Storm fried my return pump!

[SallyWho]

As the title states, a storm fried my return. But ONLY the return?? Not even my lights flickered, but there was a clap of thunder and the pump stopped. I unplugged it for a minute and plugged it back in, and it does turn on but at a crawl. So I just unplugged it because the lack of flow was making a ton of obnoxious noise in the overflow plumbing. Everything else is working fine, so I added an air stone in front of the gyre to help with oxygenation. Other than keeping the noisy battery powered air stone going & moving a heater up to the display, is there anything else I can do to keep my tank going until I get a replacement return pump? And recommendations for a DC return pump that won't stroke out despite being plugged into an EB8 that's plugged into a battery backup (bonus points for apex compatibility)? These Jebao pumps are great when they work.....

 

[mike550]

Ouch. Sounds like you’re doing everything right in terms of keeping the tank going.

In terms of the pump was it plugged in to your EB832? Does the outlet still work? Crazy that your UPS didn’t trigger in time. Not sure if any DC pump could survive a surge or whatever that flowed from your UPS to the EB832 and then to the power supply. But at least with a DC unit worst case is you blow out a power brick

 

[j.falk]

Did you try taking the pump apart and cleaning it in case something might be caught in it? Usually when they get fried by a power surge they are dead dead...not just barely running.

 

[fishguy242]

Did you try taking the pump apart and cleaning it in case something might be caught in it? Usually when they get fried by a power surge they are dead dead...not just barely running.

Exactly what I was thinking ,open pump up give good clean ,hopefully does the trick...

 

[SallyWho]

Ouch. Sounds like you’re doing everything right in terms of keeping the tank going.

In terms of the pump was it plugged in to your EB832? Does the outlet still work? Crazy that your UPS didn’t trigger in time. Not sure if any DC pump could survive a surge or whatever that flowed from your UPS to the EB832 and then to the power supply. But at least with a DC unit worst case is you blow out a power brick

I have an ooooooold Apex Classic with an EB8. Everything else plugged into it is thankfully okay! Fusion app isn't working but for some reason it never does for me. The pump is a cheap Jebao DCT-8000 and I have to use an adapter module to make it talk to my apex, but the module seems okay. I wouldn't be surprised if the slightest electrical burp did some damage!

Exactly what I was thinking ,open pump up give good clean ,hopefully does the trick...

That's a good idea! I'll give it a try!

 

[n2585722]

It might not be a bad idea to keep a AC type pump around to use if this happens again. I don't have a DC return pump. Mine is a AC pump but I still have one around just in case I need to switch it out for some reason.

 

[SallyWho]

OKAY. I'm not proud of my language but I think I've got it mostly figured out. After pulling the pump and giving it a thorough clean, it was still only moving at a crawl. On a hunch, I went back to my closet and dug up the stupid controller that came with the pump. And voilá! The pump is working now. It must have been the AQLink A1 module (which I use to make it talk to Sir Apex the Agéd Classic) that was damaged. I'm still having to fiddle with the power settings and gate valves to regulate the flow back to where it was. The whole reason I abandoned these proprietary controllers is because they seem to short out and default to the highest setting. Blah. But at least it's working now!

I suppose I'm still open to suggestions for a new return pump, but integrating it would be a pain since I can never get Fusion to work- I have to use the old display screen. Programming is a problem when you can't connect via phone or PC! But hey, if you have a recommendation for a reliable, quiet pump that won't break the bank for a 120g with 40b sump, let me know! This $100 Jebao is getting on my last ginger nerve. I swear to cheezits, the next tank I get will be a smaller AIO. 90% of the problems I have with this tank have to do with the plumbing.

 

[SallyWho]

It might not be a bad idea to keep a AC type pump around to use if this happens again. I don't have a DC return pump. Mine is a AC pump but I still have one around just in case I need to switch it out for some reason.

You're definitely right. TECHNICALLY the pump I use for my water mixng station and water changes is submersible and could be used as a temporary stand-in, but in looking at my mixing station set up, I discovered it would be a heck of a mess to accomplish. I do need a better way.

 

[n2585722]

You're definitely right. TECHNICALLY the pump I use for my water mixng station and water changes is submersible and could be used as a temporary stand-in, but in looking at my mixing station set up, I discovered it would be a heck of a mess to accomplish. I do need a better way.

One option is getting the Wave Engine v2 and getting a pump compatible with it. It has 4 0-10v inputs that you can connect to the Apex to change the mode it the Wave Engine so there is some control options with Apex. It uses the Hydros app to control it. The v2 can also control Hydros wifi strips if you need to do that, It has 4 direct drive ports and also 4 0-10v outputs. Here is a link to compatible pumps https://www.coralvuehydros.com/is-my-pump-compatible/. You would need to get an adapter cable for the particular pump you want to use. It will control some Jebao pumps via a 0-10v output but that means using the pumps controller also.