Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I saw this pump http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000VBGG24

And was wondering if i feed a line from the drain valve of a 275g IBC back into the tank through another valve or into the sump and then hooked this up if it would work to run a constant flow?

Let me know what you think.

I believe this would be called a venturi system.

If I understand correctly how that works, you could do it but you'd be using 1/6th of the water amount per hour - so for every 275gal water change you'd be spending 46gal. Where is it going?

46gal doesn't sound a lot but it is every hour. 1100gal per day, every day.

The idea would be it to pump it into a grow bed set and back into the tank.

My idea is to place the pump inside the sump and then connect a hose to the tank and this pump and have that house be the impetus to activate the pump, so that the pump could then pump water back into the FT and the grow beds.

Yep, I get that, but you get nothing for nothing from physics. You are adding in the water from the garden hose to cause that venturi effect and they state it is 1 in 6 volume used. That's the 46 gallons per 275 gallon water change.

What i am trying to figure out is, is the pressure from the tank enough to run the pump, i realize as the tank pushes the water into the pump at some point the pressure in the tank won't be enough to run the pump, what I'm wondering about is can i get enough water to run through the pump to allow the grow beds to fill and then when they drain and enjoy back into the tank have the pump start up again.

I'm thinking if have to forgo the sump for this to work at all

If you get it to work you will be a multi millionaire

it looks like an eductor or jet pump. you need high a pressure water source to run it.

The flow they are talking ie 1: 6 would be at zero head on the out let.

these are useful but not very efficient.

It would make a nice cleaner/drainer for your tank.

Works like this

Yeah that's what I am thinking, but it works of a garden hose which isn't high pressure, so i was thinking by using the drain on the tank and converting it down to about I've inch I'm increasing the pressure outlet on the tank maybe it would work. Then again it really would seem to good to be true.

Are you trying to use return water from the growbed to flow through this and pump water back into the growbed?

If you are, that is perpetual motion, and doesn't work. And never will, no matter what youtube videos say

No I'm trying to use water from the tank to pump water into the grow bed.

It doesn't have to run perpetually.

i just saw the pump while looking for a pump for my system i am building and was wondering, hypothetically.

If this pump will work if the pressure from the tank outlet is enough to pump water to fill the growbed. If it would then it could start the auto siphon which would put water back into the tank increasing the pressure and starting the pump again.

It can't work - think it through... you want to use 'x' pressure from the tank to somehow suck more water from the tank and so push that water up beyond the height of the water in the tank. Due to losses you can't even push water back to the height that generates 'x' pressure and you certainly can't push it above that, particularly as you are wanting to use tank pressure to suck tank water out.

That's what i was thinking, but if this can pump out 6 gallon for every 1 that runs through it i was thinking i could get 12-24 gallons pumped through before it started working, really i have no idea how this pump works(hence the questions) and like i said it's just hypothetical. I have seen using an ibc outlet into a half inch pipe water actually get pushed back into the tank, but it doesn't last and once it goes back in it doesn't perpetuate (which i know is not possible due to newtons laws) but i was wondering if this pump actually pumped enough to overcome that for a bit.

It pumps out 1 for every 6 that runs through it.