Plumbing Questions!?

[MamaGreenFish]

Hi all,
I am starting a new tank with a Red Sea Reefer 350. I am trying to plumb a manifold for Carbon, Biopellets, UV sterilizer, etc. I went to my LFS today and was explaining my set up.

My set up as follows: Return pump= Neptune Cor 20 that would split via T where one pipe would go back to tank and one going to the manifold.

This seems to be what I've seen on others posts and videos.

The LFS owner recommended that I use a separate pump for the manifold. So one pump dedicated to return to tank and one pump to manifold.

I do have another pump I could do this with, but my question is- Do I really need two separate pumps? I can see how this may increase water turn over. I am looking into doing to Triton method so the 10x turnover is important. I just think the Cor 20 is powerful enough to provide flow to both.

Thanks for any help or recommendations!

On another note, I am excited to join this community. So far, I've set up the cabinet and tank. Made a dedicated, "fish room." (a large closet on the other side of the wall of the tank) I've set up a water source and dedicated electrical outlet/circuit for the tank.

My rock is curing, I've started the set up for a quarantine tank.

I'm trying to take things slow so I increase my odds of having a successful tank. Below are pics of progress so far.

 

[lapin]

Howdy
I am not familiar with that tank and pump set up.
A manifold will reduce your pumps output.
Its a good idea to put a valve on the exit end of your manifold. This will create some back pressure so all your reactors will receive equal pressure.

 

[JoshH]

Hey there, looks like an awesome start!

Many people run manifolds off of there returns, it's definitely doable it's just not the most ideal setup. Once your reactors start clogging up this can effect the flow and because your return is to the same setup, can effect your return flow as well. This could (and I say could because it's not in every case) lead to you having to mess with the flow of your pump or your valve on your drain line. This setup also requires a valve just above the T to the manifold to direct flow towards the manifold. This added pressure is not really ideal for most DC pumps, including the COR. Which can prematurely wear parts and greatly reduce the overall performance of the pump.

If you have the space for it, I would suggest going with the dual pump option. Much more flexible long term, you can run whatever pump you would like on it and you can shut the manifold off with your controller as well without effecting your return flow atall.

So, Welcome to R2R! I hope that when you have the time you can setup a build thread in the members tank forum, it's a great place to start your own little tank journal so to speak for you to look back on many years from now. Document your successes as well as your rough times and use it as a handy learning tool! And share even more pictures, we love pictures here!

 

[Crystal Reef Aquatics]

You would be just fine with the one pump. Two pumps just allows for more flexibility. I've run tanks with a manifold with one pump just fine and so have many others! Do remember that depending on what you have drawing off the manifold, it can tax the pump a bit, but a COR 20 is a pretty strong pump so you should be fine. If you have a spare pump and have the space, running two is probably a better option. The best option, of course, was already mentioned and that's running two of the same pump. That provides some good redundancy when the main pump fails!

 

[JoshH]

The best option, of course, was already mentioned and that's running two of the same pump. That provides some good redundancy when the main pump fails!

How I ran my manifold and how I'll run them from here on out, SUPER handy to have a spare pump right there to swap when needed, heck you can even plumb it in a way where all you need to do is turn a couple valves and the manifold pump turns into your return pump, really handy when the return pump needs maintenance.

 

[Rscott]

You would be just fine with the one pump. Two pumps just allows for more flexibility. I've run tanks with a manifold with one pump just fine and so have many others! Do remember that depending on what you have drawing off the manifold, it can tax the pump a bit, but a COR 20 is a pretty strong pump so you should be fine. If you have a spare pump and have the space, running two is probably a better option. The best option, of course, was already mentioned and that's running two of the same pump. That provides some good redundancy when the main pump fails!

Running my reefer 450 manifold on one pump
No issues
Vectra M1

I just simply oversized my return pump
Done and done

Don’t forget to calibrate your pump

 

[Billdogg]

I have used both methods, but I got tired of the flow through the reactors affecting my return. I now use a separate small pump for each reactor so that any one individual does not cause problems with all the others. More cords? Yes. Overall simpler operation? Yes again IMO.