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Reef Hobbyist 40B

The cabinet door switch turning on the lights was a huge convenience for me. I have only one light in there with a grow light CFL on our refugium on the Apex. I used to have to pull out my phone to turn it on/off every time I was inside the cabinet. Now it just works like magic.

This is the switch: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009SUEZY

It's a little more expensive, but I bought a cheaper version that arrived and never worked before that.

I also have an extra madison float switch if you want one. I was going to put it in my skimmer cup, but there wasn't enough room.
 
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Nice job with the float switches!
Hmmm ... almost enough justification to get a 3D printer.

I need to redo mine with the new size sump. Looks like your float switches are higher quality. Perhaps I will switch.

Suggestion: With that many switches, consider enclosing it in a box with a little slot to keep the snails and crud out.
It also makes it more consistent, since it gets rid of waves.
See below. The float switches are on a plate, much like yours, that slides in and out of the box for cleaning.

floatsw-jpg.1539
 
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@rygh Here is what I am using in my water Station build.... Lol

These covers can slide up & down the 1/2" pvc pipe so I can adjust the height of the float switches when ever needed

4800dbf5746d941e7a084c502e640fc2.jpg


60a6f203dbcac455552fcf82c8d0cee3.jpg


Jon
 
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Just a few hours ago my return pump gave up! I took it apart, scrubbed it well but looks like its needs a kickstart to start spinning (similar to the issue I had in my skimmer pump, and I ended up replacing the impeller). I was so freaking out cos the fuge, heating, ATS, skimming, GFO, GAC are all in the sump and just the return pump failing is a disaster!!

The pump that was running for the past 1.5yrs is a used RIO 1700, so I guess its a big deal it ran so long ;) for now its sitting in a vinegar bath to see if I can get it running again.

First person that came in mind was @wpeterson, so I checked to see if he had a backup pump and to my luck he had a Jebao DC-9000. I rushed to his house, picked up the loaner pump and just finished setting it up. For now tank is back up and running as normal while I figure out what pump I order next. Thank you Winfield :)
 
For the new return pump, i'm debating between the Jebao DCT-4000 vs DCT 6000.
  • Previous RIO = 642gph
  • DCT-4000 = 1056gph (this probably is already a big upgrade to what I had)
  • DCT-6000 = 1585gph (might never exceed 60% if I get this)
  • DC-9000 (loaner) = 2377gph (currently running at 20% @ 792gph)
Wondering if I'll ever need all that power cos I have a media bag over my return loc-line and can't blast water into my DT anyways (I have the bag to catch bacterial buildup, sponges, dirt, pieces of macro, etc.)
 
I would recommend getting at least the DCT-6000, which will actually deliver more like ~850 gph in an ideal scenario.

The flow published on those pumps is the maximum, ideal flow in gallons with 0 head loss. At 1 meter of head, the DCT-6000 only flows 4000l/h (~ 1000gph). You don't want to run the pump at 100% for the sake of noise and longevity, so given a cap of 80% power you're at more like ~800-850gph. With a DC pump you can always turn it down slightly, but I would give yourself both more flow and more headroom for wear and head loss.

Here are the head loss charts for the new DCS series pumps and the DCT series pumps.
DCS_Hmax_VS_550.jpg
 
@wpeterson, good points... problem is I can go higher GPH else water will squirt out in all directions via the media bag I have over the return loc-line. Thinking back with the RIO 642gph, it might only have been pushing at 450gph so even if I were to match it with the DCT-4000, I'd still only be running it at 60-70% max? with the DCT-6000 I might never cross 40%...

Also any upgrade in the future will be >100gal requiring a whole new return pump so at this point I'm only looking for a pump that can serve the current need.
 
I don't understand why you have a filter on your return nozzle. If you want to filter the contents of the return line, you should place your filter over the pump intake or on the pump chamber.

My return pump has a plastic weir over the intake as a last-line of defense and to keep snails/debris out. The baffles that provide water flow to my return chamber have a foam filter that prevents POM from exiting the refugium into the return chamber. Also, if you run a filter sock, it will pull the POM out of the water column and prevent it from getting through your sump to the return side.
 
That is a very good question ;) It started with bacterial build-up gushing out of the return line every time I turned on/off my return... but over time I started catching sponges, dirt and pieces of macro so I figured its good to keep it. I have 2 such media bags & everytime I do a water change, I switch to a clean one. The return chamber also has sponges growing and a foam filter before the return chamber wont help, also mine is a refugium sump so I don't have the layout to add sponges or pre-filters...

That said, its not a bad idea to try a media bag over the DCT plastic weir since the start-up on these pumps are gradual. I didn't have this option for the RIO cos its just one big box and I can't wrap the entire pump in a sock/pre-filter. Any other ideas? How about buying a big pre-filter foam block and cut, keep it over the plastic weir and clean every week?

So yea, if I find a better way to not have a media bag over my return loc-line, I thin the DCT-6000 would be better :)
 
Nav said:
For the new return pump, i'm debating between the Jebao DCT-4000 vs DCT 6000.
  • Previous RIO = 642gph
  • DCT-4000 = 1056gph (this probably is already a big upgrade to what I had)
  • DCT-6000 = 1585gph (might never exceed 60% if I get this)
  • DC-9000 (loaner) = 2377gph (currently running at 20% @ 792gph)
Wondering if I'll ever need all that power cos I have a media bag over my return loc-line and can't blast water into my DT anyways (I have the bag to catch bacterial buildup, sponges, dirt, pieces of macro, etc.)
Click to expand...
I love the low power of the new DC pumps, but those Jaebo pumps are cheap, and not all in a good way.
My suggestion: DUAL DCT-4000, turned way down.
You get redundancy, plus you can clean one while the other is still running.
If they are connected to a single return, you need a check valve on each to get the redundancy feature.
 
I noticed you have clear/translucent tubing. Are you sure you are not growing algae in your tubing? I had to block the light from my refugium due to so much algae choking off the return. I solved the problem by using a black acrylic sheet to block the light, but using different tubing would have been the way to go.
 
Yippee said:
I noticed you have clear/translucent tubing. Are you sure you are not growing algae in your tubing? I had to block the light from my refugium due to so much algae choking off the return. I solved the problem by using a black acrylic sheet to block the light, but using different tubing would have been the way to go.
Click to expand...
No, I keep an eye... I've taped parts of the tube where direct light falls...
 
rygh said:
I love the low power of the new DC pumps, but those Jaebo pumps are cheap, and not all in a good way.
My suggestion: DUAL DCT-4000, turned way down.
Click to expand...
I wish I had the space for 2 return pumps. I had to remove the intake guard on the DC-9000 to fit it in my return chamber, I'm hoping with the DCT 4000 or 6000 that it fits with the guard, will find out soon...
 
tygunn said:
Hey Nav, on your Apex screenshot, is the AMP graph the power consumption of your setup?
Click to expand...

Yes it is but possibly not his dosing pump and a few other things not plugged into his EB8

Here is mine as I have one EB8 for the Sump Area (AMP_S) and one EB8 for the Tank (AMP_T)
Capture.PNG
 
My ATO is plugged in. Right now everything is running via the EB8 other an LEDs (it has its own controller) and the Jebao dosing pump that i'll be plugging in soon.

Apex is doing a great job keeping my sump water level in check. JBJ ATO is packed and sitting as a backup. Might sell it...
 
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Nav said:
My ATO is plugged in. Right now everything is running via the EB8 other an LEDs (it has its own controller) and the Jebao dosing pump that i'll be plugging in soon.

Apex is doing a great job keeping my sump water level in check. JBJ ATO is packed and sitting as a backup. Might sell it...
Click to expand...
I'd keep the ato in case you ever need to set up a quarantine tank or something like that. A backup is also a great idea. The time my Tunze osmolator died I wished i had a backup... Manually topping off gets old real fast.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk
 
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