Took the plunge on the bigger tank

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
I just did a test with the pump I use for my koi pond since it is out of the pond for the winter. I put the pump in a 7 gallon bucket of water with a 1.25" discharge hose raised straight up to a height of 12ft. It took 10 seconds to get down to pump level leaving about a gallon of water in the bottom of the bucket. I also did a quick measurement and will be looking at roughly 12 feet of head from where my sump will be sitting in the basement to the estimated highest discharge point of my return to the tank, equivalent to my test height. So... 6 gallons in 10 seconds= 36 gpm x 60 minutes per hour= 2160gph. I think I'll just use that pump and replace it with another for the pond in the spring. The other will work as a back up pump. Oh, it uses 150 watts. Better?? :)
 
I sure wouldn't have believed it, but ran the test about 6 times. That was an average time so an average amount at that height. It was a laguna max flo pond pump. Of course it will be less when pushing through the actual tank return system than an open 1.25 hose. I can't find the model I have listed now as it is about 2yrs old, but the current ones list a lower gph at that head. The current pumps that are equivalent are rated at around 1400gph at 12'. Still would yield me roughly 4-5 times turnover.
 
Nope, not noisy at all. I had taken the pump out of the housing for the test, figured I don't need it in the sump, though I'll put a sponge or something on the intake. I had the previous same model pump for 4-5 years running roughly 7-8 months a year straight.
I may do the test again, it just seemed too good to be true. I figured even with the chance of miscounting gallons and pump time, it would have been 5 gallons and 12 seconds. Still, that gives roughly 1500gph, which is right in line with the flow rating for the overflows for my tank. It also matches the output specs on the newer models, so I'm guessing my non-scientific tests may have been skewed slightly. Regardless, its a small, quiet, energy efficient pump for the money.
 
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