watson_barrett October 17, 2011 Share October 17, 2011 Just got a new tank and now i'm wondering what size pump should i get (135g tank), i'm guessing around 1300 but that is complete ballpark guess. Figured i ran a mag 9 on my old 92g back in the day so shouldn't take to terribly much more??? Tank dimentions are around 60x30x16 if that matters It has a build in overflow inside the tank if that matters, single tube drain and i think it is 1.5" but i'm not possitive, i'll have to check tomorrow. Also looking for a sump, not particulary found of the one it came with...LMK if you got something laying around that might work/interest me. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vadim October 17, 2011 Share October 17, 2011 i always make sure that i come very close to the water turning over 10 times. so on a 135g you'd like probably 1400 but a little less would be fine, it also depends how long your lines run from the pump to the head. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watson_barrett October 17, 2011 Author Share October 17, 2011 Is the 10x with head loss or without??? It will be about 6' pump to output.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amay121 October 17, 2011 Share October 17, 2011 I ran a 1260 on a 150 (72x24x20) and that wasn't an issue. I'd say use a 1260 or if you wanted a little more, go with the 1262, but for sure, start off with your mag9 and if it isn't enough, then up it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad October 17, 2011 Share October 17, 2011 ^agree. Your mag 9.5 will be fine. Pumping water from your sump to your tank is costly from an energy standpoint. Keeping this on the lower end (enough to provide a reasonable turnover for your skimmer and other filtration) is the way to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 October 17, 2011 Share October 17, 2011 You need a pump that is amazingly oversized so that your tank turns over about 50x per hour. I love to have water movement and the more the better for me. As long as it's not turbulent then it's good! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Integral9 October 17, 2011 Share October 17, 2011 ZOMG, another 135! Woot! I litterally have not seen or heard of another 135 since I bought my tank, 2 years ago. I have an Iwaki WMD-55 (1080gph) returning water and split over 4 returns on my 135. I also have 2 1400 gph (Koralia Evolution) powerheads in the tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coral Hind October 17, 2011 Share October 17, 2011 Watson, I think the 9.5 or similar sized pump would be fine. I have a pretty much brand new blueline 55 in the shed that might work. Let me know if you want it and I will have it delivered to your office. You need a pump that is amazingly oversized so that your tank turns over about 50x per hour. I love to have water movement and the more the better for me. As long as it's not turbulent then it's good! What pump would you use to get that 6,750gph rating? Good luck getting that down his 1.5" drain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan S October 17, 2011 Share October 17, 2011 Just got a new tank and now i'm wondering what size pump should i get (135g tank), i'm guessing around 1300 but that is complete ballpark guess. Figured i ran a mag 9 on my old 92g back in the day so shouldn't take to terribly much more??? Tank dimentions are around 60x30x16 if that matters Thanks! I used to have an external pump on my 135g tank. It was a Pan World 50PX-X (1170gph). It worked well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 October 18, 2011 Share October 18, 2011 Watson, I think the 9.5 or similar sized pump would be fine. I have a pretty much brand new blueline 55 in the shed that might work. Let me know if you want it and I will have it delivered to your office. What pump would you use to get that 6,750gph rating? Good luck getting that down his 1.5" drain. Just exaggerating to make a point (wow, second exaggeration post I've made that was taken seriously in 2 days, gotta curb my attempts at humor). I like a ton of flow and in my mind, the more the better as long as you're not killing things with turbulent water. I use 3 barracudas (although one is currently offline since I need to fix its seal) on my 300 - 2 as closed loops, one as a return. I think that when you consider the max rating, my tank turns over about 40x per hour. I like tons of flow and feel that it can be accomplished through multiple sources. The return I think should be as big as possible. A 1.5" drain could accommodate a lot of flow, around 2100 gph, so I'd go with a fairly large pump as you'll certainly lose some flow due to head pressure. Again, I'd go with larger rather than smaller as that also allows for you to use the flow to power other things as well. So, to answer your question, I wouldn't get a pump that big but would certainly add some other flow to the tank in addition to a return. I've never been a proponent of smaller return pumps instead feeling that the more flow you get through your sumps the more exposure you have to whatever chemical and mechanical filtration you run and the more you get out of your display. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami October 18, 2011 Share October 18, 2011 I'm of the opinion that your Mag 9.5 is just fine, though you may want to consider power heads or a closed loop for more flow in the tank itself. At 6' of head pressure, the 9.5 should deliver ~700 gph, which is a 5x turnover through the sump and, depending on the skimmer that you use, probably more than sufficient. Moving more water through the system than your filtration can handle is on the declining side of the cost-benefit curve. That is, it's beginning to cost you more than it's probably worth. (Closed loops, by the way, run more efficiently than the same pump used as a return pump as the head pressure is offset by the pressure on the intake side of the pump. Also, the suction on the intake side of the pump effectively increases the capacity of the plumbing on that side by providing a larger pressure gradient from end to end. That's why you can move more through it than you could in a gravity-flow situation. And, closed loop flow is not included in the sump turnover figure, either.) If you want to go to a different pump, I'd add efficiency to the list of things that you should consider. For example, maintaining about the same flow, an Eheim 1260 (according the the manufacturer) consumes ~80W to deliver 700 gph at about 6-feet (vice 93W for the Mag 9.5), yielding a savings of about $15 per year in pump operating costs. A CoralVue WaterBlaster, according to the manufacturer, should move about 800 gph at 6-feet for 60W, a savings of closer to $40 per year. (Caution: Don't believe their efficiency numbers. Something doesn't add up. Still, the pumps are, from the flow/pressure graphs, efficient.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watson_barrett October 18, 2011 Author Share October 18, 2011 wow guys, what a response, thanks! I think i will start with the mag 9.5 just to see what kind of flow it generates and then adjust accordingly. Dave i'll certainly hit you up shortly if the 9.5 isn't getting the job done for me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan S October 18, 2011 Share October 18, 2011 wow guys, what a response, thanks! I think i will start with the mag 9.5 just to see what kind of flow it generates and then adjust accordingly. Dave i'll certainly hit you up shortly if the 9.5 isn't getting the job done for me... I don't know if other WAMAS members have had this problem, but I used to have a Mag 12, and anytime the power went out, it wouldn't restart. I'd have to fiddle with it for a while to get it going again. I believe it's a common problem for Mag pumps. I'm not sure what the alternative is for a pump with similar wattage and gph though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coral Hind October 18, 2011 Share October 18, 2011 I have had a few 9.5's over the years and I have never had any issues like that. Did you ever find or hear of a cause for the problem? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan S October 18, 2011 Share October 18, 2011 I have had a few 9.5's over the years and I have never had any issues like that. Did you ever find or hear of a cause for the problem? I don't know. I thought it was the mesh mod on mine that may have caused it. I've seen others say it happens due to old age or maybe being dirty. When the Mag ran, I loved it, it just never restarted after power failures (or when I needed to turn it off to do a water change for example). So personally, I'd be hesistant to buy another. I was leaning towards an Eheim on the 40g breeder I didn't setup, I didn't see that as a common problem for them. After my Mag 12, I switched to the Pan World and never had that problem with it. I know many folks use Mags and love them, so maybe the restarting issue was user fault or a rare problem, just wanted to share my experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad October 18, 2011 Share October 18, 2011 ^me too. I rarely have had issued with them (sometimes leaking voltage into the water) but never with starting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coral Hind October 18, 2011 Share October 18, 2011 I think I would take the not starting over the voltage leaking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 October 20, 2011 Share October 20, 2011 I've had both issues. I was never sure why it wouldn't start up (Mag 9.5 only, not the other mag pumps). I've had the start up issue with several of them and also had the leaking current with a couple of them. The others have been pretty reliable, but the 9.5 has always given me problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coral Hind October 20, 2011 Share October 20, 2011 How old were they on average before they started breaking down? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbartco October 20, 2011 Share October 20, 2011 I had problems with 2 mag 9.5's that I used in my mixing containers. If not cleaned regularly, they can have buildup an lock up problems. It seemed once I had one lock up, new impellers etc never seemed to work right afterwards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 October 21, 2011 Share October 21, 2011 Some were pretty new, as in a month or two, some were older. Putting them in vinegar never seemed to help or putting in new impellers, either, just as Doug said. I am thinking that the amount of heat they generate is what causes the issues in some of them. Perhaps the extreme heat causes the impeller housing to warp or vice versa. The ones that lock up tend to really overheat the water - once they have locked up, seems like it exacerbates the situation and causes it to lock up again and again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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