Return pump on my 20L tank?

[350gt]

This is where I am puzzled.....So I got my lights, ended up with a 30" aquatic life 4 24W T5ho fixture. My sump also got made, its a 24"x10"x16"... I also painted the back and bottom black on the tank and it looks very clean IMO.....

Now thinking about with return to use.... was thinking a MAG5? or a 7?

which would you use or if you can recommend another brand.... LMK.... I just been happy with the mag9.5 on my other tank so I would buy again....

[jrsatx20]

sicce

[txg8gxp]

I too like the sicce pumps. I too will be setting up a 25 or so gallon tank soon and need to pick up a pump. The big question is what will you have for internal powerheads, wavemakers, etc. I like the idea of slower return pump and add extra flow with powerheads. I would vote for a sicce 2.0 or mag 5 max. I'm leaning toward the sicce 2.0, it is 520gph at the pump, so probably around 400-425 ( I would guess ) at the tank.

[Goofball310]

Eheim 1250, Mag 3, Sicce 2

Out of the 3 of them the Eheim 1250 will be the quietest and most reliable.

Mag's can be hit or miss. The 3 will be fairly quiet because of its size but not as quiet as an Eheim. Also, Mag's occassionally will rattle.

Sicce is the new comer to the pump market and falls between both the Eheim and Mag in regards to noise.

If you plan on running any reactors I would suggest going with a Eheim 1260, Mag 5 or 7, or Sicce 3 and build a manifold to feed them instead of having multiple pumps for everything.

Also, it never hurts just to build the manifold. You might not have any plans to feed off to something now but doesn't mean you won't in the future. I usually put a barb fitting w/ a ball valve at the end of my manifolds also to help with water changes.

[Scream311]

MAG 5

[350gt]

Thanks for all the info.... Looking into the sicce and eheim pumps now.....

For added flow I will have the mp10..

[Louis]

I'd go with Sicce 1.0 (251gph) or Sicce 1.5 (357gph) - I'm leaning more towards the Sicce 1.0. These would give you more than 10x turn-over through the sump which is more than you need. I try to stay about 5-10x turnover through my sump.

I prefer Sicce over Mag-Drive for two reasons, #1 is the energy consumption which is very low on Sicce Pumps and #2 is the heat. Less energy consumption means less heat! And don't forget that these things are almost completely silent. Go with the Sicce, you wont regret it!

[350gt]

Thanks Louis...... If they are great as everyone is saying, I would eventually like to upgrade the mag 9.5 in the DT, which is equivalent?

[Louis]

Sicce 4.0 952gph

[350gt]

Text me prices on both when u can :)

The 1 and the 4

[Big_Pun]

agree sicce 1 or sicce 1.5, i have all sicce pumps(5 total) and they are quite and work flawless. if you really want i can pull my reactors off line for a day if you wann try out 1.0 and a 1.5. swing by and do some tests.

[350gt]

Thanks man, my tank is not running yet.... Just trying to figure which pump to use then will work on the plumbing.... But I do appreciate the offer.....

[Gseclipse02]

My gf always liked the slower flow on her tanks 24/29 gallon the result was great wehad a lot better growth in her with less flow we always used maxi jet 1200's if u want to try one out lmk ill bring one back

[350gt]

Thanks JT...... I think I have my mind set now....

selling my tank tomorrow which will make it so much easier...

[Big_Pun]

jt is right, my gf tank has a sump from AD that has a seperate box in center as refugium and its own pump, i used a small pump and her macro in there grows very fast nitrates are really low and water is always crystal clear no algae probs in display, and she uses tap water. crazy