Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hi all, I am looking to expand my system and need a new pump to cope with the extra grow beds. I have been looking at a few different types of 12,000l/hr pumps and came across the Hozelock Aquaforce 12000. This is a low power use pump with some interesting features.

Most 12000l/hr pumps I have been looking at are in the vicinity of 175w. This pump uses only 130w. For me running F&D on a 15 min cycle means a power saving of about $35 per year.

This pump also has 2 inlets as well as an inner cage you can insert if you want to protect your fingerlings. The cage is square and if inverted would be great at sucking up all the crap in the tank. Also with a second inlet, water and crap can be sucked up from a wider area. Anyhow check it out at http://www.hozelock.com.au/aquatics/pumps/filter-pumps/aquaforce/aquaforce-12000-1585.html or
http://www.rockaroundtheblock.com.au/ponds/pondpumps/240-volt-pumps/hozelock-pond-pumps/hozelock-aquaforce-12000-1585-pond-pump.html

The price is about $599 local and $350 on line. It is made in the UK and comes with a 3+2 warranty.

It seems to me to tick a lot of the boxes for aquaponics. As this pump has only been in Australia for a couple of years my question (especially to those in the UK) is has anyone used it and if so were they happy with it, is it reliable etc or any comments you may have on this pump.

Cheers
Marc

Hi MdW
Hozelock have been around here (Norway) for years, along side Gardena they probably ruled the marked on all kind of garden equipment (plug and play).
I'w used alot of Hozelock pumps/filters easyclear/ecoclear/titan all runing for years and still runing.
The particular pump you ask for I can't tell but Hozelock in general seems to perform IMO.

cheers

I'd always heard that Hozelock were a good brand... but I tried one a few years ago... and it didn't last more than a couple of months...

Think VB had the same problem.. with the same model...

with a 3 year warranty, thats as good as the laguna pumps. around the same price too is seems. it would certainly be a toss up between that one and the laguna 11k for that sort of flow.

Thanks SolTun and Rupert. As with so many things, two useful but completely opposite comments

Even with a 3 +2 year warrenty pump failures are a Pain in the Butt at best and a disaster at worse.

Thanks orcy, do you know what the power usage of the Laguna is?

125 watts on the 11k and 160 watts on the 16k (http://www.creativepumps.com.au/zpumps/ ... _pumps.htm)

I had an 11k for ages until it failed, and then I replaced it with a 16k because thats all the shop I went to had in store and I needed it desperately.

Thanks orcy, I will have a close look at that one as well.
How long was the "age" that the pump lasted?


I know that feeling!! Had a 4 month old Grunfos C5 fail in my sump tank a few weeks back. BYAP were brilliant in helping me out with a replacement ('cos I could not find a reciept at short notice )

then the air pump failed a couple of weeks later (only diaphrams but going to take 4+ weeks to get spares)

Thankfully the trout are reliable and the SP are indestructable and the bank manager understanding

I bought it about 7 years ago for a pond that only ran for a couple of months. then it spent 5 years in the cupboard. when I started the pond up here, it worked hard, and I let the impellor clog up a couple of time, but it still lasted 2 years, even with the beating I gave it.

my desperate this time around was at 6:30am, after flying back from the UK, and as soon as I walked into the house, I noticed that the waterfall wasnt running. cant have been more than 12 hrs, and luckily it was still winter. Ran straight down the shop and grabbed whatever they had. I only lost a couple of my Jades. I just wish I could afford to chuck a spare in the cupboard, but at 450 each, its a tough ask.