Pump Intake..do you cover it?

C

CarolynM

Oh Oh...I think I must have done something wrong. I just setup a 42g cube this weekend with my first sump. I have a brand new dolphin dp-385 pump (low flow tank for seahorses). My pump quit this morning.

Most of the plumbing came with the tank, I just basically had to add the pump. The pump is external. Plumbing to pump is as follows: Sump has bulkhead attached to pump intake with pvc barbed fitting (forgot the ball valve, it will go in when I change the pump out). Pump outflow is connected via barbed fitting to flexible return. Very simple (too simple I left out the ball valves, oops. I realized it when I had it all assembled).

My questions: Should there be some kind of filter for the pump to keep debris out of it? I did put the sponge that came with it over the bulkhead on the inside of the sump (suction kept it there). I'm thinking perhaps the new sand passed through the sponge and clogged up the pump?

Is there anything else in the above layout that could have caused the pump to quit? I don't want to replace the pump just to burnout another one. Any quick pump diagnostic tests I can run?

Thanks

Carolyn
 
I personally don't cover my pump intake but it never hurts to do so. The sponge should be fine. Did your pump come with an intake cover? If it did then you don't need anything.

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Can you post pics of your cube once everything is set up? I'm interested in seeing your seahorse setup.
 
Thanks John for your post.

I emailed dolphin and they phoned me back within the 1/2 hour. They said to send the pump back and they'll replace it. Apparently they've had some problems with this particular model.

Luckily I bought a Mag 3 for a back up so will put that in place tonight. I have a powerhead in there right now circulating the water.

Now for the really dumb question, what does an intake cover look like? If it is the plastic grooved housing yes it does one but to plumb it externally I had to slip that housing off.

And once I have flow established and the tank running smoothly, I'll happily post some pics of it and the horses!

Carolyn
 
You want a strainer inside your sump. Like this one:

http://www.aquaticeco.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/product.detail/iid/8573/cid/2020
 
Marc,
Do you know of any LFS or hardware store that sell strainers like the ones you posted above?
 
Most LFS tend to have those stashed under the counter. Or you can order them online from MarineDepot or AquaticEco.

Just call your LFS in advance and let them know what you need. I tend to call Frank and he usually has it within a day or two.
 
Grr.. nothing about plumbing is simple. I think I have about the simplest setup you can imagine and I still have a hard time getting everything to fit in the stand.

I went to home depot and bought unions, ball valves and couplers. I thought I was smart and brought my spare pump with me so I could make sure everything fit. I take out my old pump and find that the intake/outflows are not threaded at all the same so I still could not plumb things exactly right, I was missing parts, I had threads where I needed barbs and females where I need males. Off to Home Depot again tomorrow....

I also was totally stupid. I put in a powerhead to keep things moving in the tank this afternoon and didn't cover the intake. I found a seahorse stuck with her head to the intake. She wasn't sucked in but was just stuck on it. I hope the shock/stress doesn't kill her.

And to make things worse, I took apart the dolphin pump and cleaned out a bit of algae that was wrapped on the impeller. Plug it in and it worked like a charm. I can't believe that just a few strands would shut it down like it did.
 
I do hope your seahorse will be okay. :cry:

That is good news about the pump you were worried about. You can make a strainer with Gutter Guard, a plastic product used to keep leaves out of the rain gutters, available at Home Depot.

There is even a finer material in the sewing/crafts department of Walmart for needlepoint that costs less than $1 and is about the size of a placemat.
 
Good idea Marc- I have some of that stuff for needlepoint (baby seahorse hitches!) I never thought to cut some of that and put it over the bulkhead - I think I'll also put it over my returns in case of seahorse fry (they were courting yesterday, I saw some eggs on the sand so don't know if they successfully got any in the pouch or not-I'll know in 14 days! LOL).

Thanks for the tip!
 
Nothing, right now. The temp in the room is about 67-70. Tank is at 73.

In the summer I do have to add a clip on fan. This is why I went with an external pump, to minimize water temperature.

Carolyn
 
I would suggest you make a screen that looks like a 35mm film case out of that material. That increases the surface area going into the bulkhead, and avoids it clogging up quickly. You can glue it with a hot glue gun to make it hold together.
 
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