Looking for new, reliable quiet return pump (yet another return pump thread)

trmiv

trmiv

Active member
I'm moving soon and my tank will go from being in another room to in our living room. So I'm in the process of gathering the stuff I need to make the tank as quiet as possible. I currently have an Eheim 1262 return, which is great, and very reliable, but is way overkill and contrary to many reports, it really has a loud hum to it. Never bothered me because the tank is in another room, but I doubt I can stand it in the same room. It's installed with soft tubing and I'm running silicone pads under the pump. Even if I lift it up it hums. I think it's just the way this pump is. But I've had this pump for 10 years and it's been solid as a rock, so I've been reluctant to replace it with something less reliable.

I used to have my pump powering two reactors and a refugium. Now it's just going to the return and the two reactors. Even with that I have a ball valve that is choked down over halfway so I dont overpower the crappy marineland slim overflow on my 60g cube. I have no idea how much flow I'm actually putting into the tank, but I'd estimate it can't be over 500gph, and I'd bet closer to 300-375gph. The reactors don't take much flow.

So since the Eheim is overkill, and is it's massive, I am considering looking for a smaller, quieter pump. I have the option of buying a 1260 volute and turning it into a 1260, but I'm not certain that would solve the humming issue. I guess something in the 650gph range would be about right. The head loss calculator on the site is super out of date, so I'm having a hard time finding what I need.

Considerations:
Sicce Syncra 2.0 or 3.0. Not sure if the 2.0 would be enough?
Tunze 1073.020
Eheim compact+ 2000 or 3000
Fluval SP2. This also may be overkill, but I've heard great things about the Askoll block pumps. My only concern is it's 1" output, and my return is 3/4". Am I going to just destroy the flow by stepping it down?
 
I went with a waveline, I got the 12000 for a closed loop, call me impressed.

Out of what you listed, I would pick a fluval or an eheim. Not sure any of them are bad choices.

I would have a 1262 on my system if I could, but it doesn't have the oomph I need for my 315.
 
I have that tunze on my tank w/ same size drain, it's very quiet, but all my eheims were very quiet too, maybe yours has an issue or vibrates off bottom?
I will say out of those stay away from the eheim compacts, they are not even close to eheim standards.
Everyone that sees my tank agrees it's about as quiet as a tank can be.
 
Thanks for the replies, but I'm really not interested the DC pumps.

I have the Eheim isolated pretty well, it just hums. Honestly it's been so long since I used another return other than Eheim, I have noting to compare it to. My last 3 pumps were Eheim 1260, Eheim 1250 and Eheim 1262 (I replaced the volute on my 1260 to make it a 1262). This is the first time I'll have the tank so close to my seating area in the living room though.
 
DC pumps are silent.

Next best two internal are Eheim an Fluval. The Tunze may be quiet, and they are great, but I don't trust them for a return and parts availability has been hit or miss. I know my service guy keeps an extra waveline in stock, so I am not worried about that aspect.
 
I know the DC pumps are very quiet, but I'm not sold on the reliability of them, especially the cheaper ones. Hum or no hum this Eheim has been running pretty much continuously for 8 of the 10 years I've had it.
 
Looking for new, reliable quiet return pump (yet another return pump thread)

I have the Compact+ 2000 in my BioCube in my living room and it has been great. It does have a low hum, but I cut a silicone pot holder to match the size of the base, and when it sits on that, the hum is eliminated and it is completely quiet.
 
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I've used the Sicce 3.0 and it was great. It has a dial to turn down the flow on the front. At about 5 feet the GPH on that pump is down to about half the rated value of 714gph plus any reactors or elbows you have.
 
I use the Sicce 3.0 for my return on a 42 gallon hex tank. It also supplies a calcium reactor, biopellet reactor and a carbon reactor. You can hear the pump but it is not quite as loud as the skimmer. I have had no issues but I did have to add silicone tubing between the pump and manifold to reduce the hum. BRS sell this and I would recommend using it with any pump. If you have time give it a try on your current setup.
 
If it were me, I would go with the Fluval SP. They are based on the Italian made Askoll blocks which are about the quietest non DC pumps on the market and they are extremely reliable.
 
Only issue with the fluval sp2 is it is 1" outlet and my return is 3/4. It doesnt seem to handle head that we'll so I'm worried I'd just trash the flow going from 1" to 3/4. Only option would be forgetting my return and going over the top.
 
That fluval sp2 only flows 290gph at 4.5 feet of head. Wow. I've got 38" plus 2 45s, a ball valve, lockline return and I'm feeding reactors. Seems I'd destroy the flow of that sp2
 
trmiv said:
That fluval sp2 only flows 290gph at 4.5 feet of head. Wow. I've got 38" plus 2 45s, a ball valve, lockline return and I'm feeding reactors. Seems I'd destroy the flow of that sp2
Click to expand...

Yea, the height coupled with friction loss isn't going to help. You might consider the SP4. Yea, the 1" to 3/4" will restrict the flow a bit but think of it as being similar to adding a gate valve which you will likely need anyway. The upside to the increased flow that the SP4 will provide you plenty of extra flow to feed your reactors and refugium. A bit overkill perhaps but still a great pump and darn near the same power consumption.
 
Man that Sp4 is a beast. I'd be going from overkill to massive overkill. I guess it would be useful when I upgrade to the 120 or 150 cube I'm eying. I'm sort of leaning towards sicce syncra 3.0 since they are rather compact. I wish that sp2 was a bit better on head because I'd really like an askoll block pump.
 
So after doing a rather unscientific test of my return pump flow, I think I'm flowing a lot less through my sump that I thought. I stuck a 1g bucket on the return and filled it in about 30 seconds. So that's roughly 120gph. A total waste of my Eheim 1262's capabilties. I turned it up a bit, but it wasn't long until I was overwhelming the terribly designed slim "reef ready" overflow on this marineland cube. The issue is the level in the overflow will rise so much that it stops surface skimming at anything over about 220gph. The 1" pipe will handle a lot more, but the overflow itself becomes essentially useless because there is no surface skimming going on.

Given that I'd say that I can easily get away with the Fluval SP2, a Sicce 2.0 or 3.0, or a Tunze 1073.020. Really leaning either Fluval SP2 or Tunze. The SP2 can he had for around $65 on Amazon, which is an awesome price for that pump.
 
trmiv said:
I know the DC pumps are very quiet, but I'm not sold on the reliability of them, especially the cheaper ones. Hum or no hum this Eheim has been running pretty much continuously for 8 of the 10 years I've had it.
Click to expand...

I agree, I wish Eheim made a 2500gph pump!

I went with a Waveline 12000 apex ready, we will see how long it lasts. At least it has a MeanWell power supply, that made me feel better. needing 3 pumps to run the tank and closed loops, it isn't a disaster if one fails.
 
The newer eagerness uses better power supply. The older ones were dying cause the power supply were over heating and burning out. The motor blocks were all fine. That's at least mine experience.
 
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