I was thinking of trying a better pump (than an aqualifter) to address rhe drip rate.
I am not a fan of using a pinch valve....i think a nice dosing pump of some kind to run that line might be better..
Problem is, dosing pumps are not designed for continuous use
I think it has a lot more to do with the valve than the pump, but frankly I'm not convinced even the valve is that important. Time is the most important factor. My reactor came with a basic Eheim pump and it's great for the job. My drip rate issues were addressed by a combination of a decent-quality needle valve and just letting the reactor settle in. My reactor is fully broken in and I'm now using a cheapo plastic valve (I realized my needle valve was brass, duh) and I never have to adjust drip rate anymore, which proves to me that neither valve nor pump are nearly as important as just letting things settle in (along with the rare (twice a month?) opening of the valve to full-bore for two hours and then wiping the invisible gunk off the tip of the effluent line)