External return pump setup

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hey guys, i'm busy setting up my 2 sumps and need to drill the holes & do the plumbing for my 2 external return pumps...

can any of you please post a pic of how you setup your external pump, i just need to see how you setup your plumbing (and flex piping) etc...

i was thinking of doing:

sump glass ---> tank connector (bulkhead) ---> ball valve ---> union ---> return pump

some people say you should use flex piping somewhere in there as well for noise reduction / vibration etc. but i'm not sure where to put it?

cheers & thanks!
 
Too lazy to take a photo of mine right now, but I use a bit of flexi pipe from the pump for about 6 inches then onto the rigid PVC pipe and up to the tank, nothing fancy.
 
i'll go with viper on this one.what return pump (brand) you planning on using?
 
I always run flex tube directly from return pump to the tank, no PVC plumbing required.:thumbup:
 
It's easier to get the pump out for cleaning and for moving it around a little bit if you just use a bit of flexi where viper said...
 
just make 100% sure that the flexi is sucurely tied to the pvc piping.you dont want it to slide off the pvc and spray all over your place
Quite right, I used PVC weld to glue the flexi pipe onto the PVC and I also added a hose clamp for extra safety.
 
can any of you please post a pic of how you setup your external pump, i just need to see how you setup your plumbing (and flex piping) etc...

OK, heres two photos - the first shows my original layout, which worked very well. The second photo shows my current setup with a 'manifold' into which I've mounted my pH and ORP probes (this is done to ensure that the tips of the probes remain under water even if the power to the return pump is interrupted.

1094846e1d092f8d.jpg


1094846e1f4a5b0d.jpg


i was thinking of doing:
sump glass ---> tank connector (bulkhead) ---> ball valve ---> union ---> return pump

sounds OK - but use gate valves instead of ball valves, if possible. They seal better, and can be controlled much more accurately.

some people say you should use flex piping somewhere in there as well for noise reduction / vibration etc. but i'm not sure where to put it?

Yes, you should use flexible piping on both the inlet and outlet sides of the pump. This does not need to by very long, just a 100mm or so would be enough to 'decouple' the vibrations of the pump from the tank.

Hennie
 
awesome many thanks hennie!!! makes a lot more sense to me now
:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
 
WOW Hennie! That's AWESOME plumbing! And a really SERIOUS return pump?

Thanks guys, yes - it is quite a "serious" pump. It's a Pan World, manufactured in Japan by the guy who used to be the chief design engineer for Iwaki pumps - he has been running his own business for a few years now, making really excellent magnetic-drive pumps. There is an agent for these pumps in South Africa (not aquarium related, they supply these pumps for industrial use). I will try to find their details this weekend, if anyone is interested.

Hennie
 
i am actually interested to try them in our water floors in our spot repair booths at venture otto.. please let me know...
 
Thanks guys, yes - it is quite a "serious" pump. It's a Pan World, manufactured in Japan by the guy who used to be the chief design engineer for Iwaki pumps - he has been running his own business for a few years now, making really excellent magnetic-drive pumps. There is an agent for these pumps in South Africa (not aquarium related, they supply these pumps for industrial use). I will try to find their details this weekend, if anyone is interested.

Hennie

yes pretty please! :thumbup:

ps. how much flow does it produce how much electricity does it chow?

thanks!
:)
 
WOW Mille! Been a LONG while since we saw this enigine room of yours! This AWESOME MAN! One hectic amount of reactors you have there! Which model Deltec skimmer is that? The APF-600?
 
Sorry for being so scarce, I really only get a gap every now and again to browse and maybe post something. Yip it’s an APF600.
Punk here is a closer pic of the pump and plumbing. I had the pump on a sponge block to eliminate any vibration.

pump2.jpg


pump3.jpg
 
many thanks for all your help mille! :thumbup:
 
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