Ampmaster 3k for skimmer and return on 180?

[RedCarpet]

I have a 180 now that I have been running the BerlinXL skimmer on a Rio2500. I have been running the return on a Quiet One. I know it is small. The RIO went caput, and now I am thinking to purchase an Ampmaster 3000 from Dolphin, and plumbing everything on one pump. Does anyone have any input? I could also buy a big Iwaki for the same price, and use the Quiet One for the skimmer. Any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks.

 

[davelin315]

I just got an ampmaster 3000 and installed it last Friday. It is one of the quietest pumps I have ever heard, and it pumps a lot of water. The only problem is that to get the maximum output, you need to plumb everything for 1 1/2" piping, and most don't have that kind of capacity. With 1" piping, it loses some of it's capacity, but is still a very strong pump. I currently have the input at 1" and the output plumbed as 3 1" discharges coming off of a 1 1/2" outlet. It pumps with such force that the inlet is making little whirlpools and sucking in air from about 6"+ underwater. I don't have it hooked up to a skimmer or anything, but am going to hook up one of the discharges to a water filter that will eventually become a pressure filter as it pumps through, and maybe also plumb it to some surge devices. It's a great pump, and worth the investment. Reef fanatic has it for $270 right now (and you get a $.30 discount on your first purchase!) with shipping being under $15 for 4 day delivery. I think it's worth it if it's as reliable as everyone has said it is. A lot of power, negligible noise, and good value as far as I'm concerned.

 

[faztaz]

I am currenty waiting for my AMPmaster to be delivered but I plan on having a 1.5 inlet and 1.5 piping which will be teed off at various points into about 5 or 6 3/4" returns to the tank, refugium, prop tank, etc. The main reason I purchased it was because of the noise (or lack of) in accounts from fellow reefers and the high energy efficiency (both thermal and electrical)
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ak47 seeds

 

[davelin315]

I saw a tee they sell at the dolphin web site that has 6 3/4" barbs on an adapter that go off at right angles to the main line, or 6 3/4" outlets, not plumbed, that look like a gatlin gun sticking out of the discharge. I would suggest that if you're going to build one, you take a look at the gatlin gun attachment. It's around $20 I think. The only drawback is that there's no room to put ball valves on the outputs. The advantage is that you won't lose flow to right angles. My discharge is plumbed using a 1 1/2" Y connector (well, a Y with an extra piece in the middle). My input will eventually be a 1 1/2" connection when I get around to draining and redrilling my sump, but until then, I can live with a little bit of reduced flow.