Reeflo pump alternatives

[75pxatr]

Seals went in my hammerhead pump last night. The pump is barely 2 years old. I use it as the sole pump on a 210 gallon main display with 350 total gallons.

I love the water pressure but this is not the first bad experience with this pump design.

What are you using on your large tanks?

Still waiting to hear from reeflo........

 

[mcgyvr]

Iwaki makes great pumps and there are also many new DC pumps,etc..

How much head pressure do you have?
What is your desired flowrate?

 

[ericarenee]

with reeflo pumps the seals are a Maintenance part everyone should keep a extra pair of seals . they are cheap and takes a whole 15 minutes to change...


I have been using reeflo pumps for ever . i switched to Jebao dc pump recently. but to do so i had to move my Hot water heater as it was right below my Tank and then moved my sump 14 feet across the basement..


but i agree there are many pumps out there..

 

[75pxatr]

Reeflo is sending a replacement under warranty. I was told the seals should last over 3 years. I have never had a set last that long. Curious for those will reeflo pumps, how long before you changed seals?

 

[ericarenee]

Reeflo is sending a replacement under warranty. I was told the seals should last over 3 years. I have never had a set last that long. Curious for those will reeflo pumps, how long before you changed seals?

From my experience and what i have read.
They can last 2 seconds or 10 years..

Kinda like any seal of this type.. most say between 2-3 years..

 

[jda]

Ampmaster. I have some running for about 15 years with absolutely no issues. They are a better pump. Iwaki, GenX and PanWorld are GREAT pumps, but volume can be an issue for them - these are excellent high-head pumps.

I have never had a sequence pump last more than two years myself... seals or motors or melting... just a bunch of issues that I don't care to deal with anymore.

DC pumps have some promise, but nearly all of them are a few iterations in after just a few years. Even if the first DC pump ever made was still running issue free (which is not likely), it still would be an infant in the Ampmaster or Iwaki world.

 

[Ron Reefman]

DC pumps have some promise, but nearly all of them are a few iterations in after just a few years. Even if the first DC pump ever made was still running issue free (which is not likely), it still would be an infant in the Ampmaster or Iwaki world.

I have 3 Jebao DC12000 pumps (1st generation) that were bought as soon as Jebao brought them out (about 4 years ago?) I even bought a spare in case I had issues. That spare is still sitting on the shelf unused. Two of them have run at 100% power and the 3rd at 50% power 24/7. Not a single issue.

They are quiet, they run very, very cool, they run at multiple speeds, they have failsafe programming if they get jambbed... so how does the Iwaki stack up to that? The Iwaki pump I had ran hot as heck.

To the OP, I had a Reeflo and I had the same issues. Chris replaced the seals twice and the rusted/noisy motor once over 3 years. So customer service was excellent, but IMHO the product design is now an antique. I wouldn't buy anything but a DC pump with speed control.

 

[L8Braker]

I had reeflo and while they may be great for low head setups my seals failed after 3-6 months. I got tired of that and the low pressure due to head height and swapped to panworld and man what a difference! Iwaki /Panworld would be my recommendation.

 

[jda]

I had 4 different DC pumps and none of them made it past a year. For full disclosure, I did not use any Jebao products since I won't support an IP stealing Chinese company, so I don't know anything about those... I suppose that they could have made them better than the companies whose IP they stole, but I would not know.

In any case, they still don't stack up to an Iwaki. Talk to me in 6-10 more years. What is the wattage on them at full blast? Do you have a kill-a-watt. The Coralife model that I had (same pump) was well over 175 watts at full blast - which was twice what was advertised but I did try and use it at head which was a mistake. That is almost up there with a Iwaki or Panworld. It is higher than an dart (which I would not get) or an ampmaster that can do 55 gallons per minute at 150 watts.

 

[75pxatr]

Seems like we all agree. Great service from Reeflo but design is suspect. The direct drive pump design has me concerned but I have looked at dolphin pumps and may try one.

The benefit of the one hammerhead is that I have enough flow to feed the tank and my other reactors. I'm guessing that with an Iwaki, I would need multiple pumps due to the lower rated output?

Pump failure and the subsequent leaking risks not only my tank but my finished basement. The recent failure had me pluming in a retrofit pump on Sunday evening instead of watching football. I can only imagine what would have happened if I was out of town.

 

[gcarroll]

I have a few friends who have swapped out their Reeflo's with Fluval SP 6. They are all very pleased with the results. They can be run internally or externally.

 

[soulpatch]

I have a few friends who have swapped out their Reeflo's with Fluval SP 6. They are all very pleased with the results. They can be run internally or externally.

I have a SP6 on my tank and my dad's 10 year old reeflo died AGAIN though this time was the motor and not the seals. He decided to try my spare SP6 on his tank with basement sump and such and has since gone off and bought his own.

I also have Iwaki pumps running for my water change setup and they are fantastic. My pops has perhaps a 15 year old Iwaki that he uses sparingly to mix his water with.

 

[Andrew D]

Somewhat related and maybe silly question, but what happens when the seal goes? Does the pump merely leak or is air introduced into the water stream? I've had my hammerhead for years and haven't done any maintenance for at least 3. No issues other than the salt creep from a slow leak. The things a monster.

 

[75pxatr]

Just checked out the SP6. Impressive flow for such a compact pump. Thanks for the input. This looks like a suitable alternative. Given the relative low cost, It makes it easy to give it a try.

I would be interested in any feedback from anyone running a dolphin pump. Does their seal system prove more reliable?

 

[davocean]

Add me to the list that will never buy a reeflo again for reasons mentioned, especially the ones that came w/ an A.O. Smith motor if there are any still floating around.
I also have used the Fluvals, much better option IMO.

 

[75pxatr]

For those of you running the Fluval, are you using it internal or external? how close is the flow to specified?

I'm have no experience with it but it seems almost too good to be true

 

[soulpatch]

I have an SP4 external for my one water container and I have the SP6 internal as mmy return pump. No issues with either and I woul dsay the flow is pretty spot on to claims.

 

[75pxatr]

Andrew D. - When the seal goes, the pump will leak water. So your tank will loose water and it will be on your floor. The leak can also damage the shaft or the bearings.

in my case the seals corroded and that wear damaged the motor shaft. If you are seeing any salt creep or a leak you are on borrowed time. I would order a set of seals and have a back up plan.

If I keep using a Reeflo pump, the seals are getting replaced every two years.

 

[luvreefs23]

Same here, no more reef flo for me either. 3 seals within a year. Bought a panworld and it's been solid for 4 years and still going.

 

[jda]

Seems like we all agree. Great service from Reeflo but design is suspect. The direct drive pump design has me concerned but I have looked at dolphin pumps and may try one.

FWIW - Dolphins are not direct drive like the Iwaki, PanWorld or GenX. They have seals, they just last if you get the saltwater ones. You can get some that have lifetime warranty on the seals (I think). These would be as close to what you are used to.