which pump is best

muzz

New member
hello all, i have 2 closed loops on my 125g tank, and i am looking for pumps to run them. the tank is in the living room, so i am looking for the quietest pumps out there. i have read mixed reviews on the gen x pumps, some say they are quiet and others say they are loud. any opinions, or if you have personal experience with a certain brand, please let me know, thank you,
 
I would recomend a eheim as they are very quiet. Maybe the 1262, it will give you yrs of trouble free life.
 
for a CL, you don't want to use a pump rated for a pressure application. There is minimal head introduced - only a bit due to friction, etc.

Therefore, it is best to use a pump with a low-rpm motor, such as a sequence snapper or dart.

They can't handle high-head situations well, but for a CL, they work very great. :)

Pete
 
they come both ways,are inexpensive and i have used a half dozen of them non stop for 5 years .the pressure rated pumps would be the HD models and the circulation pumps are the HDX models.
 
I would consider Reeflo pumps as well, though having any two on your CL at one time for you system might be a little overkill though. I also agree with pennilessreefer, for your application a flow biased pump is much better. By the way all pumps are pressure rated to some extent else it won't be able to push water up vertically. There is no industry standard on the words "pressure rated", it's merely used to denote a pump that can handle more head within the same line of pumps for a manufacturer.

I've ran both the PX and PX-X series of pump from Panworld and they are not nearly as quiet as the Dart. I also have Eheim pumps, but for a closed loop you might want something that can move a little more water.

HTH
 
it will be external, as my sump and return pump, skimmer, etc., is all in the basement, and tank is on main floor. so the CL pumps will be upstairs right under the tank itself. the dart seems to be a good pump from what i have read, is it quiet also?

I do not think I have to worry about too much flow, as you know, the ocean is a chaotic place, and isn't that what we are trying to replicate? The tank is AGA 125g, 72" long, I almost went with three CL's........but figured that may be pushing it, although I have seen it done. I also want to be able to put the pumps on a wavemaker os some sort, one that makes them "throttle" up and down slowly, as I do not want a pump to burn out by being turned on and off all the time.

Can the dart pumps start out slow and go to full then back down to slow again without having problems? Also, I know the lfs here has a display tank that has somehting that does this, but I know I could get it for less online. Any good recommendations for wavemakers for pumps, not powerheads? I do not want to have any powerheads in this tank at all. thanks for all the information,
 
I run my Dart on a WavySea and my Hammerhead on an OceansMotions 4-way. I'm not sure if you can achieve a gradual increase in flow with any wavemaker but you can always put an actuator before it i guess. You might have to worry about cyclical wear if you plan to have it slow down and ramp up frequently. The Oceansmotions does have a gradual output to each port but the total flow coming from the unit is always the same. Dart is very very quiet and my Hammerhead is soso a low hum that is not so distinct. So you are planning to have two darts on a CL on your system? If so i think there is a guy with a 300 something gallon on the large reef forum that set something up like that with two OceanMotions.
 
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I run two OM 2-ways on my tank.

Since they alternate due to a drum rotating, the flow gradually increases to full output as they spin.

For your 125, if you plan on keeping more demanding coral, you should shoot for at least 40x turnover, and two snappers (rated at 2500gph each) would be right there. They only pull 98w as well.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9691716#post9691716 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by chacha
I have used those same pumps and had nothing but problems

Which? The ReefFlow?

I'm very happy with my hammerhead...it moves a lot of water with a minimal hum.
 
personally, I use a very large Iwaki connected to a c-face baldor motor, as I don't trust directly-coupled pumps :)

But I think that you will generally find that many people are happy w/ sequence products as well as their customer support.
 
i will have to look into the oceans motions, as I am not sure as to what they are, I am still new to this hobby, learning everyday. I have had a smaller tank, 45g, set up for over 6 months, but it is not really good for saltwater, I was misled ( ripped off), buy a lfs, so I have found a new lfs, and am doing a bigger tnak now the "right" way.

Yes, I will be using two pumps for the CL. 2 seperate systems. The main line, drains through sump and return, are run with a pan world pump, with 44' of head pressure. It works really well, but is a bit noisy(humming). It is in the basement though, so doesnt really matter.

I am looking to be keeping sps,lps, and I really like the monti plating type corals. So yes, they will be more demanding. For light, I am getting the constellation fixture, with 14 t-5 bulbs. It looks like a great fixture to me.

Are the OM's hard to hook up at all? I plumber my tank myslef, with no leaks. I am fairly handy, and I work in the trades. I would imagine it wouldn't be too difficult, just wondering though. thanks again,
 
just a couple of threaded --> slip adapters and you're good :)

I really think that they are worth the investment if you are going the CL route.

Paul is also very helpful.
 
Not so hard to hook up in my opinion just some piping you'll need to run here and there. Nothing a handy person can't tackle. I wish i could find that thread for you, he did a really nice plumbing job connecting the Darts to the OceansMotions. It gives you an idea on how it hooks up. I'll post again if i find it.
 
By the way, which Panworld pump do you use to pump up 44' of head? I can only think of the 250PS but that thing will only be pumping less than 100 gallons per hour.
 
i think all the sequence supporters should mention that they are rated with 1.5 inch plumbing which very few of us have room for or use.the blue lines are rated with more usable plumbing so the gph you actually get is more realistic and not inflated .if you run a sequence on 1 inch or three quarter they do not make much flow IMO.
 
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