need help on CL pump

[kau_cinta_ku]

ok so this has ben on my mind for along time and i need some help as i can't seem to figure it out. what would be a good CL pump for around 2000-2500 gph i was deciding on a couple of pumps but not sure. need for around 5-6 feet head.

1. Sequence ReeFlo Dart
3600 gph max/2820 gph @4'
1.4A/160 watts
$218.00

2. Gen-X PCX-150
2250 gph max
$349.00

3. TE-5.5-MDQ-SC
2100 gph @6'
4.6 amps/445watts
$329.00

i like all 3 however the dart seems to be best off due to pricing and electricty. does anyone have any other suggestions of pumps? i'm all ears.
thanks for any help.

[creslin2]

call me a skeptic, but the dart seems to run on little electricity and delivers more gph, with a lower price..... something seems.....er.....fishy? (sorry for the pun) :strange: Personally, (not knowing much in the first place) I would be wary of the dart, just because it seems too good for such a low price. Or maybe it's the coolest one out there and I'm just being silly for doubting the deal. Hopefully someone has direct experience with one of these and can provide insight.

[creslin2]

Hey Sam. You have a brackish tank, what do you have in it? Ever try plants at all? How old is the tank? What specific gravity do you normally run at (slightly brackish to heavily brackish?) Any suggestions for a new guy starting a 10 gallon tank? (other than don't overstock it) I toyed with the idea of having a puffer or two, but I don't really have anyplace to put them when they grow up, and the snails would likely be a problem for me, since I hadn't really planned on growing them myself, and it would be a shame to have to depend on a LFS daily for their food....

[Travis]

Well Sam, there are a few other factors that will come into play here. How many outlets will there be and how large will each outlet be? What size is the intake going to be? IIRC, your tank is already drilled. With the dart you have to have at least a 2" inlet. If you can get a 2" inlet and a 1.5" outlet or else multiple smaller outlets then the Dart is the way to go no doubt. Darts are one of the best pumps out there for electrical consumption conscientious people (we all should be). But it is a low head high flow pump so you cannot restrict the outlet size or you will greatly decrease the flow you get from it. Same goes for the plumging, you need to keep it as straight as possible and use as few 90's as possible or you will really decrease the output.

The Little Giant will be wasted electrical consumption for your needs. This is a high head pump that is made for applications where there will be a lot of head pressure. It can pump against a lot of head pressure and the output will barely decrease at all. In a CL application you will be wasting electricity when you should be running a low head high flow pump or at least a medium head high flow pump.

The same goes for the GenX. It is a low flow high head pump and you will be wasting electricity. It is a great pump, but is better suited for other applications.

Also, you stated that your CL will have 5-6 feet head. Are you talking about friction loss or vertical head? FWIW, CL applications don't encounter vertical head unless you have piping more than 1 foot above the water level.

[kau_cinta_ku]

well i need to change my info as i don't have the brackish tank anymore but when i did i had just a bunch of mollies. i did try figure 8 puffers however i could never seem to have any luck with them so i can't give any good advice there sorry. as for live plants i only keep them in my freshwater tank as i didn't have the lighting for live plants on that tank. i kept my sg at around 1.013 with a ph of 8.0 they really are a fun tank to have however i just decided to try out something diff. and now that tank has a good 8" tiger oscar in it along with 3 big goldfish that became friends instead of a meal:p good luck though.

[kau_cinta_ku]

as for my CL i have 1 1/2 bulkhead that will feed the pump and will be 1 1/2 plumbing to the top of the tank where it will split off to 1" plumbing to 4 outlets. as for the 5 feet of head that would be from the bottom of the stand to the top of the tank. but i also agree the dart does seem to be the way to go.
now will being only a 1 1/2 inlet to the pump be a prob. instead of 2"? thanks again for the help

[creslin2]

In my searches, I did find a few puffer/brackish resources. Here's a couple of the better ones.

http://www.pufferfish.co.uk/index.htm

http://www.thepufferforum.org/

http://users.macunlimited.net/n.monks/brackfaq.html#BM1a

[Travis]

The way you will be setting up your CL, there will be no vertical head. In a CL you don't start counting vertical head until you get above the water level in the tank, which shouldn't happen in a CL setup anyways. You do still need to calculate friction loss due to PVC fittings and the PVC itself.

Unfortunately, you cannot run a Dart with a 1.5" intake. You could look into the Ampmasters. However, most people (myself included) have had never ending problems with Ampmaster seals leaking. I ran a Ampmaster 3000 on a CL on my 75 and had to replace the seal every other month. I don't know a single person that has owned an Ampmaster and never had to replace the seal. The worst part is when you call Dolphin to tell them you need a replacement seal they are rude to you and tell you it is YOUR fault because there is nothing wrong with their seals. I will say that other than the seal, the Ampmasters are great pumps. I would hold them in the same regard as the Sequence line if they didn't have the seal problems. I see they do have a new "marine" seal so they may have finally done something to make it better. With any centrifugal pump, you will have to replace the seals at some point. The Ampmasters were just notorious for needing it done after little use. I've been running my Sequences for 18 months and haven't had to replace a seal yeat. I had 1 ampmaster that needed a seal replaced after 2 months, and another ampmaster that needed a seal replaced after 1 week.:eek:

[kau_cinta_ku]

wow great help as always Travis thanks. but now got a couple more questions(go figure:D)

ok i did just noticed that the dart does have a 2" intake and i have a 1 1/2" bulkhead could i just leave the bulkhead the same size and make the piping go to 2" to go to the dart or will that mess things up?
next i also seen sequence has salt water pumps would that be good in my situation? i was thinking the model 3200 (http://www.marinedepot.com/aquarium_pumps_mdm_sequence_750_1000_series.asp?CartId=)

i am sure i will prob. have more questions but those were on my mind after reading your post, and again thanks a bunch for the help. i am also keeping in mind the amp master pumps and may try them out with the new seal they have, but not sure yet as i also heard of ppl haveing alot of prob. with those pumps, but not sure how the new seals are.

[tangdiver]

Just a thought...I can get these things in also...please give me a chance to be competitive againist online venues...just let me know exactly what you want...thanks sorry if this is out of line for everyone...just want people to know I am but also not like LFS

[Travis]

Stupid me, I can't believe I forgot about the smaller 1000 series Sequence line. I used a 3200 on my last beckett skimmer and it was a great pump. It did need to be repaired a couple times but Sequence has amazing customer service. They would send out a loaner pump as soon as I called them. They would then make the repairs on my pump free of charge and I just had to pay to ship my pump to them and the loaner back to them. Their pumps and their service are top notch. The 3200 would be about perfect for your application. A tad more electrical draw than the dart but not much and it has a 1.5" intake and can handle a little friction loss better.

With a dart, you cannot restrict the intake at all. This also goes for using a 1.5" bulkhead and immediately increasing the pipe size to 2". The restriction you must consider is the smallest part of the intak line, even if it is just the bulkhead itself.

Grant, I think it is great that you are trying to bring products to us at prices that are competitive to online vendors. I would rather order directly through you and support some local than have to order online.

[tangdiver]

Thanks, just gotta keep it low, but quality HIGH...sometimes cheapest is not always best...sorry but gotta pay elect. bill...

Hope I do not make people mad by doing this...

See ya all later...

[creslin2]

make people mad by offering comparable services locally? who would that tick off? ^_^

[kau_cinta_ku]

Thanks Grant i'll will deff. check with you when i start getting everything. i love to help support LFS but sometime i have to admit the prices are so high priced i have to go through online. but i will deff. check you out first before i make any purchaces.

[tangdiver]

Thanks, just trying to do my best, keep prices as low as I can, and deliver the best bang for you $$$

I am very grateful for all the blessings I have got...a hobby gone wild and to the extreme...

Gotta love the little oceans