There is an add on ebay for a CA 6000 pump rated at 1500gph and it includes 2x 600gph HOB overflow boxes for $100. Is this system going to work properly with the return so strong? This is the desired pump size i'm looking for, but the overflow doesn't seem to be strong enough.
1200gph of overflow and a 1500gph return pump?
- Thread starter tbradley97
- Start date
The pump flow rate is with no head. Head is the height the water has to be pumped up to get back into the tank. Also any 90 degree elbows you have counts as 1 foot of head. If from your pump in your sump to the top edge of the tank is 4 ft and you have 1 90 to go over the edge you'll have 5 ft of head. I think on a 1500 gph pump with 5 ft of head would probably only be pumping 850 to 950 gph, so it should work fine with the overflows.
Also, if you run the plumbing with a second return line from the pump that runs back into the sump, you can use a ball valve to regulate how much is going to the tank and how much is returning to the sump. Even though aaronb is correct above in his post and the pump should work with that system, it's feasible that at some point in the future the overflows could become too clogged or you replace your pump with a larger version that you got a good deal on when this one fails. By plumbing in a line that returns to the sump, you could solve either issue without throttling back the pump or putting undue head pressure on it, both of which will shorten the life of the pump.
So your saying if I add a return an additional line back to the sump i can extend the life of my pump? And is there a certain way i should add this return line? This is my first time trying a sump because im away at school for 8 months out of the year and my parents only know how to feed my fish not how to clean the aquarium properly.
yeah i run ball valves on mine with no return into the sump it's been fine. seems it might be a problem if you were trying to throttle them back too much.
What I mean is that throttling back a pump puts excess back pressure on it. That pressure will wear it out much faster than not having it. If your pump ends up putting out more flow than you desire, for whatever reason, you can handle it without throttling back the pump by simply changing a bit of the plumbing for it. A very basic (and badly drawn) example is below. A gate valve would probably be more appropriate than a ball valve, and I wouldn't angle the junction like it shows at all, but you should be able to get the idea.
