Running a external pump w/o drilling

Avast Marine

.Registered Member
OK, I am setting up a new sump and would like to use some of the equipment I already have to save a little $. I have a Top Fin tank that I plan to use for the sump proper and all 5 pieces of glass are tempered so I cannot drill. I have a Pan World 50x at 600gph external pump wich would be a perfect fit for the volume and head that I have pump. Soooo what I need to know is how to plumb the input of the pump? Do I just elbow over the sump wall? Should the inlet be towards the bottom of the return area or higher up? How will the pump be primed? Is this even possible?
 
yeah, you can do it. i ran the next panworld up that way for at least a year. i had it up and over, then down to a T fitting, and made a basket out of gutterguard to go around it. you gotta get water into it somehow to get it primed before you can fire it up. not much fun. at first i just shot a powerhead up the return outlet in my display, but later i drilled and tapped for a 1/4" speedfit to drive my calcium reactor off this return pump, and with that all i had to do was disconnect it from the calcium reactor and suck the air out through the 1/4" line till it started it's own siphon, then fire it up.
 
Then as long as it doesn't run dry then repriming wouldn't be necissary when power is lost, correct? I am planning on teeing off the return to feed the fuge so I think I could open that valve, suck, and close that valve to prime. What about starting the siphon to feed the pump?
 
I did this over the top deal for a closed loop. Used the design on melev's web site. I don't think I would do it on a sump as if it did lose suction your sump would overflow and make a mess. On a closed loop you just lose flow. IMO buy a submersable pump. You'll be happier in the long run.
 
Then as long as it doesn't run dry then repriming wouldn't be necissary when power is lost, correct?

Correct, the pump and the plumbing into and out of the pump will stay filled with water up to the water level of your sump, so no need to re-prime.


I am planning on teeing off the return to feed the fuge so I think I could open that valve, suck, and close that valve to prime. What about starting the siphon to feed the pump?

That's how mine is set up. You will probably want to have two ball valves, each with unions: one in the branch that tees over to the fuge, and one in the branch that goes back up to the tank. That way you can close both valves, undo the unions, and remove the pump entirely for service or replacement.

For priming, what I do is close the valve going to the fuge, undo the union in the part leading up to the tank, and pour water down into the return pipe (basically reverse of what the water flow would normally be). The water will fill the return pipe, then the pump then flow up and over the edge of your sump. Then close the union back up and the pump should start fine when you plug it in (there will probably still be some trapped air that gets expelled but not enough to keep the pump from starting).



Larry
 
I don't think I would do it on a sump as if it did lose suction your sump would overflow and make a mess.

But if your return pump loses suction, there's no water being pumped through the overflow from the tank, so nothing to cause the sump to overflow...

I've used the over-the-edge setup with an external sump return pump for many years and it works fine, no matter if power goes out or the pumps dies it does not cause any flooding (as long as your sump has enough surplus volume for the water in the plumbing to drain back down, which is an issue whether or not your pump is submerged).


Larry
 
Thanks Larry, that all makes perfect sense to me. Since this is all new plumbing I think I will add a T to the top of the return and screw a cap to that so I have a no frills way to prime after maintenence.
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6985895#post6985895 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by larryl
But if your return pump loses suction, there's no water being pumped through the overflow from the tank, so nothing to cause the sump to overflow...

Larry

I hadn't even thought of that, looks like I am clear for take off......

Dan
 
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