Need Return pump suggestions

oigimsar · Sep 28, 2011

I am setting up a 20g frag tank. How much flow do i need from my return pump? It will need to go about 3 feet from the sump to the display. It Any affordable, reliable pump suggestions?

I will have plenty of flow in the tank itself, I am just looking for the right gph for the return.

Thanks.

Murfman · Sep 28, 2011

I would calculate how much your drain supports and then figure my pump based on that.

oigimsar · Sep 28, 2011

I purchased my current set up used (with tank, sump and return pump) so I am not sure how to figure the needed flow.

How would I calculate needed flow?

Engloid · Oct 2, 2011

I don't know of any specific formula, but if the frag tank and sump are level with each other (not more than a foot or two of head pressure), even a maxijet 1200 will pump plenty...and they are cheap, as well as quiet.

Actually, I did a recent test:
I had two garbage cans full of water.
One had a maxijet 1200 in it, pumping water to the other.
The other had a mag9 in it, pumping water into the first.

This essentially equated to one pump working against the other, with same level (head pressure of 0).

Basically, I found that the maxijet doesn't flow as much as the mag 9...but the difference wasn't all that much. I would guess the difference was about 1" per 2 minutes.

That said, I would bet money that the mag9 would pump better if there were head pressure. IMO, the maxijet is a great pump for its size, and will flow excellent. I don't think you would want to use it with a lot of head pressure though.

haikufriday · Oct 4, 2011

In general, you want a pump that can deliver 5-10 times water volume turnover per hour. With a 20 gallon, you would want to be between 100-200 gph at your 3' head pressure.

A Maxi-Jet 1200 will give you a max of 295 and has a MAX head pressure of over 5", so this would probably work for you. You can also use a mag 2 or 3 if you wanted something a little more heavy duty, and an eheim compact pump (1000 or higher) will get the job done, too...

As mentioned above, definitely check your bulkhead's flow rate... here's a calculator from RC: enter the flow you want, and it'll tell you what size bulkhead you need. If your bulkhead is bigger, you're set. If not, then reduce flow. http://www.reefcentral.org/calc/drain.php

Hope this helps!

oigimsar · Oct 4, 2011

Thank you. This is exactly what I needed. I think I was able to find a pump that will work.

turfster26 · Oct 5, 2011

haikufriday said:
In general, you want a pump that can deliver 5-10 times water volume turnover per hour. With a 20 gallon, you would want to be between 100-200 gph at your 3' head pressure.

Actually after doing some extensive homework on my new 60gl build (for a sump and skimmer) I have talked with some longtime 25+ year hobbyest that are going back to the old tradition low flow rates (ie: tank to sump turnover) of 3-4 x's tank volume. I know Sanjay has been preaching this for a longtime too. The most recent talk (in the past 6-8 years anyway) has been for very high tank to sump turnover may have been overstated in our hobby.

With that said, on my new 60gl Cube build, I am shooting for 200-250gph turnover and went with Eheim's Compact 2000 return pump......

HTH

haikufriday · Oct 5, 2011

I was only giving a general recomendation.

You have a very valid point, turfster26, and I have seen some experts recomend lower flow. I've seen experts recomend as little as 2-3 times turnover as far as sump filteration being effective, meaning to filter your aquarium efficiently, the water only needs to pass through the sump 2-3 time per hours.

I guess it's a matter of prefernce on flow above that at that point, but i've personally always been happy with my 5x or so turnover and have never had any problems. :nerd: