I really dislike mag drive pumps

[Mike in CT]

Will do when i get a chance. Probably not for a few days.

Look at this review:



Come on! "Doesnt produce too much heat", "no moving parts". Lol is this guy paid for this?

One thing i find peculiar is that this pump hasnt changed design in like what 20 years? Man, how is it still popular? Lol

I never knew they sold a fractionating impeller. Cool

I think they are still popular simply because they work. Like anything mechanical, there is occasionally going to be an issue. They have sold thousands of these pumps, I would think if there was a major issue with them, it would show up on forums everyday.
I have nothing against DC pumps but I doubt they will last 10 or 20 years like a mag drive easily can.

 

[scardall]

IMO External pumps are The Way to go. Also IMO Mag 10 and smaller are not all that.

Plus IMO until a DC pump( new to aquarium Industry) has been around for10-20 years with that much service on it, It is Not Proper to (infer) that these type of pumps may not last that long. I wouldn't buy a danner/mag drive product, when I can get an Eheim for (= to or better price).

 

[Squirrel_reefer]

WOW, I've never had a problem with any mag drive pumps. Assuming you're talking about Danner MagDrive? I've had a 5 and a 7, not a lick of trouble from either, the 7 was even 10+ years old and still chugging. To-each-his-own I suppose

 

[Jahalu]

My mag 7 was reliable, but wow, was it loud. Eventually my family couldn't take it anymore. I switched to Eheim, and for the first week, I kept checking the system to see if it was running; it is so quiet. I'll never go back. The mag 7 is my wc pump now.

 

[racin2438]

The problem is the velute...Cover has worn out were the impeller sits on..they are free replacement from Danner...you just have to send in proof of purchase..

 

[mcarroll]

All of the complaints I've heard about mags here sound like worn parts issues. And the parts in question don't usually wear out simply due to age on these pumps (stop and count the examples of ancient Mag's still running with no issues in this thread alone) – they are heavy duty pumps.

When an exception happens (stuff does happen), there's generally a lack of cleaning, calcium precipitation, an off chance piece of dirt or accidental drop, etc, affecting the situation. A defect is not outside of the question either, but it's hardly likely.

Normal is to run what seems like forever with nothing more than minor maintenance.

And I don't have a problem calling it an exaggeration to say mag pumps "noisy" – even if they aren't quite as silent as an eheim or sicce.

If your pump – I don't care what brand you're talking about – is actually "noisy", then it is either miss-installed or needs to be cleaned or repaired. There's nothing normal about it.

 

[Seanb1]

I have 3 mag drive pumps and they are flawless.
One of them I left in a 30 gal barrel full of water over the winter on accident and it was frozen solid for 4 months and I use it every day still for water change.
One of my others is at least 12 years old and the only prob I had with it was a broken fin on the propeller because I sucked some gravel up a hose and the dang thing is so powerful it ripped the fins off.
The only thing I can complain about them is is that they can be loud, but my sump is another room away so it don't bother me too bad.
For the price they are fine with me.
Workhorses for sure.

 

[lefkonj]

I own 3 MAG pumps and over the course of 4.5 years had to replace only 1. In my opinion it is just the way it is. the pump runs for 24 hours a day, 52 weeks a year with all sorts of debris flowing through it. When my MAG died recently I almost bought a Vectra and decided against it, just too much of a cost delta at the time. If I was starting from scratch I would be using a DC pump, mainly because of heat and power.

 

[bblumberg]

Ive had many pumps over the years. Out of them all I absolutely dislike mag drive. Every time i turn them off they wont restart! How i get them going again is to stick a screw driver in the propeller to get it to turn. Not to mention they are so loud! And they heat the water so much and are huge energy consumers. I wish people would stop reccomending mag drives.

A lot of times mag drives are rebranded over and over. Sca-302 has a mag 5 on it and its the same problem, doesn't restart unless you give it a push.

My most favourite that ive tried as an in sump pump is the Eheim. Never cleaned it, had it more than two years, always restarts! Not only that its queit and consumes low power.

My next pump will be a little giant or iwaki. These pumps are reliable, if you want an external pump.

It sounds like your pump needs a serious vinegar bath. While I am no fan of Mag pumps, I had a Mag 9.5 driving my Lifereef skimmer for two years without an issue (other than being an always on 100W heater). That tank also has a Mag 9.5 return pump that has worked flawlessly during the same time and is still going strong. I have not cleaned it once during this time.

If you expect your Iwaki or Little Giant (both external) pumps to be quieter than the Mag, you are in for an unpleasant surprise. My Iwaki that previously ran the tank in question was very much louder than the Mag. A DC pump would be a good idea, but be sure to buy one with a reputation for being reliable.

Bruce

 

[ironeagle2006]

I had a Mag 12 on my 150 until I sold it when I moved a couple years ago. I got a call from the person that bought it. He found a broken impeller shaft in the pump. He asked me if it had ever acted up in the 4 years I had it. I replied never. He went that is one tough pump. I am getting ready to buy a 400 gallon setup. My return pumps are going to be a pair of mag 18 pumps when I get it.

 

[Cory]

It sounds like your pump needs a serious vinegar bath. While I am no fan of Mag pumps, I had a Mag 9.5 driving my Lifereef skimmer for two years without an issue (other than being an always on 100W heater). That tank also has a Mag 9.5 return pump that has worked flawlessly during the same time and is still going strong. I have not cleaned it once during this time.

If you expect your Iwaki or Little Giant (both external) pumps to be quieter than the Mag, you are in for an unpleasant surprise. My Iwaki that previously ran the tank in question was very much louder than the Mag. A DC pump would be a good idea, but be sure to buy one with a reputation for being reliable.

Bruce

Well see in a few days how clogged with calcium it is, i doubt it. The iwaki is noisy becaise of the fan. But i guess you sacrifice noise for relibilty. You could build a noise box around the iwaki.

Mag drive by danner, hasnt made any upgrades in years, if it was my company id replace the ceramic shaft with a carbon fiber or titanium one. Id also replace those metal screws that can rust. If they dont want to sell it like that an upgrade pack would be sweet.

I even dislike eheims becaise they make it so hard to open it for cleaning.

 

[Bruce Burnett]

I have used Danner mag drive pumps for 20+ years and have never had one fail to start or stop working. They have a great head pressure for a submersible pump. They do produce some heat which I don't really need. You will find that a DC controlled pump that will give the same head pressure will still produce quite a bit of heat. I had a Jebao DCS-12000 that would not start because of carbonate build up. I was using Jebao as my return pump because of less heat. Took my Mag 18 that had been sitting on the shelf switched out the Jebao and never put the Jebao back on. In a non pressure situation the Jebao will pump more volume but as my return pump the Jebao and the Mag 18 seem to have the same volume.

 

[Rutrag]

I have two Mag 5s - one is a return pump and the other runs a downdraft skimmer. The pro is that the things seem just about bulletproof. My return pump has been in use since 1990 - 26 years. I think I replaced the volute once. However, both have restart problems after being unplugged or a power outage. I normally have to fish them out of their sumps and bang on the side to get them to restart.

 

[fragman2]

I have had the same problem with at least 6 Mag Drive pumps. They fail after a year or two in my experience. I run 20 tanks so I have a lot of equipment and I want it to last. Recently I switched to Fluval pumps on a recomendation from a friend and the 3 year warranty. That was 2 years ago for two new pumps and they have performed without incident. 20 years ago I gave up on Little giant pumps as they would only last 2-3 years and then require replacement. cleaning alone wouldn't cut i, the motors just give out. I switched to Iwaki pumps and have not been disappointed. I have some Iwaki's that are 20 years old and they require only periodic cleaning, (once a year). I'm always on the look out for an old Iwaki being sold used at an inexpensive price. They just last forever!

 

[rockskimmerflow]

If it's simply reliable, constant water flow for a return pump that is needed I'm a huge fan of eheim universal, compact+, or the Fluval Sea askoll motor based pumps. Despite being relatively electrically inefficient, Danner Mag pumps have never given me trouble except in cases of extreme neglect. For external pumps the panworld or iwaki are the only type I trust. Reeflo style pumps have me given issues with main seal failures causing the pump to short out after 1-2 years.

Maybe you just got a bad couple Mag drives if that's been your experience. I agree with mcarroll that Danner pumps usually have higher starting torque than other AC pumps of similar size. I've always attributed it to a stronger permanent impeller magnet which would explain their higher relative power draw- not sure if that's true at all, just my guess.

 

[JasReef]

A solution without a problem is what they seem like to me.

Every great reef I can think of runs a Mag pump or similar utterly without complaints. You don't even need a gate valve when you size them correctly.

When I pulled my Mag 7-driven skimmer – which was old, quiet and reliable – I had to add heaters to replace the watts.

Just because your pump isn't using the watts doesn't mean your system has any less requirements for heat. Red herring.

I disagree with a solution without a problem. I live in Texas, have central air that I keep at 77F, and have a problem keeping the tank temp low. The reason, I run halides and t5's. So the solution to that problem is to either go all LED's, run my AC all day at 73 or run pumps that don't put out an incredible amount of heat.

I use a mag 9.5 on my mixing station and it usually makes a horrific noise when it starts but it does keep running and I bought it used so who knows how old it is. It only runs twice a day for 15 minutes so I will wait until it wears out before replacing it. The benefit to the mag is if I need to do a large water change I just let the pump run for an hour and it heats the NSW up so I don't need a heater in it.;)

 

[mcarroll]

77ºF appears to be about average air temp for your location. Does your AC actually run very much?

Whether HVAC runs or not is, by itself, significant because if it's not running regularly then your evaporative cooling is going to be greatly restricted by accumulation of humidity in the tank room. Taking some action to exchange the air in the room or otherwise remove humidity would help.

Even folks who DO run their HVAC at continuous 72ºF like me have to worry somewhat when the seasons are in-between and the HVAC runs less-often.

I assume for your example you're also using a Mag for your return, not just salt mixing...true?

I'm down with anything anyone wants to try, so if a DC pump is on your list – why not? :)

But to think about it some more....even though you have a real use-case (unlike many) it almost seems like reaching to say a DC pump is what's needed to fix your problem.

LED's would make a far bigger dent, as you already mentioned. (I'd start here....but that's me.)

A properly sized Eheim, Sicce or Quiet One (sicce design, but now made in china) will consume considerably less power (and generate proportionately less heat) than a comparable Mag. Approximately on par with a DC pump. (Even a Water Blaster might be justified, but they're awful pricey.)

When you switch pumps, just don't feel bad when you have to add heaters like I did because your tank starts getting too cold at night with the lights off and night-temperatures. :p

 

[bif24701]

I don't see any real down side to DC pumps. They are better in nearly every point over an AC pump. Save for external pressure rated pumps needed for pressure rated applications.

 

[Seanb1]

.

 

[mcarroll]

Great pic!