Whats the warranty on the Red Dragon 3 Mini Speedy 230 Watt DC Pump.

[carlos danger]

I have a 275 gallon tank with a 90 gallon sump. My plumbing is all 1". Not much head pressure. My pump sits in the sump underneath the tank. My question is Im sick of some of these pumps turding out on me. I clean them every 3 months and the last pump only lasted 2 years. Im not going to name it but its an industry leader so I'm thinking about going another route. I have a Bubble King Mini 200 and it has been flawless so thinking about pairing it with the 230.

My first question is: It should work great, not be over kill, not run as hot and therefore last longer in theory if I only need to run it at 3500 gph. With the sale going on it seems like a better option than doing a 150 and needing to keep it working harder at a more max setting.

My second question is: Does it matter where I buy it from i.e., off ebay, premium aquatics, etc. or is it better if I get it directly from you. If I lose my receipt am I screwed for replacement. If on eBay do I just take a screen shot and keep that as proof.

My third question is:Just wondering about the length of warranty on this guy and if it needs to be replaced and is a couple months out of warranty am I S.O.L.

I just want and need a pump that will last the test of time if properly cared for and to know that if something happens that the manufacturer has my back. $1200 is a lot of money but is well spent if the pump lives up to expectation, doesn't lose power as it ages, and doesn't turd out after a couple years.

Also does it come with bib attachments if you decide to connect using soft tubing vs. hard plumbing?

Thanks,
Carlos

 

[Breadman03]

I've been running the 230 on my 150 with basement sump for a little under two years. It's still silent and provides plenty of flow. Mine came with unions ready to accept PVC. Actually, I used only PVC to plumb my system and there is absolutely no vibration at all. Well, as far as I can tell without some sort of measuring instrument.

My system at full tilt is running at 46 dB per the dB 10th iPhone app. That's the RD3-230, 4xMP40's and 2x Radions and if I turn off the ETM stuff, you can't tell anything is on. My dream tank will likely have dual closed loops with RD3's (or the then current version) driving them.

 

[slief]

Personally for a 220 gallon display, the RD3 150 would be the way to go. The RD3 230 would be a bit overkill and has 1.5" outputs. The warranty is 2 years on the RD3's sold though us and our resellers such as Premium Aquatics..

I run two of the RD3 230's on my 480g display. One for return and one for a closed loop and absolutely love them. They've been running for 2 years now and haven't skipped a beat. The RD3 150 is essentially the same pump as the RD3 230. The power supply in the controller is smaller and the volute and impeller wheel is different. Those are the only differences. The motor and controller are the same. I've run a LOT of different pumps over the years and the RD3 230 is by far my favorite pump of all time. I bought mine when they were first released prior to taking a position with Royal Exclusiv and would buy them again. They are dead silent at any speed (all RD3's are) transfer no heat due to low current design on the block and built like tanks. The issue with most of the DC style pumps on the market besides power supplies is the weak magnets and motors. The pumps are very light weight. The RD3's are massive in comparison. When you pick one up, the difference become very apparent. The impellers in the RD3's weight nearly as much as most other complete DC pumps. This speaks volumes to the power of the pumps. The pumps sold through the US include US sized female slip fittings. Barbed fittings can be added after the fact but we don't supply those. The RD3 150 has 1.5" input and 1.25" output. You could reduce the output but reducing the input is never a great idea. If your sump is acrylic, you always drill a new hole or run the pump internally. If you reduce the input and run it at 1", you will never get the pump near full power and I wouldn't suggest running over 100 watts.

 

[carlos danger]

Personally for a 220 gallon display, the RD3 150 would be the way to go. The RD3 230 would be a bit overkill and has 1.5" outputs. The warranty is 2 years on the RD3's sold though us and our resellers such as Premium Aquatics..

I run two of the RD3 230's on my 480g display. One for return and one for a closed loop and absolutely love them. They've been running for 2 years now and haven't skipped a beat. The RD3 150 is essentially the same pump as the RD3 230. The power supply in the controller is smaller and the volute and impeller wheel is different. Those are the only differences. The motor and controller are the same. I've run a LOT of different pumps over the years and the RD3 230 is by far my favorite pump of all time. I bought mine when they were first released prior to taking a position with Royal Exclusiv and would buy them again. They are dead silent at any speed (all RD3's are) transfer no heat due to low current design on the block and built like tanks. The issue with most of the DC style pumps on the market besides power supplies is the weak magnets and motors. The pumps are very light weight. The RD3's are massive in comparison. When you pick one up, the difference become very apparent. The impellers in the RD3's weight nearly as much as most other complete DC pumps. This speaks volumes to the power of the pumps. The pumps sold through the US include US sized female slip fittings. Barbed fittings can be added after the fact but we don't supply those. The RD3 150 has 1.5" input and 1.25" output. You could reduce the output but reducing the input is never a great idea. If your sump is acrylic, you always drill a new hole or run the pump internally. If you reduce the input and run it at 1", you will never get the pump near full power and I wouldn't suggest running over 100 watts.

Wow! Thats awesome! It seems like the 150 is good for me then. My tank however is 275 gallons or so but sounds like as long as I only need 3500 gallons running most of the time that the 150 will work great. My tank is 90" longx30"wide x 24 tall. I guess all I'll need is a reduced fitting to get my 1inch soft silicone tubing attached to a nipple from the return. For me, Ryan did it on his Reef Savvy from Bulk Reef Supply and it had no vibration and made it super easy to disconnect and clean. Is that a specialty nipple I can't get at plumbing store 1.25npt or can I get that through your store?
Thanks

 

[slief]

Wow! Thats awesome! It seems like the 150 is good for me then. My tank however is 275 gallons or so but sounds like as long as I only need 3500 gallons running most of the time that the 150 will work great. My tank is 90" longx30"wide x 24 tall. I guess all I'll need is a reduced fitting to get my 1inch soft silicone tubing attached to a nipple from the return. For me, Ryan did it on his Reef Savvy from Bulk Reef Supply and it had no vibration and made it super easy to disconnect and clean. Is that a specialty nipple I can't get at plumbing store 1.25npt or can I get that through your store?
Thanks

Nothing special about the fittings. Get yourself a reducer that goes has a male 1.25" to female in what ever size you need for an of the shelf 1" barb. You can find 1" barb fittings in both male slip and thread. This assuming you can't find a 1.25" male slip to 1" barb. Personally, I would hard pipe the pump using 1.25" all the up to the tank and then reduce it there. That would reduce friction loss between the pump and display and save a bit of wattage. These pumps are dead silent and don't have any vibration at all. They also have silicone feed on the base of the pump. Vibration is a non issue. Both of my RD3 230's are 100% hard plumbed and you would never know they were running. Not even if you put your hand on them. I would also use a union ball valve before and after the pump. It makes servicing the pump much easier.

Try giving flexpvc.com a call. They have all kinds of barbed fitting and may have a male 1.25" slip to male 1" barb if you want to attach the barb fitting to the pump but as I said above, I would get a 1.5" union ball valve for in front of the pump and a 1.25" union ball valve for after the pump and then add the barbed fitting or hard plumb it up the tank.