Echotech Return Pump Yay or Nay?

[RobbyG]

I am thinking of buying an Echotech pump to replace my sequence dart.
I have had two Darts for the last 15 years, one is a backup. In the course of that time I have had to replace the bearing twice on each of them. Roughly five years before the bearings start to go bad.

My Pump is not in the water and I do not want to put a pump in the water, so if I buy an Echotech it would not be submerged for cooling. I have read a lot of back and forth on this and people saying the flow rate is substantially less than advertised. Anyone have any recommendations, I am very happy with the MP40 that is why i am thinking Echotech but I also do not want to spend nearly $500 on a pump and have it die within a year or two.

Rob

 

[ohashimz]

I personally would spend an extra 200 and get a red dragon 50 watt or 80 watt depend on your flow rate requirments.

 

[RobbyG]

I personally would spend an extra 200 and get a red dragon 50 watt or 80 watt depend on your flow rate requirments.

Thanks, but I don't see much info on this pump. Do you or anybody else have one?

Thanks
Rob

 

[ohashimz]

Thanks, but I don't see much info on this pump. Do you or anybody else have one?



Thanks

Rob

Royal execlusive red dragon rd3.
Multiple supplier and distributors in USA carry it...

 

[paal]

My M1 return has been running flawlessly since I started my tank over 3 years ago. I have not cleaned it or taken it out of the sump a single time.
It is not dead silent, but still wife-approved in a living room tank.

The red dragon suggestions above are good as well though (though a bit pricier) I have a RD speedy pump on my bubble king double cone 180 skimmer. I love it.
The controller box for the pump died on me recently though (after about 3 years) but Royal Exclusiv fixed it for a fair price.

To be honest, I am not really sure what I would buy if I were to upgrade to a bigger tank today.

 

[onoc]

I would go with the ecotech ...I have the m1 return and the s1 for skimmer ....When I plumbed them in my wife was speechless...The only thing she could ask was " Are the pumps on/running ?" And when I said yes she couldn't believe it so I had to open under cabinet to show her the water flow

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

 

[RobbyG]

The Red dragon seems like a great pump but there is not that much in way of personal accounts of reliability on the web and the fitting sizes sound like a nightmare.

I am thinking of buying the L2 but I am a bit worried about how it deals with heat and not being submerged. My pump and sump etc. are all located on the outside of the house in a built up housing just behind where the Tank is located in the house. Anyone using an L1 that is not submerged, I am wondering about heat.

Thanks
Rob

 

[slief]

The Red dragon seems like a great pump but there is not that much in way of personal accounts of reliability on the web and the fitting sizes sound like a nightmare.

I am thinking of buying the L2 but I am a bit worried about how it deals with heat and not being submerged. My pump and sump etc. are all located on the outside of the house in a built up housing just behind where the Tank is located in the house. Anyone using an L1 that is not submerged, I am wondering about heat.

Thanks
Rob

The US pumps come with built in union couplers with both metric and US inch size female slip fittings in the box standard. So plumbing couldn’t be any easier. Even the ones from Europe can include inch size fittings if you request them but as I said, all US distributed RD3’s include standard US sized SCH80 PVC fittings.

I think that most if not all Royal Exclusiv pump users would concur that they are great pumps and built like tanks. The impellers are the heaviest on the market and include titanium coated magnets. The motors alone weigh more than double that of any comparable pump. Like I said, they are built like tanks. The controller is built into a large heavy aluminum enclosure and the RD3’s transfer virtually no heat to the water.

I bought my two RD3 230s when they were first released 4 years ago and they haven’t skipped a beat. Nor has the RD3 50 that runs my Supermarin 250 which I’ve had for about 5 years now. All of which I bought at retail price long before my association with Royal Exclusiv. And despite my being biased due to my affiliation, I am a hobbyist first and foremost and I’d do it all over again in a heart beat as I truly love my pumps. And trust me, with what I have invested in live stock in my tank, I could run any pump I want and would only run what I feel offers great reliability.

 

[ohashimz]

The Red dragon seems like a great pump but there is not that much in way of personal accounts of reliability on the web and the fitting sizes sound like a nightmare.

I am thinking of buying the L2 but I am a bit worried about how it deals with heat and not being submerged. My pump and sump etc. are all located on the outside of the house in a built up housing just behind where the Tank is located in the house. Anyone using an L1 that is not submerged, I am wondering about heat.

Thanks
Rob

It's up to you ofcourse. Red dragons are some of the best pumps in the market world wide not only here..they are one of the oldest pumps companies out there and build almost everything on house..

 

[ohashimz]

The US pumps come with built in union couplers with both metric and US inch size female slip fittings in the box standard. So plumbing couldn't be any easier. Even the ones from Europe can include inch size fittings if you request them but as I said, all US distributed RD3's include standard US sized SCH80 PVC fittings.

I think that most if not all Royal Exclusiv pump users would concur that they are great pumps and built like tanks. The impellers are the heaviest on the market and include titanium coated magnets. The motors alone weigh more than double that of any comparable pump. Like I said, they are built like tanks. The controller is built into a large heavy aluminum enclosure and the RD3's transfer virtually no heat to the water.

I bought my two RD3 230s when they were first released 4 years ago and they haven't skipped a beat. Nor has the RD3 50 that runs my Supermarin 250 which I've had for about 5 years now. All of which I bought at retail price long before my association with Royal Exclusiv. And despite my being biased due to my affiliation, I am a hobbyist first and foremost and I'd do it all over again in a heart beat as I truly love my pumps. And trust me, with what I have invested in live stock in my tank, I could run any pump I want and would only run what I feel offers great reliability.

+1 to all.
I will also add that most dc pumps in the market are sourced core parts from china wrapped with plastic and logo of the vendor.
Most come from Hipool motors (chinese manufacturer) and couple similar suppliers.
Just go to hipool site and take an look at their dc pump and see the similarities. You can even see their customers list. You will be suprised..
While abyzz and red dragon design and build the major and core parts that goes in to their pumps.

 

[RobbyG]

+1 to all.
I will also add that most dc pumps in the market are sourced core parts from china wrapped with plastic and logo of the vendor.
Most come from Hipool motors (chinese manufacturer) and couple similar suppliers.
Just go to hipool site and take an look at their dc pump and see the similarities. You can even see their customers list. You will be suprised..
While abyzz and red dragon design and build the major and core parts that goes in to their pumps.

Interesting info. I really do like the abyzz pump but wow the price on them seems to target millionaires :lol2: The Red Dragon pump looks great but the controller seems a bit out dated and I am not sure what I can do with it short of just varying the speed manually. I like the Ecotech because of the software/programming versatility but am not all that enthusiastic about some of the feedback I have seen on the pump itself. You ever feel so confused that you start thinking of just going back to the evil you know? Right now I am feeling like buying a Reeflow dart and calling it a day. At least with that I have two older ones as backup. If I buy a Red Dragon or Ecotech I would soon have to buy a second one as a spare. No way am I going with just one pump. it seems every time a pump gives problems its at 1am. The last time a bearing went the pump let out a loud mind numbing squealing sound. The wife shot out of bed and told me to either stop the sound now or face certain death:hmm2:

Luckily I can just pull the bolts and swap over the impeller cover without messing with the pluming. That one of the great advantages of having a spare of the same model pump.

 

[ohashimz]

Interesting info. I really do like the abyzz pump but wow the price on them seems to target millionaires [emoji38]2: The Red Dragon pump looks great but the controller seems a bit out dated and I am not sure what I can do with it short of just varying the speed manually. I like the Ecotech because of the software/programming versatility but am not all that enthusiastic about some of the feedback I have seen on the pump itself. You ever feel so confused that you start thinking of just going back to the evil you know? Right now I am feeling like buying a Reeflow dart and calling it a day. At least with that I have two older ones as backup. If I buy a Red Dragon or Ecotech I would soon have to buy a second one as a spare. No way am I going with just one pump. it seems every time a pump gives problems its at 1am. The last time a bearing went the pump let out a loud mind numbing squealing sound. The wife shot out of bed and told me to either stop the sound now or face certain death:hmm2:



Luckily I can just pull the bolts and swap over the impeller cover without messing with the pluming. That one of the great advantages of having a spare of the same model pump.

Ha ha ha. Yup I felt like that when I first went in to dc pumps..ac pumps are great and earlier dc pumps just couldn't match..
With red dragon thu story is diffrent, thate why they did not release their dc pump until they had a good one, they still do great ac pumps.
I would not think I need a spare with red dragon but ofcourse everything can break eventually and with the right condition..so I feel your pain ha ha

 

[tkeracer619]

Love my Vectra Pumps. Have an L1 and a S2. Both Silent.

 

[rocklobster1]

I would get 2 cheap ones and just have a backup ready. They usually last for years.

 

[RobbyG]

Love my Vectra Pumps. Have an L1 and a S2. Both Silent.

Is your L1 in the sump or dry? My worry is the thing will overheat if left dry.
A lot of people say they run very hot.

 

[biecacka]

love my darts... they just simply work and that is priceless.

corey

 

[alton]

I run a M2 on my 180 at about 70% and it is mounted externally. Runs very cool.

 

[tkeracer619]

Is your L1 in the sump or dry? My worry is the thing will overheat if left dry.
A lot of people say they run very hot.

Mine is submerged but I wouldn't worry about it being external. Ecotech has a great service department so if there is an issue I'm sure they would take care of you. I'd get the L2 and not look back.

It won't flow as much as a dart. You'll want to minimize any flow restrictions you can. What exactly are you using it on? The return for the 90gal? A dart is a lot of pump for that!

 

[luisagos]

Just get an Iwaki pump. It was designed to be used as a chemical pump.

Saltwater is nothing for that pump. it will last 10-20 years.

 

[LefkoNJ]

I love my Vectra S1s, the two of them have worked well for the last 2 years.