Return Pump and Skimmer Pump questions...

[Ed Bortoni]

Hello! I've just joined the forum and I'm in need of some help!

I'm getting back into marine aquariums after 10 years of being out. I recently bought a standard 75 Reef-ready tank at a garage sale. It came with a stand and the guy gave me a skimmer as well. No pumps were included.

I'm now trying to figure out the plumbing for sump and skimmer and return, but I have some questions.

The drain is 1" the return is 3/4". I am planning on using something like a 20g Long as my sump (to include a small refugium as well). The skimmer is a AquaC Ev-180. From the bottom of the stand to the top of the return is basically 4 feet and a single 90* elbow.

The manual for the skimmer says:
In our tests, the EV-180 performs best when powered by a pressure-rated pump capable of producing 700-800 GPH unrestricted. Due to the pressure that the spray injector places on the pump, the true flow through the skimmer will be quite a bit less than the unrestricted rating.

I got a Rio 2100 which is roughly 700 gph that I'm thinking of using on the skimmer, so my questions comes down to... what do you all recommend for the return pump?

-Ed

 

[jsker]

First off Welcome R2R
I like the waveline DC pumps, there is also ecotech DC pumps I am running the DC2500H for my 72 gal tank I think I am turning over about 440 gph with the distance that I am running the return. The nice thing about DC is you can control the speed, so if you go a bit larger and there is to much flow. You can slow it down to fit you needs.

 

[cjd]

That depends on you and your budget. I have a 75 gallon , same plumbing and I use the Sicce Syncra 3.0 (714 gph) for my return and that also runs a reactor. I have used a Eheim Compact 3000 (793 gph) on another 75 build I had previously. Satisfied with both of those and wouldn't be able to tell if one was better than the other. Both quiet and pump water. They have been reliable for me. A popular choice is the Eheim 1262 , but your price point starts to jump up from there. Depending on what you want to run off the pump and how much flow you like to run through your sump , I would say anything from 700 gph to 800 gph with a sump that's 30 inch long would be fine. My sump is 30 inch long and my pump at 714 gph plus running a reactor, minus head pressure still is dialed back a little to reduce the rip current through the sump . I keep the flow in the display .Some people may suggest a much larger pump , but I never found the need.

 

[Ed Bortoni]

Thanks for your suggestions. So to compare the contenders now:

$72
Jecod/Jebao DCT-4000
Power: 30-watt
Max flow: 1056GPH

$78
Mag 7
Max flow: 700 GPH
Power: 60 watts

$98
Syncra 3.0
Flow: 714 GPH
Power: 48 watts

Based on this, is there a reason I should not go for the DCT-4000? More efficient and I can dial the flow up or down as needed.

 

[cjd]

Personally I'm not a fan of jeboa pumps. Had poor experiences with their power heads. Had two of them before and they started out strong, then dramatically decreased flow then finally stopped working all within 3 month period. From my experience I'm reluctant to recommend them although others rave about them. Mag. Pumps are noisy and generate alot of heat, though they are work horses. My choice would be the sicce 3.o given those options.