Dosing Pumps: What's the Difference?

[MarineDepot]

This article will give you insight into some of the popular ways hobbyists are automatically dosing their aquariums and help you on the road to total aquarium automation—freedom from tedious and messy manual dosing or top-off!

Aquarium Dosing Systems: What's the Difference?

Be sure to check out the companion post, "How to Set Up a Dosing Pump" once you're done!

How to Set Up a Dosing Pump

 

[TWT5011]

Hello, I have purchased a Sea Side Aquatics DP3 doser and are trying to install.

I would appreciate some input whether I've set up the doser correctly.

-- I'm trying to dose B-Ionic 2 part.
-- Initially, it seems easy to set up... for this unit... I've set up how much solution I want to dose in ml's and how many times a day to dose.
-- I'm using the actual B-Ionic bottles to draw the solution from. I've drilled two holes into the bottles, one large hole to place the airline tubing into the bottle, and a much smaller hole so a vacuum will not be created (maybe I don't need a smaller hole for my application?)
-- I'm using soft airline tubing the bottles to the pump and soft tubing from the pump to the sump. I've trimmed the bottom end of the tubes inside the bottles at an angle.
-- I've placed supplied check valves at the very end of the tubing going into the sump.

There are no instructions on pump set up other than setting the amounts and times. I don't know if I've set up the pumps correctly with type of airline tubing, use of check valves, use of the B-Ionic bottles.

1. Does my set up sound correct?
2. Should I use hard tubing into the bottles? Or is soft tubing ok?
3. Supplied check valves are at the very end of the tubing going into the sump... is this the correct place to install valves? or maybe install in another location? or maybe I shouldn't use them?
4. Will the solution left in the tubing into the sump eventually empty itself into the sump over time? or will it stay in the tubing?
5. I think I may be losing "prime" on one of the pumps... and my solution amount isn't dosing the correct amounts.
6. I "prime" each pump and I see solution dripping out of end of the tubing into the sump, but after pumps are set, it appears the solution drawn back into the bottles.

I don't feel confident that both parts of the 2 part solution is being dosed.

Thank you.

 

[MarineDepot]

Hi TWT5011,

Thanks for your inquiry.
1 It sounds like most of the physical set up is correct.
2 Either works, it just needs to draw the additive.
3 Check valves should be installed away from the water to prevent clogging.
4 Liquid should stay in the tubing
5 & 6, we don't sell the SeaSide dosers so we are not sure how to troubleshoot them. Something is not working correctly if the solution is siphoning back to the bottles. May be the pump head itself or the check valve.

 

[TWT5011]

-- I'm only dosing a total of 5 mls of an additive, twice a day... so thats dosing once every 12 hours... and it's not very much additive overall.
-- I wonder if I should dose less mls more often through out the day and would help keep the additive moving through the tubing?
-- It appears to me that the calcium additive doses ok, the Alk additive is the one possibly not dosing the correct amount?
-- Are the check valves necessary? If so, should the valves be closer to the pumps on the side dosing into the sump?

 

[MarineDepot]

at 5 mls a day, the doser would probably be more accurate dosing the entire amount at one time. Some dosing pumps require check valves to prevent backflow so we would recommend checking the instruction manual for your SeaSide Aquatics dosing pump and install the check valves according to the instructions .

 

[TWT5011]

Ok, I understand about the amount... There are no manufacture supplied instructions concerning the use and placement of the check valves... just instructions about dosing amount, time and frequency... that's why I've asked these questions.

 

[MarineDepot]

Ok, I understand about the amount... There are no manufacture supplied instructions concerning the use and placement of the check valves... just instructions about dosing amount, time and frequency... that's why I've asked these questions.

Based on my experience with other dosing pumps, the check valve can be placed just before the suction side connection on the pump. Additive > Check Valve > Pump > Tank.