Been lurking on the site for a year or so and have learned a lot but still have some questions. I have a 180g with dual corner overflows, 1 inch drains and returns. I have an old 55 for a sump and a mag 18. I know the mag 18 recommends 1.5 inch returns...my question is what will be the best way to go about it....use reducers to step it up to 1.5 then back down to 1? Can I reduce it down to 1 inch at a tee back to the returns? should it be reduced at the returns? Im only a year and a half into the hobby...this is my first sump and bigger tank. I built the stand and am in the process of finishing up the sump. I keep mostly natives and will be sure to post some pics when i get it presentable. thanks for any help
hard plumbing a 180?
- Thread starter Matt P
- Start date
I run 2 mag18s on my 360 that has 2x 1.5" drains and have found the pumps do not return the water fast enough. I have to close the ball valves a bit on each drain to achieve a happy medium. The return on the mag 18 is threaded and is .75". You will need to find a female adapter that does .75" to 1"(or larger, but i prefer 1"). 1" is cheaper, especially ballvalves and unions compared to 1.5". 1" is also easier to cut, you can get the hand tool vs 1.5" you will need a hacksaw or circular saw to cut it. I use 1.5" for my drains, its a pita to cut
The more plumbing you use at the larger size, the less friction loss you will have, meaning the pump will produce more GPH if you use larger pipe, all else being equal. So expanding to larger pipe straight from the outlet of the pump and using the largest possible until you have to reduce to a smaller size is best- doing it this way will get you the most GPH from the pump.
I'm personally not a fan of Mag pumps...they are horribly inefficient.
The Mag 18 does 1,100GPH at 5' head on 150 watts
The Laguna Max Flo 2000 does 1,440GPH @ 5' head on just 80 watts.
You get more flow on almost half the wattage with the Laguna. Not saying you should swap it out, but the amount of money you could be saving on your electric bill could make it worthwhile to get the Laguna and keep the Mag as a backup.
I don't understand the first part of what you wrote. The amount of water falling through your drains is only going to be equal to the amount of water your pump is able to push back up into your tank, right? Or are you just saying you are not happy with how much flow you are getting from your pumps?
I would consider swapping out your Mag Drive's for Lagunas...you could get more flow (which it sounds like you want) and you could reduce your electric bill....it's a win-win.
If you pay the national average for electricity, swapping the mag 18s for Max flo 2000's could save you over $130 per year and give you around 900GPH more flow (assuming ~5' head).
I think you understood it well enough. I do not have an overflow box on my 360, simply just 2 drains with a strainer on each. The amount of water being drained into the sump is a lot more than the water being returned to the aquarium by the pumps. That is why I have to mess with the ball valves on the drains to decrease the amount of water being drained. I am definitely not happy with the flow from my pumps.
I have been looking at lagunas for a while, but i do not currently have the cash to invest in them at the moment and if things go well next week I will be getting out of the hobby for at least a year, but returning bigger and better than ever with more $$$ to play around with =]