overflow question

[Pazil]

I agree what what the others have said in regards to the amount of flow through the sump being important..... However if the sump is designed properly for a higher flow you will not get micro bubbles and the a good skimmer should still work effectively. I run a Dart return on full throttle... which means I am putting approx. 3000 gph @ 4' of head loss(20x turn over)through my sump and have no micro bubbles and have to empty my skimmer cup every 2 days. I run no powerheads and only have the return pump and a Tunze nano wavemaker for internal flow. There are no dead spots in the tank and no settlement of debris.

Cheers
Lawrence

[sphelps]

for reference a Dart is 1/8 HP and reeflow pumps are essentially hot tub pumps however they have different seals so they can be used for saltwater. In addition they are quiet, have you ever been in a hot tub with the pump going?

Just a friendly FYI, that pump will cause you problems, not sure it was worth the money you saved.

[Canuckgod420]

Its not a hottub pump its for an indoor jacuzzi tub, I've heard the one in action in our showroom, not loud at all, and I am going to have to dial back the flow with a ball valve anyways.

So even if i push 600gph into both the frag tank and my main display I will still be getting 1200gph into my sump. So for that I guess I will need a series of baffles in my sump.
Time for a bigger sump i guess.

Its kinda funny how this thread turned into a discussion about a pump, I was wondering if the herbie would give me more flow than the durso I have now. I have 2 holes in my tank bottom 1 for the herbie the other for the emergency overflow.

[sphelps]

What's funnier is you're using 250W+ to push 1200gph. A snapper will do double that at zero head at a fraction of the power consumption. 250W is over $225 a year and close to 1000 kgs of CO2 emissions.

But for what it's worth, yes a Herbie style overflow will typically allow for more flow.

[Canuckgod420]

well its not 250+watts for 1200 gph
Even though the snapper runs at less wattage at zero head? who runs a return pump with no head pressure...that was originally the pump I was going to buy, but after working out the head pressure with rise and elbows on the plumbing I was going to barely break 1200gph, so at least this pump will give me options for expanding to other equipment.

wattage maxed on the pump is 275, when I dial that back it will reduce the wattage, just like the reeflo series.
On top of that once I run this I can remove tho other pumps I spoke of....mag drive 950=93 watts, quiet one 4000HH=120 watts, guiet one 4000=95 watts.

So really not much difference from the wattage being used now, but thanks for the update on my CO2 emmisions, which of course you tank runs completely green right? Of course not.
Again a little off topic, but thanks for the herbie amswer.

[sphelps]

Although the pump will use less power when turned back it only goes so far, for example the snapper can only be turned down to 75W and your pump could be around the 200W range for a minimum. Second your pump efficiency is best around the mid-range where flow curve intersects the power curve. For example look at the snapper flow chart:



The most efficient way to run this pump is at around 8 feet of head pushing around 1400GPH at about 100W. I'm just guessing here but that seems to be perfect for you which is why I recommended it. I would also bet the power you save in one year will pay the difference between your pump and this pump and after two years almost pay for itself. If the snapper is too small the same company actually makes another pump called the Dart which has slightly more power so not sure why that wouldn't have been the next logical choice.

In the end just trying to give you some useful information and advice as well as make sure others don't make the same mistake. Yes a little off topic but I think if someone sees an obvious problem it's good to point it out rather than ignore it. Justify it all you want but there are many good reasons why people don't use actual pool, jacuzzi, or hut tub pumps in this hobby. A lot of times these types of pumps are not meant for continuous use and they don't have the correct seals.

It's that kind of attitude which results in North Americans using 11 times the necessary carbon footprint. Yes not many aquariums are considered green but no point wasting power, two wrongs don't make a right. All my pumps are sized correctly and I've done essentially everything I can to reduce the power consumption of my aquarium. I also car pool which actually offsets the carbon footprint of my aquarium I also thought you might find that fact interesting if saving money didn't, not trying to make anyone join Greenpeace or anything.

[Sebae again]

Good helpful info Sphelps.

[Canuckgod420]

Dont get me wrong, I appreciate your input, but like I said I would be removing 3 other pumps with a larger watt draw than this pump. I have seriously looked at all the reeflo pumps, and there are a couple that seemed right for the job. Although the price seems to climb steeply with each larger pump. I work at a plumbing wholesaler so the cost on this pump was next to nothing. This pump was a smoking deal. By the way if anyone needs a booster pump for their RO unit I can get the same unit that sells for $218.00(before tax) at most retailers for approx. 85 bucks. Sorry off topic....lol

Now as far as this attitude thing you speak of....I dont really appreciate that, I value our planet as much as the next treehugger, I live 5 kms from work, so I ride my bike when its nice, carpool when I can, and drive when nothing else is available. I drive a car with an efficient engine, I spend maybe 80 bucks a month on fuel, how many other people can say that. I bet that reduces my carbon footprint. To further help lower my hydro bill I was actually thinking of ditching my 500W metal halide system for a t5 system, and I've eliminated my chiller.

I know that many of you people have thousands of more posts than I do but that doesnt make me a rookie reef keeper(4 years). I do have a grasp on this hobby(I hope) and I do a lot of research before I take the plunge into something.