Recomendations for a very quiet water pump ?

[nelson4u]

This is my first post on this forum. I am just starting a 120 gallon fish only tank. The room it will be in doubles as a home theater, so I need to find a good pump that will run extremely quiet so you can't hear it while listening to quiet seens in movies.
I will be running a canister filter as well as a UV sterilizer, and in line heater. Can anyone recomend a good quiet pump ? Thanks for any input. MIKE

[IslandReefer]

hey Mike

The t3 and t4 velocity pumps are very very quiet and reliable pumps:

http://www.jlaquatics.com/cgi-bin/sh...ogno=wp-cslt04



hope this helps
John

[Reefland]

Hi nelson4u and Welcome to Reefland!

Can you provide us with some more details? Are you running this inline or submersed and how many gallons per hour are you looking to move? For submersable, I like the MAG Drives, I have 1 for a return and 1 powering my skimmer and both are extremely quiet.

Scott Z.

[nelson4u]

Thanks John and Scott,

Scott, I will be running this inline and I will need to move about 900 GPH to turn the tank 9 or 10 times per hour. I will have a canister filter, uv sterilizer, and inline heater that it needs to pump through as well as about 2 feet up to the bottom of tank so I figure it will need to pump about 1200 GPH after figuring in the restrictions of this equiptment. What do you think ?

[Reefland]

I can't really provide any recommendations on an inline pump, the MAGS are not good inline pumps. I know a member on the board isn't too pleased with the noise level from his Little Giant pumps so I would stay clear from them.

Scott Z.

[nelson4u]

Thanks Scott,

I also think the litte giant pump is too noisy. Does anyone else know of a good quiet pump ? MIKE

[nelson4u]

hey Mike

The t3 and t4 velocity pumps are very very quiet and reliable pumps:

http://www.jlaquatics.com/cgi-bin/sh...ogno=wp-cslt04



hope this helps
John

Hey John,
Have you used the Velocity pumps ? I have heard that they cause your water to heat up due to it being a centrifugul pump with no fan . Do you know if there is any truth to that ? MIKE

[Ninong]

Hey John,
Have you used the Velocity pumps ? I have heard that they cause your water to heat up due to it being a centrifugul pump with no fan . Do you know if there is any truth to that ? MIKE

The Velocity pumps are the same as the Silent Seas series that Dolphin discontinued a couple of years ago due to problems. Dolphin decided they could no longer sell them for saltwater applications. These pumps were not manufactured by Dolphin, but they were sold as Dolphin pumps. I personally spoke with Tom, Jr. at Dolphin because I had one (brand new in the box) and was concerned since their website said they were dropping them. He told me that they do impart more heat to the water than their larger Ampmaster 3000 pump. The reason Dolphin dropped them was because they were getting too many returns of failed pumps in saltwater applications. So I returned my Silent Seas pump to the vendor for credit on an Ampmaster 3000, which I subsequently sold because at the time I thought it was too large for my 120-gal tank. Now I have two Little Giant pumps, which I do not like at all. They are too noisy and put out too much heat.

However, Joaco purchased his Silent Seas pump (same as Velocity) at the same time as I did originally and he has been using it for the past three years or so and absolutely loves it. He said it is extremely quiet. I'm not sure how often he has to clean it, probably at least once at year, maybe once every six months. There are reports on other boards that these pumps need to be cleaned at least every four to six months.

[IslandReefer]

Hey John,
Have you used the Velocity pumps ? I have heard that they cause your water to heat up due to it being a centrifugul pump with no fan . Do you know if there is any truth to that ? MIKE

Hey Mike
I have heard that but, I have also heard that about Mag pumps,being submerged,give all heat to the water. I have heard good and bad about most pumps. I bought a T4 for the same reason you asked about .....ie very quiet.
The T4 was the quietest I could find..and on testing it is just a faint hum and it didn't seem to generate an excessive amount of heat (motor was barely warm after a hour.) As for robustness; I will wait and see. It has been recomended that a person inspect pump impellors etc. once every 6 mths. anyway, and if it needs a clean then so be it. Sorry that is all the practical experience I have for now....I will just have to see if there is a downside to a very high tech looking very quiet, compact pump.
Good Reefing
John

[stang69]

Ampmaster or there is also a brand out called sweetwater that is sold thru ummmmmm Aqua Medic I believe I will look it up if I still have the link. The sweetwater pumps seem to be pretty good pumps and move the water. Had 2 of them running in the shop I used to work at.


Jeff

[stang69]

Dont have the link any more sorry


Jeff

[nelson4u]

Thanks for your help everyone.


John, How long have you been using the T4 and has it increased your water temp. at all ? I live in Phoenix and in the summer my house stays at 80 degrees so I can not have a pump that will warm the water more than 2 degrees .

[nelson4u]

Jeff,

Are you familiar with the Ampmaster ? I really like that pump also, but it has 1 1/2 in and out. I am using a closed loop system going 2 inlets from undergravel filter into pump and output of pump going to canister filter and UV sterilizer and back to tank. Could I reduce the 1 1/2 output from pump to two 3/4" outlets ? One to the filter and the other to the UV ? I will need about 800 GPH after all the plumbing and head pressure. I am wondering if the Ampmaster 2700 or 3000 will work ? MIKE

[bigdog54]

I've heard dolphin pumps are quiet, powerful, and reliable. I'm about to set up at 240 and thats what i'm leaning toward.

[FinsReef]

Eheim 1262's are quite, but are rated at ~900gph. The quietest pump around is the Red Dragon pumps by Royal Exclusiv. If dead silent is an issue you must look into them. Also they have the lowest power usage for their flow rates.

On the Lower end of the spectrum the Ocean Runner pumps by Aqua-medic are good also.

[fishbrains]

I have the old velocity pumps in 2 fish tanks. I bought them when they were being sold under the custom sealife brand. I believe they are now being sold as poseidon titanium pumps. The design looks similar but I can't be 100% sure it is the same.

First thing I have to say is these pumps are silent. I can't hear them unless i put my ears next to it. Even then you have to be looking for something to detect any noise.

Now having said this... These pumps do run hot. I do the old finger test. I apply my finger to the pump and see how long I can hold it there. I would say about 2 minutes before it comes to a point where i have to move my fingers.

In my pump research I have found that usually it is 1 thing or another. To make pumps more quiet additional material to used to dampen the noise which cause more heat. So it is a matter of what you can live with. I have had one of the pump for 2 years now. No cleaning or breakdown to speak of. I just added another velocity to another setup. I needed the smaller footprint which this pump does provide.

HTH
Jack