2 Return Pumps Running at the same time

[thewalkingdad]

I'll have 3 Iwakis for my 160. I mentioned above that two of them are feeding my DT. The third is for my mixing station. It is way overpowered for my mixing station but allows me to cannibalize that third pump for my DT.

 

[rc1626]

Every situation is going to be different as well as individual experiences. My tank was in my unfinished basement. It was a holding tank while I was redoing a display in my living room. It was February and temps in basement in winter run in the low to mid 60's. While we were away we lost power for a short time. Mag 12 pump never came back on after power outage. Heater in sump kept the sump warm but with no circulation in the display temps dropped and all my sps died. Luckily I didn't lose any fish. Not sure how many days it was out but damage was done. This was about 4 - 5 years ago and I didn't have a net module hooked up to my Reefkeeper. I now run a Profilux 4 so I can constantly monitor while I'm away. As a precaution on this new build 2 pumps are being used on two separate circuits.

As for separate circuits my current single return pump display had a gfi issue while I was away this summer. Gfi tripped three times while I was gone. Not knowing initially what was causing loss of power I had my tank sitter check the gfi and luckily that was it. Gfi was going bad which can happen. A second pump on a second circuit would have been nice in this situation. Murphy's Law.....never know when you'll be a victim.

 

[User1]

I run two return pumps. Started with one. Then decided to buy another one and use on my skimmer. This way I could swap out the skimmer should the return fail. Both are Cor 15's since I had an Apex. One day the Neptune Cor 20 went on sale, and it was a good one, so I picked one up. Thus running dual returns.

My 210 gallon has two return lines so it was easy to plumb this in. I have two 1" sea swirls so just split the line and placed the Cor 20 on the return with the longest plumbing. Left the Cor 15 on the shorter. This worked very well and I decided to do some left, right side flow patterns by ramping one up, the other down, over 24 hours. Worked well but the sump was such that when the two pumps crossed flows the sump level would change and my ATO kicked in.

Ended up using a virtual outlet now and adjusted the two pumps flow closer and can alternate left and right side flows. More or less does the same thing but my sump water level is more consistent. In any case two return pumps is safe and because I'm running them at a lower power/flow I have room to grow as my tank and coral mature. Running them both at 100% is a bit much so I'm at 60/40 I believe at the moment and seems to be ideal.

 

[naterealbig]

Every situation is going to be different as well as individual experiences. My tank was in my unfinished basement. It was a holding tank while I was redoing a display in my living room. It was February and temps in basement in winter run in the low to mid 60's. While we were away we lost power for a short time. Mag 12 pump never came back on after power outage. Heater in sump kept the sump warm but with no circulation in the display temps dropped and all my sps died. Luckily I didn't lose any fish. Not sure how many days it was out but damage was done. This was about 4 - 5 years ago and I didn't have a net module hooked up to my Reefkeeper. I now run a Profilux 4 so I can constantly monitor while I'm away. As a precaution on this new build 2 pumps are being used on two separate circuits.

As for separate circuits my current single return pump display had a gfi issue while I was away this summer. Gfi tripped three times while I was gone. Not knowing initially what was causing loss of power I had my tank sitter check the gfi and luckily that was it. Gfi was going bad which can happen. A second pump on a second circuit would have been nice in this situation. Murphy's Law.....never know when you'll be a victim.

Interestingly the Danner Mag Drives have been noted by some as the most bullet-proof pumps. I think even with reliable pumps, it is best practice to have two online at all times (especially if there is a chance you are away for days at a time). I think this has less to do with current state of return pumps, and more to do with the idea that your return pump is the heart of your system. Without it, you cut off circulation, filtration, aeration, and heat. Very few points in your system can cut off that much life support with a single failure.

A dual return pump setup, along with a systematic approach and built-in redundancy where possible help put the odds in the favor your pets and investment when problems occur.

 

[rc1626]

Interestingly the Danner Mag Drives have been noted by some as the most bullet-proof pumps. I think even with reliable pumps, it is best practice to have two online at all times (especially if there is a chance you are away for days at a time). I think this has less to do with current state of return pumps, and more to do with the idea that your return pump is the heart of your system. Without it, you cut off circulation, filtration, aeration, and heat. Very few points in your system can cut off that much life support with a single failure.

A dual return pump setup, along with a systematic approach and built-in redundancy where possible help put the odds in the favor your pets and investment when problems occur.

Not to make this a thread about return pump reliability but this was the second time I had a mag 12 have an issue while I was on vacation. First time it developed a short and kept tripping the gfi. Luckily my dad was my tank sitter at the time and noticed it. I did not have a spare on hand (lesson learned) so I had to drive 5 hrs home, run to lfs to get a new one and 5 hrs back to vacation spot with the family. We only go on vacation twice a year and 3 times I've had return pump issues in thirteen years of reefing. Twice was Mag pump issues and once it was the gfi. Go figure! No more Mag drive pumps for me.

 

[naterealbig]

Not to make this a thread about return pump reliability but this was the second time I had a mag 12 have an issue while I was on vacation. First time it developed a short and kept tripping the gfi. Luckily my dad was my tank sitter at the time and noticed it. I did not have a spare on hand (lesson learned) so I had to drive 5 hrs home, run to lfs to get a new one and 5 hrs back to vacation spot with the family. We only go on vacation twice a year and 3 times I've had return pump issues in thirteen years of reefing. Twice was Mag pump issues and once it was the gfi. Go figure! No more Mag drive pumps for me.

I think it's fair to talk about reliability - as far as I can see that would be the only reason to run 2 pumps in parallel. Man, that's crappy record on the Mags. I recall using Mag Drives mainly when I started the hobby - they were some of my favorite pumps..... probably because they were the cheapest semi-reliable pump I could find. I think most will be hard-pressed to find a pump that has not had issues. If it's worth anything at all, I am running Fluval SP series (dual AC returns run in parallel configuration).

Honestly, at least for AC pumps - they generally are priced linearly. So, you can get two smaller pumps that add up to the flow rate of a single larger pump, for about the same price as the larger pump. I'm sure this deviates more for true pressure-rated pumps, but for me (even with a high amount of head loss) running two returns is definitely a no-brainer.

To make the setup even more reliable, I think I am actually going to remove the pumps from my Apex, and wire them directly to the wall outlet.

 

[Drewbacca]

DUAL DC PUMP RETURN/UV QUESTION.
SO, if any of you were to use TWO 2000 gph DC pumps plumbed together to run from the sump in the tank stand up through a 44" UV in your return line that runs behind the stand and over the back of the tank to a Y split loc-line and wanted each pump to run at half speed for a 1000 gph return/uv rate So that if one pump died the other would still keep the uv from burning out & return line running at 500gph.. how would exactly would you choose to do it?
Check valve immediately after each pump then Y together?
Was thinking it might be important to have a T with a valve right after where the pumps Y together and have that run straight up and T'ed back in at the top after the UV, so if i needed to service or take out the uv my sytem could keep running as well. Right now they are seperate and if my uv pump fails..it will burn dry.
Thanks!