Suggestions?

[bprinehart]

Well since I got such good feedback and suggestions on the lighting questions, I think I will throw this one out there as well. As stated numerous times, I'm getting ready to upgrade my tank to a 75 gallon. I'm going to drill my own overflows, going with the 1500gph kit from glass-holes.com, however, I'd also like to do a closed loop to provide random flow around my "SPS Island" , and thereby influencing random flow throughout the tank.

 

I'd like to know what suggestions or practical experience people have with manufacturers and their models. I was looking at using either an Iwaki, or maybe a Reeflo. From the closed loop I'm looking for somewhere around 1000-1200gph, when combined with the overflow I'd like somwhere around 30-35x turnover.

 

Noise would be my primary consideration, as this will be in the main living area of the house. A close second is heat transfer.

 

Thanks in advance!

 

-Brian

[davelin315]

Hey Brian, you can run pretty much any pump on a closed loop. I have a very quite Barracuda and a not so quiet Barracuda as well. I also have a Dolphin Ampmaster, but that's not on a closed loop (although it is much quieter).

 

One consideration, regardless of how much you want going through there, is how big do you want to drill the holes in your tank? This will influence what type of pump you go with. For instance, I believe that the Sequence Reeflo pumps are at 1.5" minimum feed for the Barracuda (which is about 4x the flow you want) and the Dart and ____ (can't remember what the smaller pump is) are at 2" minimum feed. The Dolphin pumps are also 1.5" minimum. Other pumps like Eheims are smaller than that. The Iwaki are generally 1" if I am thinking correctly. For all of these pumps, I would suggest splitting the inside of the bulkhead into two inlets to reduce the suction.

 

There are also Pan World pumps which can be modified (Dan had a thread on how he did this awhile back - search for dandy7200 and look for pump mod I think). Others use submersible pumps like mag drives. There are a ton of choices available to you. Good luck with your closed loop!

[jason the filter freak]

throttle back a sequence pump

[bprinehart]

Thanks for the info Dave, and for the input Jason. On my current setup I have a Mag 4 for my return, and I know how much heat that thing puts into the water. It does run rather quiet though. I'm not too concerned with drilling the holes, I suppose it is what it is. I'm just mulling over different options in my mind, I really don't want to end up with Power Heads in this tank. I keep running into a catch 22 situation though, I'd like to keep the flow through the sump at a reasonable level to help with microbubbles, but a slower flow through the sump dictates an additional source of circulation, decisions, decisions.

 

I like the idea of an external pump, but I'm always a little worried about a leak. I'll keep doing some reading and perhaps in a few years, I'll have made a decison.

 

Hey Brian, you can run pretty much any pump on a closed loop. I have a very quite Barracuda and a not so quiet Barracuda as well. I also have a Dolphin Ampmaster, but that's not on a closed loop (although it is much quieter).

 

One consideration, regardless of how much you want going through there, is how big do you want to drill the holes in your tank? This will influence what type of pump you go with. For instance, I believe that the Sequence Reeflo pumps are at 1.5" minimum feed for the Barracuda (which is about 4x the flow you want) and the Dart and ____ (can't remember what the smaller pump is) are at 2" minimum feed. The Dolphin pumps are also 1.5" minimum. Other pumps like Eheims are smaller than that. The Iwaki are generally 1" if I am thinking correctly. For all of these pumps, I would suggest splitting the inside of the bulkhead into two inlets to reduce the suction.

 

There are also Pan World pumps which can be modified (Dan had a thread on how he did this awhile back - search for dandy7200 and look for pump mod I think). Others use submersible pumps like mag drives. There are a ton of choices available to you. Good luck with your closed loop!

[rioreef]

Any chance of putting the pump on the level below the tank? Just get one large enough to handle the head pressure. With my closed loop I did not drill the tank. Just used PVC to go up and over the side of the tank. No siphon to worry about because once you get it going there is no air in the loop.

 

I drilled my subfloor from below and then cut the carpet from above. Then pushed the pipe through. Then I added unions so I could dismantle if I had to. Down at the pump I have full unions that I can shut off there and drain if necessary. Consider putting a UV sterlizer in this loop also, I did.

[jason the filter freak]

If you want to put the pump down a floor I have the perfect pump for you