Equipment

[Brian Arthur]

How many pumps are safely operational from within a 60 gal. sump providing for a 200 gal. DT. I currently have a 4.0 Sicce submersible for my next reef monster (dual chambers)(GFO & Carbon), 3.5 Sicce submersible for a 550 TLF reactors (Chaeto), and a 5.0 for the returns. All of which are in the same compartment in the sump just past the baffles?

 

[Reefing Madness]

WOW, thats quite a few pumps, I mean its ok, if you can fit em all in there, but most would use one big one to supply all the reactors, using ball valves to control flow.

 

[Brian Arthur]

I went that route originally but found I was getting the flow on the returns as I would like. From sump to top of return in the tank is a little over 6' so I was loosing the pressure after supplying (2) TLF 550s that were running pellets and carbon. So now I'm down to (1) TLF 550 and going to use it as a refugium style chamber and it will be the 3.5, I am going to use the 4.0 for the next reef Monster, and leave the 5.0 for the returns.

 

[Reefing Madness]

You wouldn't use the one pump to return the water to the tank, but back into another farther chamber, like the return chamber, that would have its own pump to return the water to the DT.

 

[Brian Arthur]

so what pump would you go with? External/internal?

 

[Brian Arthur]

I took the 3.5 out of the system and made a 4 T bracket to provide flow with the (4.0) to all 4 reactors. So far I'm getting great tumble from the 2 chamber next reef and 1 of the TLFs (currently nothing in the 4th reactor). I'm using the 5.0 for return flow and also getting a good response on the flow.

 

[Reefing Madness]

 

[Brian Arthur]

Just added 2 BM dosing pumps (7 pump heads total), decided to go this route instead of a calcium reactor. This way I could monitor how much trace elements go into the tank and exactly which elements are going in. Right now I'm using BW Biofuel instead vodka dosing. Would like to know other opinions about this route??!!