Need advice on heater & air pump

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bpeitzke

Aquarium Advice Activist
Joined
May 30, 2003
Messages
149
Location
Pacific Palisades, CA, USA
I have a 65-gal tank with a sump filter in the compartment below it. I have a siphon overflow chamber that hangs on the back of the tank and takes the water down to the sump. This chamber depends on maintaining a siphon to get the water over the rim of the tank and into the chamber's return compartment. I've been using an AquaLifter AW-20 pump to suck the air out & maintain the siphon. Last night it lost the siphon and the tank started overflowing - big mess. I hooked up a spare AquaLifter and got it working OK, but this one is not sucking as much air out of the siphon chamber as I'm used to seeing - so I fear I'm on the edge of another overflow. I'm undecided between (1) another new AquaLifter AW-20, (2) rebuild kit for same, or (3) another brand of air pump that might be more reliable for maintaining siphon.

And on top of this, my heater died today. It was a Finnex HMD-200 with a remote thermostat that enabled me to view tank temperature and/or change the setting. I liked it, but did have to send it in for repair of its remote sensor 3 yrs ago. I'm wondering whether to order another same model, or to try a different brand. I like having a heater with a remote thermostat that I can use without sticking my hand into the tank.

Appreciate any advice.

Bob
 
If your heater has lasted that long I think it's a pretty good brand.

The Tim's aqua lifter pump is pretty much the only vacuum pump I have ever been able to find. They only last about a year.

I run a aqua lifter on my CPR overflow 24/7. It won't lose siphon unless the power goes out and then the pump shuts off anyways. And when the power comes back then the aqua lifter automatically start the siphon again.

What brand overflow are you using ?
 
Well first off whatkind of overflow do you use? Second i have one of thos heaters on my 20 gallon saltwater quarenteen and it works great but not nearly as good as the fluval heaters
 
Re: my questions on aqualifter and heater

I don't know what brand my siphon overflow cannister is. It's about 8" wide, with a small chamber that sits in the tank and a large chamber that hangs off the back, with the siphon passage connecting them; both chambers and the siphon passage are the same width. The siphon passage has an air port at the top, to which I've plumbed the intake tube of my AquaLifter pump. The back chamber has dual tubes taking the overflow water down into the sump. It looks like a good quality unit to me - it was recommended by the owner of my favorite LFS.

Do the Fluval heaters have a remote thermostat for reading & setting temperature outside the tank?
 
Hmm i have an eshoppes its known to be the most common. But of what your telling me your unit seems as its a good quality. Anyways they dont have a one with the unit bu t they are capable of installing a controller. Thats what i do I have an apex.
 
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