Pump maintenance

Stevolough · 04/20/2018, 03:34 AM

This maybe a dumb question but I was wondering how often people have to clean their return pumps. I have a 75 gallon system with a low demand. I dose 20 ml each of a two part system. Every couple of months I get a buildup on the impeller shaft that will stop the pump from turning. Not a big deal to do but sometimes if I don’t remember to do it regularly I’ll get up for work and the pump has stopped.

RobZilla04 · 04/20/2018, 04:34 AM

Some never do. Others once or twice annually. I'm a once or twice annually kinda guy.

Hard to say if it makes a difference either way. I expect answers to be "Never cleaned mine and it's been running great for X number of years" or "Cleaned mine often and it only lasted X number of years when it was expected to last much longer."

In general good maintenance of equipment should increase lifespan and ensure proper performance.

mcgyvr · 04/20/2018, 05:02 AM

^^ yep..
I'm going on about 1 year now and haven't touched it..
IF it stops.. I'll pull it out for a cleaning..

ostrow · 04/20/2018, 08:10 AM

The O.P. indicates the pump is seizing due to calcification on the impeller. So the replies so far are irrelevant and non-responsive.

Some questions: fo you also drip kalk? If so, that's the culprit and you have to clean all pumps, heaters and other equipment every 3-6 months at a minimum.

Where is your drip for 2-part relative to the pump intake? Get it as far away as you can.

Come to think of it....what is the 2-part you use? DIY? B-ionic? Something else?

After ceasing kalk I have not had to acid wash anything for calcification. But I run a calcium reactor.

RobZilla04 · 04/20/2018, 09:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stevolough

I was wondering how often people have to clean their return pumps...

What part of the first two replies were "non-responsive"?

ostrow · 04/20/2018, 09:25 AM

Sorry. I read his post to mean he is getting rapid calcification and focused more on the cause of his problem. His issue isn't so much how often as why he needs to do it so often and is this normal.

It isn't normal, having to shut off and clean pumps ever two months. So I felt what he was asking was "what's going on here"?

mcgyvr · 04/20/2018, 10:12 AM

The only assumption I made here was that they intended their first punctuation mark to be a question mark and not a period.

I do agree that a pump stopping every couple months (is that 2 or 3 or 6 or 8) may be uncommon.. I've always needed to dose 2 part.. I don't do it in the return pump section and the pump on my previous tank I think ran for 3+ years without stopping or being cleaned..

Stevolough · 04/20/2018, 10:16 AM

Yes I was wondering why I had builtup. I use seachum 2part I dose in the sump in a seperate chamber and I space it out with a dosing pump so it’s 20 ml of each spread out over 24 hrs

Stevolough · 04/20/2018, 10:19 AM

And no I don’t drip kalk

mcgyvr · 04/20/2018, 10:30 AM

What pump? Some are just built with tighter tolerances or are just cheap/inferior units.

What is your current alk and cal readings?

ostrow · 04/20/2018, 11:10 AM

And what size sump is it? Are you dosing both parts simultaneously? If #2 is yes, you need the lines separated by a fair amount with good flow separating as well. Otherwise you need to dose them about 10min apart.

ca1ore · 04/20/2018, 11:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcgyvr

What pump? Some are just built with tighter tolerances or are just cheap/inferior units.

That was my Q also. I ran an Iwaki for 20 years and I think I cleaned it about every 5; ran a sedra-based skimmer and it needed cleaning weekly; or at least it seemed that way.

Stevolough · 04/20/2018, 12:01 PM

Aqua top. Not very expensive. Sump holds 16 gal. Alk 8.1 cal is 430. Dosing pump separates them by 5 min. I’ll have to see if I can increase that interval.

mcgyvr · 04/20/2018, 12:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stevolough

Aqua top.

Nuff said for me...

ostrow · 04/20/2018, 12:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stevolough

Aqua top. Not very expensive. Sump holds 16 gal. Alk 8.1 cal is 430. Dosing pump separates them by 5 min. I’ll have to see if I can increase that interval.

Increase interval is a must with a small sump like that.

With a 75gal tank, I'd like a 20gal if possible sump. And I hope your pump is one of the Maxflow models? Even so, you might want to consider something a step up in reliability.

Stevolough · 04/20/2018, 03:48 PM

Thanks for your time. I’m right on the fence of upgrading to a larger system and I want to plan it out. Don’t want to repeat old mistakes

RobZilla04 · 04/20/2018, 05:59 PM

Dose with a quality pump only IMHO.

04/20/2018, 03:34 AM	#1
Stevolough Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 63	Pump maintenance This maybe a dumb question but I was wondering how often people have to clean their return pumps. I have a 75 gallon system with a low demand. I dose 20 ml each of a two part system. Every couple of months I get a buildup on the impeller shaft that will stop the pump from turning. Not a big deal to do but sometimes if I don’t remember to do it regularly I’ll get up for work and the pump has stopped.

04/20/2018, 05:02 AM	#3
mcgyvr Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: North Carolina Posts: 20,050	^^ yep.. I'm going on about 1 year now and haven't touched it.. IF it stops.. I'll pull it out for a cleaning.. __________________ Who me?

04/20/2018, 08:10 AM	#4
ostrow It's Dr. Goodluck Himself Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Oak Park, IL Posts: 11,654	The O.P. indicates the pump is seizing due to calcification on the impeller. So the replies so far are irrelevant and non-responsive. Some questions: fo you also drip kalk? If so, that's the culprit and you have to clean all pumps, heaters and other equipment every 3-6 months at a minimum. Where is your drip for 2-part relative to the pump intake? Get it as far away as you can. Come to think of it....what is the 2-part you use? DIY? B-ionic? Something else? After ceasing kalk I have not had to acid wash anything for calcification. But I run a calcium reactor. __________________ It's the return of Dr. Goodluck Himself. fml! Current Tank Info: 156G "brick", 150 sump and 75 fuge replaces Fire, Destruction, Sad :(

04/20/2018, 09:25 AM	#6
ostrow It's Dr. Goodluck Himself Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Oak Park, IL Posts: 11,654	Sorry. I read his post to mean he is getting rapid calcification and focused more on the cause of his problem. His issue isn't so much how often as why he needs to do it so often and is this normal. It isn't normal, having to shut off and clean pumps ever two months. So I felt what he was asking was "what's going on here"? __________________ It's the return of Dr. Goodluck Himself. fml! Current Tank Info: 156G "brick", 150 sump and 75 fuge replaces Fire, Destruction, Sad :(

04/20/2018, 10:12 AM	#7
mcgyvr Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: North Carolina Posts: 20,050	The only assumption I made here was that they intended their first punctuation mark to be a question mark and not a period. I do agree that a pump stopping every couple months (is that 2 or 3 or 6 or 8) may be uncommon.. I've always needed to dose 2 part.. I don't do it in the return pump section and the pump on my previous tank I think ran for 3+ years without stopping or being cleaned.. __________________ Who me?

04/20/2018, 04:34 AM	#2
RobZilla04 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: St. Augustine, FL Posts: 1,857	Some never do. Others once or twice annually. I'm a once or twice annually kinda guy. Hard to say if it makes a difference either way. I expect answers to be "Never cleaned mine and it's been running great for X number of years" or "Cleaned mine often and it only lasted X number of years when it was expected to last much longer." In general good maintenance of equipment should increase lifespan and ensure proper performance. __________________ 90g Mixed Reef

04/20/2018, 10:16 AM	#8
Stevolough Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 63	Yes I was wondering why I had builtup. I use seachum 2part I dose in the sump in a seperate chamber and I space it out with a dosing pump so it’s 20 ml of each spread out over 24 hrs

04/20/2018, 10:19 AM	#9
Stevolough Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 63	And no I don’t drip kalk

04/20/2018, 10:30 AM	#10
mcgyvr Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: North Carolina Posts: 20,050	What pump? Some are just built with tighter tolerances or are just cheap/inferior units. What is your current alk and cal readings? __________________ Who me?

04/20/2018, 11:10 AM	#11
ostrow It's Dr. Goodluck Himself Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Oak Park, IL Posts: 11,654	And what size sump is it? Are you dosing both parts simultaneously? If #2 is yes, you need the lines separated by a fair amount with good flow separating as well. Otherwise you need to dose them about 10min apart. __________________ It's the return of Dr. Goodluck Himself. fml! Current Tank Info: 156G "brick", 150 sump and 75 fuge replaces Fire, Destruction, Sad :(

04/20/2018, 12:01 PM	#13
Stevolough Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 63	Aqua top. Not very expensive. Sump holds 16 gal. Alk 8.1 cal is 430. Dosing pump separates them by 5 min. I’ll have to see if I can increase that interval.

04/20/2018, 03:48 PM	#16
Stevolough Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 63	Thanks for your time. I’m right on the fence of upgrading to a larger system and I want to plan it out. Don’t want to repeat old mistakes

04/20/2018, 05:59 PM	#17
RobZilla04 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: St. Augustine, FL Posts: 1,857	Dose with a quality pump only IMHO. __________________ 90g Mixed Reef