
it works great and saves my back

[ 02-25-2001: Message edited by: wuelfman ]

[Doug1]

Thats a lot of tankage to risk for a few bucks

[Randy]

Thank you all for all the input. Doug, I dont want to risk my tank for a few bucks, that why I asked for advise. Did you have any suggestions on a pump, possibly a battery powered pump or any other suggestions on getting me out of carrying water buckets. I like to change about 2o% of the water in all my tanks a month. the farthest tank is about 40 feet from the barrels and about 6 ft higher than the barrels. I have a 60gal freshwater community tank, 20 gal mini reef, 6gal micro reef, and plans for a koi pond. Another question I have is how long before I change the water is it recommended to mix in the salt. I have been storing the ro/di water in the barrels and mixing the night before. I wonder if its a problem to mix then store for 1 to 2 months as the water gets used up.
Again thanks for all your help everyone.
Randy.

[tdwyatt]

Use a SEN 900. Without the hose on the outlet (this pump comes with both submersible fittings and in line fittings), it can be used to mix your seawater mix, with the hose on, it will be quite adequate to move the water up a 6 foot head to do the water changes. Just drop the pump into your barrel, plug it into a protected circuit (hopefully a fused GFIC 15 amp switchable power strip/outlet), put the other end into the tank and turn it on (A helper would prolly be best). A better long term solution would be to valve your plumbing with an outlet under the tank on the positive pressure side of your return pump, and permanently attach it to the plumbing, but use a double valve safety system (so you don't accidently drain the tank). I use this to drain the water change out of the display tank in the front of the house. The old seawater goes to an evaporation pool, and I can pump the new water out of the mix barrel and into the sump. Easy water changes, I can do a 20 gal change in about 5 minutes (but then I start on the other maintenance stuff...

Hope this helps, this pump is available MO for about $80 US and uses 110v AC power

[dark horge]

Hi,

That you ask for a battery-powered pump suggests that there is no power source where you're hauling water from.

Why not gravity-siphon the water to another container where there IS available AC power (assuming there's a 'downhill' to be exploited)? From there you can powerhead the water up to wherever your tank is. Head ratings for powerheads are de rigeur, so you can figure out the appropriate pump from the height difference and pipe cross-section area.

Regarding hoses. Flexible PVC hoses, when new (or when very old), supposedly impart phenol-like to water passing through them, so if the hose isn't pre-aged, you could wind up irritating larger in-tank animals (and I won't even guess what it does to smaller bugs). Food grade hoses are rated as such over long term use: when brand new, they are not necessarily free of contaminants --just sniff the hose and you'll know.

In the end, if the new water introduced is small in comparison to extant tank volume, it shouldn't be an issue.

If I have missed the point completely, I apologize

hth
horge

[ 02-26-2001: Message edited by: dark horge ]

[Doug1]

I agree with TD on the Sen pump, I used mine to mix SW in a 29 and now trash cans. Not only will it mix it up quickly(please mix it 24 hrs before using) but the violence of the mixing warms it up quite nicely. Also it stands up to the rigors of having cupfuls of saltmix poured in the water, and definatly has enough oomph to move the water the distances your talkin about. If you use 2 55g drums for FW and SW it would be easy to rinse in between, just remember which ones going where As far as the hose goes, if you got an old garden hose thats had a lot of water through it you'd prolly be OK, since its for short periods of time. The potable water safe hose seems like a small investment esp if you've spent a ton on RO//DI and everything else to make the water safe for a reef tank. Its your call on that one

[bill-e]

Speaking of food grade, I wonder if food grade hoses, like many food grade plastic containers, are treated with that anti-fungal stuff. And I futher wonder how you would find out. Do the containers have some sort of labeling? I worry about the anti fungal and bacterial stuff the most...though my worry may be misplaced.

[gpohly]

Randy,

If 110v power is an issue, you can use a power inverter (converts 12V battery to 110V AC.) This opens all kinds of options for pumps, and an inverter + 110V pump is probably a lot cheaper than an equivalent sized 12V DC pump. Size the inverter according to your pump you use; a 300W inverter at Costco is ~$35. They are also available at Radio Shack (though much higher cost), most auto, boat, and RV supply stores, and MO like JC Whitney.

I used a CostCo inverter to build an automated battery back-up system for a circulation and air pump - power outages are a real threat to the southwest given our politically-created "power crisis." The inverter works great.

Glenn

[Randy]

Thank you everyone for the advise. This gives me a lot to think about. Doug, I think I will go with the RV potable water hose. I also like the power inverter idea. (I shoulda thought of that) Thanks again Randy.