Is a gate valve necessary with a DC pump?

ibryson · 03/04/2019, 04:08 PM

I have the Reef Octopus Varios 8 DC pump (2700gph) for my 180 gallon tank. I am working on the plumbing now and am wondering why I would need gate valves on the return lines if the pump is controllable. Cant I just tune the pump to achieve the proper flow? One line might get a little more flow than the other but surely that wont cause any issues...

nereefpat · 03/04/2019, 04:31 PM

You may want a ball valve and union in place to service the pump.

But, no, I wouldn't use a gate valve for that situation.

Vinny Kreyling · 03/04/2019, 05:15 PM

As long as you do not do a Herbie drain its OK.

ibryson · 03/04/2019, 05:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vinny Kreyling

As long as you do not do a Herbie drain its OK.

Cool! I have durso drains. Dual overflow boxes.

nereefpat · 03/04/2019, 06:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vinny Kreyling

As long as you do not do a Herbie drain its OK.

For siphon drains, you valve the drains, not the returns.

benjammin03 · 03/06/2019, 01:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ibryson

Cool! I have durso drains. Dual overflow boxes.

It won't be long before you'll want to convert the dursos into a bean animal or herbie. I set up a 210 with dursos and there was so much sound from the water rushing through the system. If you are you still in the process of setting it up, I would highly recommend running the returns over the top and using both overflows for a herbie or bean animal drain. I wish I had just done that from the beginning instead or ripping it out and starting over after deciding I couldn't handle the sound.

03/04/2019, 04:08 PM	#1
ibryson Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2017 Location: Missouri Posts: 73	Is a gate valve necessary with a DC pump? I have the Reef Octopus Varios 8 DC pump (2700gph) for my 180 gallon tank. I am working on the plumbing now and am wondering why I would need gate valves on the return lines if the pump is controllable. Cant I just tune the pump to achieve the proper flow? One line might get a little more flow than the other but surely that wont cause any issues...

03/04/2019, 04:31 PM	#2
nereefpat Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2016 Location: Central Nebraska Posts: 3,190	You may want a ball valve and union in place to service the pump. But, no, I wouldn't use a gate valve for that situation. __________________ Pat Current Tank Info: 125 in-wall , 40b sump. 6 bulb T5. ASM G2 skimmer. LPS and leathers

03/04/2019, 05:15 PM	#3
Vinny Kreyling Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Miller Place, NY Posts: 7,206	As long as you do not do a Herbie drain its OK. __________________ 250 gallon mixed reef, 2 Reefbreeder's Photon V 2, Deepwater BLDC 12, DAS EX-3 Skimmer, MTC mini cal, 2-3/4" Sea Swirls, Aquacontroller & 6 Tunze pumps.