# [Wet Thumb Forum]-quiet external water pumps and plumbing plans



## kherman (Apr 7, 2003)

UPDATE: Plumbing of a tank is discussed later. I modified the title so people looking for old threads can find this discussion easier down the road.

I'm researching water pumps and want the quietest one possible. A maximum price of $200 is desired and a maximum of 1000 g.p.h. @ 4 feet is desired.

I basically want something that can go in my stand that I'll never hear.

Karl

PS: I am currently planning on using the Quiet One Pump

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http://www.geocities.com/kfh227- go there and see my future fish section to see what I have planned for my next 100+ gallon tank.
Note: I havn't maintained the site lately.

[This message was edited by kherman on Mon June 09 2003 at 08:20 AM.]

[This message was edited by kherman on Wed June 11 2003 at 04:07 AM.]


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## kherman (Apr 7, 2003)

UPDATE: Plumbing of a tank is discussed later. I modified the title so people looking for old threads can find this discussion easier down the road.

I'm researching water pumps and want the quietest one possible. A maximum price of $200 is desired and a maximum of 1000 g.p.h. @ 4 feet is desired.

I basically want something that can go in my stand that I'll never hear.

Karl

PS: I am currently planning on using the Quiet One Pump

------------------------------
http://www.geocities.com/kfh227- go there and see my future fish section to see what I have planned for my next 100+ gallon tank.
Note: I havn't maintained the site lately.

[This message was edited by kherman on Mon June 09 2003 at 08:20 AM.]

[This message was edited by kherman on Wed June 11 2003 at 04:07 AM.]


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## Vicki (Jan 31, 2003)

> quote:
> 
> I basically want something that can go in my stand that I'll never hear.


Well, that's totally outside my experience-but then again, it's been a long time since I've needed a big air pump. I've had many pumps that started out pretty quiet-I used to use the big Whispers, and as long as I replaced the diaphragms regularly they did pretty well, but if there was no other sound in the room (other people, TV, etc.), you could still hear them. The air pump is the one piece of equipment I have been most happy to stop using! I keep small ones on hand for my sponge filters and for emergencies, but that's it. What are you needing a big air pump for?

Edit: Sigh...just reread your post and actually followed your link. Well...that's quite different, isn't it? .....Never mind...

All my water pumps are just big enough to power CO2 reactors, so I can't help you there. Going to get more coffee now...

http://www.wheelpost.com


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## Tenor1 (Mar 3, 2003)

I've heard the the Rena pumps are quiet. But I'm really posting to share a story about the old "Silent Giant" pumps, which are familiar to our members from a different era of fish keeping, lol.

Silent Giants were made in Texas for many years by a small firm ran by one man. These were the quietest vibrator pumps on the market and based on a simple diaphragm construction put in a Campbell's soup can then in a larger plastic housing insulted with aquarium gravel.

Well the gentlemen owner decided to retire and sold the business to a Texas branch of the Hell's Angeles motorcycle club/gang/group. Isn't that odd? Oh contraire! Although the firm was in El Paso, the pumps were assembled over the boarder in Mexico. 

The new business owners added one small thing to the units. They began smuggling drugs inside the pumps, lol. This was discovered by the Feds and the factory was closed down. 

Sorry this post didn't REALLY answer the question but I wanted to share a bit of trivia from a hobbyist part of a bygone era.

Regards,
Carlo

==============================
I try to keep the tank plain and simple but it never stays that way!


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## JamesHoftiezer (Feb 2, 2003)

This is prported to be the quietest, but it may just be good marketing;
Lifegard Quiet One

*James Hoftiezer

Tank Journal - Aquascape ( Latest / Archive )
Tank Journal - Parts and Construction ( Latest / Archive )*


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## Justin Fournier (Jan 27, 2004)

In my experiance, Custom Sealifes Velocity pumps are about half as quiet as The quiet one by Lifeguard. Recently I installed two Velocity T3 Ti (Titamium shaft) pumps in a 265 with 5 Adult asian arowanas replacing Little giants, which were replacing quiet ones. The Quiet ones were replaced because they broke twice in 1 year. The owner vouches that the velocity pumps are MUCH quieter then the quiet ones, but are more expensive. Two T3's running in a stand, in a room with no other noise are barely discernable. 

On another note, are you sure you need 1000gph for a 100G tank? IMHO you don;t unless you plan to run it through a few accesories as well as a couple outputs.


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## daisydog (Feb 6, 2003)

I'm running a Custom Sealife S2 pump in my 135g tank. It's the same as the T2 but without the Titanium shaft. The T2 is a little more expensive and needed only if you have salt water.

I am not kidding when I say that I cannot hear this pump at all, even when I am right next to it. I have to feel it to make sure it is on. I used to have a mag 7 which, in my opinion, was noisy. I'm really glad I switched.

You should be able to get an S2 for about $150. The S2 is supposed to pump 650 gph @ 3'. I actually think it's a little too much flow for my tank. I would have been happy with the S1, although I think it is the same price as the S2.

Hope this helps


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## kherman (Apr 7, 2003)

Well, As for the 1000 PGH. Yes, that's overkill.

But the logic is that the filtering system I use reduces flow by about 50%. So, in reality I would be doing about 500 GPH (using the Quiet one anyways).

I'll be looking at the Custom Sealife Velocity pumps later today. The price of $150 isn't badat all when the Silent one is $120. I like what Daisy Duke says about not being able to hear it and Justin's experience with both pumps pretty much seals the deal.

THANKS EVERYONE!

------------------------------
http://www.geocities.com/kfh227- go there and see my future fish section to see what I have planned for my next 100+ gallon tank.
Note: I havn't maintained the site lately.


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## kherman (Apr 7, 2003)

I should add that I'll be adding ball valves before water re-enters the tank to help control water flow.

------------------------------
http://www.geocities.com/kfh227- go there and see my future fish section to see what I have planned for my next 100+ gallon tank.
Note: I havn't maintained the site lately.


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## gsmollin (Feb 3, 2003)

The Eheim pumps are quite. You cannot hear them run when they are right in front of you at a distance of 1 foot. They also tend to be kind of large for the flow rate. This is how Eheim gets them so quiet; its simple fluid mechanics: A room fan at top speed makes lots of noise, but slow it down to low speed and you can't hear it.


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## Justin Fournier (Jan 27, 2004)

kherman your welcome. As for the plumbing, I would like to add my personal opinion of the best way to plumb your tank.

On the input and output of the filter get the appropriate sized thread to slip fitting. On the pump use between 4 and 12 layers of teflon tape, depending on how snug the fit is BEFORE any tape is on. These only need to be hand tightened, but very hand tight. Tight as you can get them. This will ensure a water tight fit. 

Use a 2" piece of schegule 40 pvc to connect the thread to slip into a Union. This small of a piece will negate further use of this slip fitting, and one side of the union, but will allow you VERY simple removal of the pump incase you need to do maitnence on the pump itself. They are very cheap to replace if you do need to replace the pump one day, with another brand or size ect.

Use another 2" piece of PVC to connect the unions to ball valves. If you have access to Spears PVC products, they are the best. Blue handle ball valves use the same O-Rings as the space shuttle, so the quality is excellent. On the other hand the red handle ones are cheaper and I am sure good enough to handle FW for many years. Past the ball valve on the input side, use a slip to thread fitting and screw it into your bulkhead, You don't have to screw in the entire pump, just disconnect the Union. Use teflon tape here as well.

On the pump output use ball valves on every acessory, including the bio-tower, UV sterilizer, outputs to tanks ect. Better then cranking the ballvalves down on the pump to slow it down, you can build in a by-pass. 

This will be a T just above the ballvalve on the output side, with the pipe from the T going over into the sump where the input is. On the pipe going over to the input side of the sump, use a ball valve, to control the amount of bypassed water. 

Basically what you will be doing is with all your accesories set where you want them, and you find there is too much flow to the tank, you can open the bypass. The bypass may be seen by some as extravagent, but it will allow you to slow the output of the pump down without actually restricting the pump. The water will flow where it's least restricted, which will be the bypass. Open the bypass untill the flow in the tank is where you want it. This will ensure a long life for the pump.

If I didn't make sence, please let me know! HTH


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## kherman (Apr 7, 2003)

Justin,

The advice is VERY much appreciated. I was going to do a simailar system, but the bypass is a good idea I never thought about. I was consideringhte use of unions, but you may have convinced me.

Here's a quick image of what you stated(minus threaded couplings):

'P' = pump
'|', '-', '+' = PVC line (plus is a T or bend)
'F' = Filter media, sterilzer,etc
'B' = Ball Valve
'U' = union

TANKTANKTANKTANKTANKTANKTANKTANK
| |
B B
| |
| +-----------B---------+ |
| | | |
+---+-U-P---B---F---F---F-+-U-+

My setup might get a little more complex(4 bulkheads), but the bypass is a neat idea. I hope I illustrated the concept correctly. I have an idea of the plumbing, so if you want to see the current plumbing plan, I'll be happy to post a similar, more complex, drawing.

Also, thanks for the brand recomendations! I'll pay a bit extra for better components.

------------------------------
http://www.geocities.com/kfh227- go there and see my future fish section to see what I have planned for my next 100+ gallon tank.
Note: I havn't maintained the site lately.


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## Justin Fournier (Jan 27, 2004)

I think you missed a union on the pump. Give me a better drawing. You are going to want Unions on both in inlet and the outlet, right at the pump. So what you want to do is screw the thread to slip fittings directly onto the pump, then you use a stub of pvc to connect unions, then to the unions ball valves. All in a row right infront of eachother. This allows you to shut off the water flowing through the pump and remove it from your system for servicing/maitnence ect with minimal work/hassle.I will get you some pics of this asap.


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## kherman (Apr 7, 2003)

No pics are needed. think it's a good idea nad I understand what you mean by the post. It's a good idea.

I have to go investigate the cost of unions though. I might buy the "blue handled" valves and the similar grade union. I'll actually be looking online if the prices arn't to high.



> quote:
> 
> Originally posted by Justin604:
> I think you missed a union on the pump. Give me a better drawing. You are going to want Unions on both in inlet and the outlet, right at the pump. So what you want to do is screw the thread to slip fittings directly onto the pump, then you use a stub of pvc to connect unions, then to the unions ball valves. All in a row right infront of eachother. This allows you to shut off the water flowing through the pump and remove it from your system for servicing/maitnence ect with minimal work/hassle.I will get you some pics of this asap.


------------------------------
http://www.geocities.com/kfh227- go there and see my future fish section to see what I have planned for my next 100+ gallon tank.
Note: I havn't maintained the site lately.


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## Rex Grigg (Jan 22, 2004)

If you need to use 4-12 layers of teflon tape then your fittings are worthless. At most you should have to use two layers. Of course you should always use the pink tape (which is a bit thicker) on PVC joints.

Moderator










American by birth, Marine by the grace of God! This post spell checked with IESpell available at http://www.iespell.com

See my Profile for tank details.


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## Justin Fournier (Jan 27, 2004)

Originally posted by Justin604:
Kherman,

The reason I suggest unions are for ease of removal. Without them you will have to cut the PVC to remove the pump. Not fun, and expensive to put back together. Oh, and if you can;t reomve the pump without cutting the PVC, forget doing maitnence on your pump. I have a pic for you, shoot me your email and I will send it right over. it's worth a look.

Rex,

Well if you use the same brand fittings 2 layers should be enough (unlikely situation), but when you start mixing brands, or where fittings meet pumps, more often then not they don;t fit as snugly as you would like them. I put together a Eheim pump to spears threadxslip fittings today and I used around 10 layers to make it as tight as I like it. And I mean tight. This is the usual, not the exception however.


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## EDGE (Feb 28, 2004)

You can also get a male adapter and glue it to the pvc pipe.

It is a little cheaper than getting a union adapter

75 Gal, 3 WPG PC 10 hour, pressurize co2 /w controller 1 bps, Fluval 404, ph 6.8
A Canadian's Plant Traders website


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## Justin Fournier (Jan 27, 2004)

Edge, 

With two male adaptors in the pump, how do you suggest he removes the pump? Can't unscrew it...


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## kherman (Apr 7, 2003)

Justin, I sent you my e-mail addy as a private topic. Did you get it?

Also, I understand the logic of unions. I am going to use them, to the extent i'm not sure. I'm going to wait until I order my filtering equipment first









I might start a DIY reactor once I finish my stand/canopy construction (there's a topic for that too).

Karl

------------------------------
http://www.geocities.com/kfh227- go there and see my future fish section to see what I have planned for my next 100+ gallon tank.
Note: I havn't maintained the site lately.


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## EDGE (Feb 28, 2004)

oops, I was refering pumps with a female adapter as well. Some pump comes with both a male and female adapter.

75 Gal, 3 WPG PC 10 hour, pressurize co2 /w controller 1 bps, Fluval 404, ph 6.8
A Canadian's Plant Traders website


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## Justin Fournier (Jan 27, 2004)

Yes I got your topic, I responded to it as well. You have mail!

Thanks for the tip Edge, I will remember it in the future


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