Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

anyone had any experience with a Flotec FPSC2200A 1/3 HP Submersible Sump Pump? was thinking of picking up two - one to push sump to FT then FT to 6+IBC growbeds - and i guess an overflow valve from FT back to sump (I'm still in the building phase atm - well i should say digging as i wanted to put the sump's at least partially underground saw a pic in the forums of a flat deck looking cover with doors to access the sump wanted to replicate to keep the wife happy and figured a second pump in the FT to be able to pump to GB's instead of a SLO that has to be one long pipe above ground - again not quite aesthetically pleasing >_< but a with maximum pumping capacity of 4,380 gallons per hour figured hopefully should be ample enough to have room to expand?

http://www.google.com/products/catalog? ... 3&bih=830#

Pretty impressed with the Laguna 9000 I just put in the new system for a test run. This is pumping to a bit over a metre head, with 40mm pipe

cool....how much did it set you back?

on second thought how about a EcoPlus 3170 Submersible
Water Pump, 3,170 GPH, 180W - at .10c per kwh if my math is right thats just over 14 bucks a day for some tremendous volume?!

http://www.aquacave.com/ecoplus-3170-su ... -2981.html

$307 from the reef shop

EDIT** thats per month not day >_< lol though the real question is if they can handle fish solids?

Yeah, they would do fine. Ceramic shafts are great too.

Has anyone had good or bad experience with a Laguna Max flow 16,000 Lph pump?

All good here, I have 2 that have been running for over a year on timer 20 mins on 30 secs off, and 1 that is running constantly.

Not a single problem

The old saying, you get what you pay for.

I have been running an Energy Saver Pump for the past 3 years without any problem. (http://www.energysavingpumps.com/). My setup is different to many however in that I have a pond based system of 18,000 litres, waterfall, filters, stream, skimmers, etc.. How I use the system varies as well, as sometimes I may require more skimmer action (when it is windy or trees are losing their leaves), want to have a high flow for the waterfall or within the pond. It also allows me to increase the number of growbeds dynamically, without having to purchase more pumps.

Some of the things that are good about this system includes:
-a remote controller which converts the single phase power to 3 phase (which allows the use of more efficient and powerful motors), and allows the flow rate to be dialled from 0 to 100%. Variable flow rate means the pump always meets my flow requirements, and doesn't require me to have to calculate dynamic head loss through the system to try to find a pump with an adequate flow rate.
-50mm inlet and outlet
-fantastic flow rate. I turn over my pond volume in an hour at a setting of less than 1/3 of capacity.
-you know exactly how much power you are using from the controller display.

While the price of the pump may seem high, the controller alone in Australia sells for more than the entire system from the US. This pump is currently costing me

On the down side, it is an external pump, so wouldn't meet the requirements of many peoples designs.

While not for people with small systems, it is great for people with large systems that have to move a lot of water. Great for people with pools as well, as it is at least twice as efficient as the so-called efficient pool motors that I tried to source locally.

Thanks OBO
I placed my order the cheapest I could source was $507 with $10 postage.

Don't know if this has been thrown out there but if you are looking for energy efficient pump, the key word you want to look for is "low head" pump. If you don't need the pressure to lift the water 20+ feet you can get by with a MUCH more efficient pump. You can usually recognize these pumps becase they will have an oversized inlet/outlet which can really beef up the flow at low head pressures.

Hey Desert Rat, we also have a laguna 16000, it has been in the big tank for about a year with no problems (and a reduced power bill compared to the previous pump! )

Got the chinese version of the Laguna pump. $148 and 60w only

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/390313460630 ... 1423.l2649

Basically pretty good at 1.5m head. Has an additional hole that i can use to suck up solids if i wanted.

Oops! Lost my train of thought.

"While the price of the pump may seem high, the controller alone in Australia sells for more than the entire system from the US. This pump is currently costing me"

about $0.80/day in electricity running 24/7 and pumping about 18,000 litres per hour.

Regarding Ryan's low head pump post. You have to be careful, because as soon as you start pumping water in a system, you have dynamic head pressure and friction loss, even if the actual elevation is zero. For example, all of the following contribute (sometimes very substantially) to the dynamic head pressure:

-Pipe diameter
-length of pipe. The longer the run, the more drag there is
-skimmers
-diffusers
-How it is plumbed to the pump?
-filter
-your suction-pipe run height (static head) and length
-the length of your discharge-pipe run from the pump back to your pond
-Do you have a fountain, if so how high?
-The number of valves in both the suction and discharge line
-Check valves
-90° elbows in both the suction and discharge line
-45° elbows in both the suction and discharge line
-T's in both the suction and discharge line
-buildup (slime,bacteria, etc) inside of the pipes and the rest of the system create drag which also adds to the dynamic head
-UV filter
-inline heater
-etc. Basically everything inline on the system contributes head pressure

Also, there is a maximum amount of water that can move in piping of any particular inside diameter without requiring head pressure to be created. An example of this is the maximum flow rate of water inside a 1.5 inch pipe without requiring a pressure increase is only 7200 litres per hour.

All the reasons above contribute to why the cheaper pumps never come close to the water volumes that people expect. That, and the fact that many blatantly overquote. They often underquote by 20% on the actual wattage used too, as there is a loophole for how they calculate it.