Dual Return Pumps

ispookie666 · May 21, 2018

If you have flow sensor, it makes sense to program it that way.

Mark Gray · May 21, 2018

I decided to go with 2 for redundancy, and the fact that the pumps I picked are pretty new. I think they will hold up but don't know for sure yet. Should have water on them by the end of the week

Jeff_H · May 21, 2018

As others have mentioned - I currently run a single return but have a spare on the shelf. I do travel often for work and have had a couple of weird issues with my DC pump that has made me uncomfortable with not have an immediate backup. As good as my GF is at taking care of the tank, I don't think she is up for a pump swap in the middle of the night. ;) That said - I recently ordered the fittings and PVC to add the second pump in parallel like Mark's setup above, and will run them to individual returns with check valves on each line to prevent (or slow down) a back siphon. If anything goes wrong, I can take the broken one offline and ramp up the backup remotely. I have thought about using the apex flow sensor, but I feel like that might be something else to clean or could go wrong. I might try to use some of the power monitors to determine if there is an issue and send an alert.

FWIW: I'm also adding a second ATO to work in parallel for the same reason. Short of an electrical issue, I should have full redundancy of the main life support system to keep the tank going for a few days until I return.

Mark Gray · May 21, 2018

Jeff_H said:
As others have mentioned - I currently run a single return but have a spare on the shelf. I do travel often for work and have had a couple of weird issues with my DC pump that has made me uncomfortable with not have an immediate backup. As good as my GF is at taking care of the tank, I don't think she is up for a pump swap in the middle of the night. ;) That said - I recently ordered the fittings and PVC to add the second pump in parallel like Mark's setup above, and will run them to individual returns with check valves on each line to prevent (or slow down) a back siphon. If anything goes wrong, I can take the broken one offline and ramp up the backup remotely. I have thought about using the apex flow sensor, but I feel like that might be something else to clean or could go wrong. I might try to use some of the power monitors to determine if there is an issue and send an alert.

FWIW: I'm also adding a second ATO to work in parallel for the same reason. Short of an electrical issue, I should have full redundancy of the main life support system to keep the tank going for a few days until I return.

I didn't mention I also travel some but no one is here but my Dog and he is surly not up for a pump swap. I have I have also hat problems at times with my ATO but I can always kick it on via the internet

Jeff_H · May 21, 2018

lol... Our dog was the supervisor for all projects, but would never help. My Spectrapure ATO has been bulletproof, but I know Murry lives down the street. Like the return pump, I'm hoping it will prevent an issue like running the return chamber in the sump dry while I'm on a plan with no Internet to get alerts or take action remotely. I'm not sure how I will monitor it yet, but I have a couple of ideas. Maybe I'll post a thread on how I did it once I figure out how to monitor it for a failure.

emvanburen · May 21, 2018

This is a great thread. I have a spare on the shelf but agree that it will fail while I am on a work trip and my wife will not want to swap it out. So.. either run parallel, or add a separate smaller “life support “ pump until I get back. And w two pumps I guess you need check valves to either prevent siphon (dual returns) or to prevent recirc (common return). A life support return could be set up to avoid siphon I suppose (if it isn’t normally running). Will have to think this through ! (And get my spare ready for a quick swap -all set w fittings).

Lor · May 21, 2018

I have a dumb question, if your pump fail, what is the harm if it has been turned off for 1 day, 2 days or 1 week?

Mark Gray · May 21, 2018

Jeff_H said:
lol... Our dog was the supervisor for all projects, but would never help. My Spectrapure ATO has been bulletproof, but I know Murry lives down the street. Like the return pump, I'm hoping it will prevent an issue like running the return chamber in the sump dry while I'm on a plan with no Internet to get alerts or take action remotely. I'm not sure how I will monitor it yet, but I have a couple of ideas. Maybe I'll post a thread on how I did it once I figure out how to monitor it for a failure.

My Apex will send me alerts I have a camera on my current tank to. I will need to buy one for the dual pump tank. I think every thing will alert my if anything goes bad.

ca1ore · May 21, 2018

I cannot speak for anyone else, but the majority of my systems support equipment is either in or connected to the sump. A failed return pump means that none of them are 'reaching' the display. Things like chiller, heaters, CaRx, ATS (where the screen will die if allowed to remain dry for too long). My approach, as already noted, has been to use main return pumps with a long history of reliability. Doesn't mean one cannot fail, but it's less likely than something without a track record. That's why I keep a spare on hand rather than plumb something in parallel.

Mark Gray · May 22, 2018

Mark Gray said:
My Apex will send me alerts I have a camera on my current tank to. I will need to buy one for the dual pump tank. I think every thing will alert my if anything goes bad.

Yes 90% of all my stuff is sump related and I remember 25 years ago having a return pump fail had another but no one was home, lost everything. with my new set up well one can easily run the system till I can get home and fix or replace the one that's not working, so that's why I bought 2.