external vs. internal (sump) pump

[oz]

Yes, new thread.....for my 155G bowfront.

External reduces pump heat transfer to the tank but is loud unless you buy a quiet one. Also can be "easier" to replace by easy access to the connections.

Internal sump pump is quiet but transfers heat to the tank.

What are your opinions on internal vs. external pumps?

 

[jetchris]

Mag pumps usually only raise the temp about 1 degree "internal" there are several great external pumps that are quiet you can buy such as eheim, iwaki, posiedon <--- known to be absolutely silent.

 

[oz]

i would like at least 1500GPH.

What about the "Quiet One" 6000? familiar? on sale for $93.

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+4585+9849&pcatid=9849">http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+4585+9849&pcatid=9849</a>

The external Mak 4 is killing me right now.

 

[family reefer]

I say that any time you move over 120 gal external pumps are the way to go. Any sump pump that turn a tank over 10 times an hour that is over 120 gal in size........external is the way to go. PS Pan Worlds are loud!!

 

[jefft]

I use the internal pump because I have no place to put an external one. I also use the heat from the pumps (return and skimmer) to warm the water. My house is at 70F deg in the winter and 75F in the summer. Keeps the heater from having to work to hard lol. I have no noise problems and taking the pump out for maintainence in no problem with the disconnect on the PVC.
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[vettesarebest]

Another thing to think about is, space in your sump.... if you have room, then I would go internal. However external will give you more room for a beastly protein skimmer.

 

[james s_]

chrisjet;121608 wrote: Mag pumps usually only raise the temp about 1 degree "internal" there are several great external pumps that are quiet you can buy such as eheim, iwaki, posiedon <--- known to be absolutely silent.

FWIW,the Poseidon Pumps are silent,but they do add more heat then any of the other pumps mentioned. on a 155 gallon tank that may not be too much of a problem,but just wanted to let you know before you bought one. I have heard of 3-4 degree temp. increase from those T3-T4 pumps.

 

[skriz]

Sequence pumps run silent and cool. My 2 hammerheads are very quiet.

You could easily use a dart or the smaller one (can't remember the name). Price is much higher though.

I like external; keeps stuff out of the water. I would make sure that you take the necessary precautions for leaks though.

 

[schwaggs]

With some planning and unions, both internal and external can be just as easy to replace. If you have your sump in a stand, internals can be a little harder to get to but externals take up space.

You can get noisy or quiet internal and external pumps. I use Iwaki and have never been bothered by the noise.

I prefer External pumps mostly because of a couple bad experiences with RIO 2500 pumps spewing black tar all over my reef and virtually killing everything. I avoid internal return pumps for this reason alone...

 

[oz]

I am going to try an internal Mag18 tomorrow night to see how I like it. If I don't, I can always go back to a quiet external.

Thanks for the opinions, it gives me a direction on where to go as a backup.

 

[cameron]

Mags are loud even submerged IMO. How far are you pumping out of curosity?

 

[oz]

6ft wide tank and 25" tall on a 28" stand. (sump/pump in stand. Not too far. I am going to put a bin in the stand with water and the MAG18 to test before I do anything major. If you're right and it's loud too, I will be going with an external quiet pump, maybe the Poseidon I guess.

 

[cameron]

Any reason you are going to crank that much flow through the sump? Most sumps only need 3 to 5 times turnover per hour. Not sure the size of your sump but even at 100g it would likely only need around 500gph max.

 

[oz]

I like more flow from the sump than normal i guess. helps minimize the # of powerheads in the tank.

 

[cameron]

Make sure you have some big bulkheads or several of them. The most a 1" will drain is around 600gph.

 

[oz]

<span style="font-family: Arial;">This is the external that's running everything now and it's doing fine:</span>
<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Gen-X PCX-40 (Mak4) 1190 gph 22' (6.8m) 3000rpm 3/4" MPT / 3/4" MPT.</span>

But I believe the MAG18 is 1800GPH so I can see the concern.

 

[roland jacques]

ChrisOzment;121609 wrote: i would like at least 1500GPH.

What about the "Quiet One" 6000? familiar? on sale for $93.

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+4585+9849&pcatid=9849">http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+4585+9849&pcatid=9849</a>

The external Mak 4 is killing me right now.[/QUOTE]

High flow/low pressure pumps typically end up pumping around 30% - 40% less what their rated for by the time you plumb them into your tank. Plumbing causes back pressure, pipe size reduction, 90 turns...

Quiet One pumps are very quiet if they have minimal back pressure on them.
Mags are on the loud side IMO

If quiet is your goal, determine what your water movement goal really is and why. Most people don't want or need 10xs there tank volume going through their sump. The water alone will be noisy and their are many other reason not to have that much sump flow. A lot of Reef "Experts" flow much less water through their sump 2-4 xs the tank size. They get their circulation for their tank water but other means. Penductors, Closed loops, or in tank high flow pumps. One small 20 Watt in tank pump can move more than 15xs your tank volume. just something to think about.

 

[roland jacques]

Man I'm a slow typer.

 

[roland jacques]

ChrisOzment;121764 wrote: <span style="font-family: Arial;">This is the external that's running everything now and it's doing fine:</span>

<span style="font-family: Arial;">Gen-X PCX-40 (Mak4) 1190 gph 22' (6.8m) 3000rpm 3/4" MPT / 3/4" MPT.</span>

But I believe the MAG18 is 1800GPH so I can see the concern.

You may not see any difference in tank flow from 2 pumps depending on your plumbing. The Gen x handles back pressure better and quieter than mag drives do

 

[roland jacques]

ChrisOzment;121755 wrote: I like more flow from the sump than normal i guess. helps minimize the # of powerheads in the tank.

You can get one Maxijet 1200 power head and put a Sureflow 2000 Stream Mod kit on it and get well over 2000 gph out of 1 "powerhead.