figuring out the optimal return tank for 500 gallon system

[RxMike]

Hello

I currently have a blueline 70 hd as my return. I have this pump taking care of the 100 gallon sump and the 300 gallon Dt which is upstairs in living room. I figure it has about 10 feet of head. It goes through a bunch of angles. Using the head calculator i figure it does about 1000 to 1200gph. Now i also have another blue line 70 taking care of 30 gallon frag tank, 120 gallon fuge and an external SRO 8000 on same manifold.

I also forgot to mention i have aqua uv 200 watt uv plumbed into the return line from my sump. So the Bl 70 return goes through alot of twists and turns. I also have 1 inch pvc plumbing


I figure i am turning tank volume over 2 x per hour

I wonder if i would be better off eliminating the blue lines abd using one reefflow hammerhead/ bararacuda gold

A buddy who services lots of reef tanks does not like reefflow says they break down a lot

Likes blue line thinks it is built a lot better

I have no reference to support or contest his opinion. Any help is appreciated regarding best pump for this system

[azjohnny]

I agree with your friend about Reef flow pumps, it is common for them to leak at the seals. Since the pump will be in the basement I would go with the Blueline. The only knock on the Blueline is the noise

Blueline was formed when one of the the lead engineers left Iwaki. Same pump just a little cheaper

For every 90 degree bend add 1 ft of head

[SGT_York]

1" pipe is significantly undersized. The smaller the diameter pipe the friciton loss increases exponentially. for a 500G I'd use 2" with sweep (long slow curves) rather than the standard 90's. (you'll find the right pipe in the sewer section)

[slief]

I run Reeflo's and have done so for the last 5 years. Not a single one has broken down on me although I did have a seal that was leaky and flung a bit of salt with a used one I bought. My newer Hammerhead Gold, Dart Gold, Dart Gold and Superdart Gold all ran perfectly without leaks.. All were bought new too. Reeflo recently changed their volutes allegedly to address the seal issues. To me, the seal is a minor issue as I keep spare seals on hand.

Personally, I'd suggest a a new Superdart Gold but 1" plumbing isn't going to cut it. You will have to rethink your plumbing and upsize to 1.5" at the very least before you split it off. I run 2" for my returns and 2" that splits to a pair of 1" for my closed loop return.

That said, in addition to spare seals, I also keep a spare Dart and spare Hammerhead on hand with unions installed for quick swaps should I need them. To date I never have needed them. My Dart Gold is my closed loop pump and I recently switched out my Hammerhead Gold return pump for the Superdart Gold in an effort to reduce power consumption and summertime ambient tank temps. The Reeflo pumps run much cooler than your typical Bluelines and Iwaki's and one pump would save on electricity and heat transfer as well as noise. These changes have eliminated the need for my chiller which hasn't turned on in more than 4 years. My chiller consumed over 1100 watts and ran 12 hours a day, on and off which resulted in big savings on top of the reduced power consumption for the pump swaps. Between those changes and my light change, my power bill went from $1100 a month to about $350 a month which is a monumental savings. My tank is much healthier too!