FO pump upgrade question

[cerria]

100gallon FO tank, currently with wet/dry, red sea berlin turbo skimmer, Rio 2100 (which I just discovered is probably too small for Fish Only anyway) with about 5 feet head, single overflow back to sump.

Slowly upgrading to inverts and then corals, starting with the pump.

I need a pump that is a) very quiet and b) will always restart after short power outages as we get several each week where I am.

I was looking at the Quiet One 4000 or 5000, but am getting mixed feedback on reliability and restarting.

Also, reading you need 5-10 times turnover per hour, but also that water movement is just as important and a firehose pump may not be the best.

Suggestions given the above parameters?

Thanks in advance

[Mike O'Brien]

I'd go with some power heads in the tank as well. Reef or fish only, the principal is the same. Have enough flow in the tank, so that the waste is kept suspended so that it can get to the skimmer. I suggest a pair of Tunze Nano Stream 6025's. Your fish will love them too.

If your current pump is working, I'd just keep it.

[cerria]

Hey Mike, thanks for the quick response, much appreciated.

So I guess I was under the impression that 10x turnover meant passing that through filters etc, rather than concetrating on recirculation. The Rio 2100 and VBerlin both work fine, always restarting after a power blip, but the Rio is rated at only about 200gph at 6 feet, hence me thinking I needed to upgrade.

The other nice thing about your approach is I get to keep the Rio at 25w, and the 6025s are only 5w each!

Thanks for the advice!

andre

[Mike O'Brien]

You're welcome :)

[stevo4535]

Welcome,

I would think about converting the wet/dry to a refugium. I hear very good words about Tunzes.

[stevo4535]

This might prove an interesting read...

http://www.reeflounge.com/showthread.php?t=8722

[cerria]

I ordered a Tunze las night, as well as an aqua lifter dosing pump to keep the sump level even. I will probably get a bigger return pump anyway as I don't have a spare at all which is risky of course - things always fail in my house at 7pm on a Sunday.... ;o)

Thanks!

[gsxunv04@aol.com]

get a mag 9.5 ,you wont be mad. with a 100 gal tank you need 1000pgh to turn it over ten times. so a 9.5 is 950 gph which at you 5' head will be about 600-750 depending on how clean the pump is. add some powerheads and you got a nice flowing tank. tunze 6025's are pricy IMO, i would check out hydor koralia's line up.. a koralia 3 or 4 (2 of 'em) would be nice.

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=15955&Nty=1&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Ntk=All&N=2004&Ntt=hydor&Np=1

[Europa]

tunze 6025's are pricy IMO, i would check out hydor koralia's line up.. a koralia 3 or 4 (2 of 'em) would be nice.

The Tunze's are only two dollars more, and well worth the cost difference IMO. They are a lot smaller and Tunze stands behind their product.

[Mike O'Brien]

The magnets are much better too. I made the mistake of putting them together the other day. I almost couldn't get them apart with my hands. The hydor needs a suction cup to help hold them on.

[cerria]

get a mag 9.5 ,you wont be mad. with a 100 gal tank you need 1000pgh to turn it over ten times. so a 9.5 is 950 gph which at you 5' head will be about 600-750 depending on how clean the pump is. add some powerheads and you got a nice flowing tank. tunze 6025's are pricy IMO, i would check out hydor koralia's line up.. a koralia 3 or 4 (2 of 'em) would be nice.

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod_Display.cfm?pcatid=15955&Nty=1&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Ntk=All&N=2004&Ntt=hydor&Np=1

Hey gsx, that takes me back to my original question, or one of them, and that is, how much of the 10x/hour needs to go through the sump? I'm getting the idea that circulation in the tank is just as important so where do folks think the balance lies? I.e. in a 100g tank do I need 1000gph as well as a pair of Tunzes 6025s, or is 400gph and one Tunze (about 1000gpg total) perfectly Ok for 'most' applications? Your thoughts above indicate the latter but is that the general concensus?

I am computer geek where things are often black and white and easier for it, so this gray stuff is a good workout.

Lastly (some hope), how are the Mag pumps after a power blip? Do they always restart OK? I'm tempted to just buy a bigger Rio just because mine has never let me down in 4 years of frequent outages. How quiet are they (Mags)?

I owe you guys a beer a piece for this stuff. Thanks!

[Europa]

The mag pumps restart fine. Circulation in the tank is just as important as lighting. 10x turnover isn't enough, I would go with no less than 20, preferably more. I have 35x turnover in my tank. You don't want to rely on the return pump for your circulation, because compared to powerheads, they use a lot of wattage and generate more heat. You'll need two of the Tunzes for a 100g tank. I would also do the simple modification which will increase their flow from about 650gph to around 1200gph. This is done by removing the shroud from the front cover.

[Mike O'Brien]

I don't see any reason to run more water through the sump than the skimmer can process.

[cerria]

What about mechanical filtration though, or have you guys abandoned that completely? E,g, foam/gauze in the top of my wet/dry?

[Mike O'Brien]

Except for a few closet cases, we've abandoned that completely.