Vortech M1 or L1?????

[justingraham]

I run two m1s internal no heat problems

If I were u I would go l1 and plumb it correctly which I believe is 1 1/2

 

[mfinn]

Do more research on running the vectra external, I believe some people are having problems. I run an M1 internal with no heat issues ( no chiller).

most of the people who had issues were with the L1.
A lot of those issues were with reported high heat via the Reeflink.
I read that it was a software issue and supposedly ETM addressed those issues.
I've been using my M1 for about a year with no issues.

 

[SethOF]

I had the M1, quiet, but was interfering with my Apex conductivity readings. I had to replace it since I am now using the conductivity outputs to direct other events. I stayed away from another DC pump because of this. It worked well for over a year before I noticed this. I did not pay much attention to the readings previously.

 

[litenyaup]

I run two m1s internal no heat problems

If I were u I would go l1 and plumb it correctly which I believe is 1 1/2

Your saying that i should use 1 1/2 for the return and not how the pump comes??

 

[justingraham]

The pump comes with the wrong fittings. When they do there test for the gph they use the 1 1/2 fittings look on brs they have the adapters for I think ten bucks. If u read up on people with the l1s on there tank with the fittings that come with it i.e. Broadfield and his Red Sea build he's only getting 1000gph out of it because it's reduced.

 

[bwmalloy]

If you get by without a chiller it's doubtful whether you'll save any significant amount of money on power either way.

1. Based on your location, I'm assuming you have HVAC and keep the house somewhere around 70ºF?
2. I also assume that your heaters run as-needed to keep the tank around 80ºF.
   
3. 100% of the watts from all your gear end up as heat – either the in your water or in the house. (thermodynamics)
4. None of that heat dissipates without having an effect on your power bill. (Thanks to #1)
5. If you reduce the heat inputs on your tank by getting lower wattage pumps, your heaters simply have to run more to compensate. (Thanks to #2)

You would have to do a little homework with a KillAWatt (~$20) to see if you really stand to gain anything at all.

Usually the big savings is being able to dial back or shut off a chiller or switching from high-powered lights.

If it were me, I'd definitely switch to a quality submersible AC pump for my return.....but I'm not sure I'd be in a rush if the existing pump is in fine condition. The submersible would be the on-hand backup....I might even plumb it in now, in advance, so it's ready to roll at a moment's notice. Right, @bwmalloy?

(And one extra good thing about a $50 return pump – it's easy to afford keeping a backup pump around. Any pump will fail someday and that someday is guaranteed not to be at a good time to find a replacement.)

2¢

All of this is true. Saved a lot of money and wattage on an inexpensive return pump and put all my investment money into my LED's and really good flow pumps (Tunze). The old pump is still plumbed in place so that I can use it as a backup if necessary but @mcarroll is right, having a cheap return pump makes it really easy to keep a backup.

By the way, having made these changes (MH to LED's, big return pump to small return pump, new flow pumps) has decreased my monthly electric bill by $100 per month.