Is this rust? Tunze nano stream circulation pump.

[vicorhe]

As title. I noticed some rumbling noises and lack of water flow from the pump just now. I pulled it out of the tank and noticed some brown/tannish color on the magnet.


The pump was brand new in storage for 2 years. It’s only been wet for 3 months.

There’s some magnetic dust on the magnet.
Is it time to throw this out?

Not sure if this is covered under warranty.
Would I need to do a massive water change for any potential leakage?

The tank is just rock, water, pods, and bacteria in a bottle at the moment.

 

[vicorhe]

 

[vicorhe]

 

[vicorhe]

The magnet left this mark on the glass. Same color. Should I be more concerned?

 

[UncommonSense]

This photo tells the story… the plastic casing around the magnet split open, exposing the magnet to saltwater…

This can happen over time, but you see it most often when vinegar is used to clean plastic encased magnets, causing swelling, and plastic case cracking!

I’d reach out to see what Tunze can do to help you out! — this magnet should be a replacement part!

Regarding the tank? I’d imagine the primary contaminant is iron, but there could also be nickel, if the magnet was nickel coated before being encased in plastic… another good question for Tunze!

For now? I’d do a decent sized water change, and possibly look into nickel removal methods, assuming Tunze confirms their magnets are nickel plated prior to plastic encasement!

 

[vicorhe]

Thank you for the instructions, sir! I’ll reach out to Tunze!

 

[rvitko Verified Sponsor]

I am replying from your email to the factory. These magnets contain no nickel or copper. What you show is particles attracted to the magnet, these are iron filings from some other source and not the magnet holder itself. The magnets will pick up any stray iron they are exposed to, but GFO dust is commonly attracted to the magnets as well, GFO is literally pelletized rust and is drawn to magnets and is one of the more common causes. I would try to wipe off the filings, this will be tricky, you can also try to use another magnet to pull them away, for example a refrigerator magnet. In any case, this is unlikely to be of any consequence to the aquarium and is not a fault of the product, it is just stray iron from somewhere in your house that the magnet picked up.

 

[UncommonSense]

is not a fault of the product

Sir, with all due respect, please examine this photo carefully:

Note the long crack in the magnet’s plastic casing, visible at the 90 degree edge of the plastic casing, particularly near the customer’s thumb…

 

[rvitko Verified Sponsor]

I need better photos, I do not see any crack. These magnets are made with unplated neodymium magnets and iron plates and PU resin is poured into the shell. There is no nickel, no zinc, everything is made to be as safe as can be. All the small filings are some other material attracted to the magnet. Typically if this style of magnet fails, it is really obvious there is nothing subtle about it, it ruptures and swells dramatically. I see a very smooth surface with no cracks or flaws and attracted iron filings.

This is what they should look like, with the other side being a smooth black surface, it is a poured resin so it may be slightly wavy or high on one side as it was liquid at one point before it cured, but should not bulge or have any cracks. https://shop.tunze.com/us/Magnet-holder/6025.512

 

[rvitko Verified Sponsor]

Sir, with all due respect, please examine this photo carefully:



Note the long crack in the magnet’s plastic casing, visible at the 90 degree edge of the plastic casing, particularly near the customer’s thumb…

I think I see what you are seeing, but you are thinking of these magnets being made like most, an ultrasonically welded cap, we do not make our magnets that way as it is a potential failure, it takes one imperfection where the weld is. They are completely coated and filed with polyurethane, made the same way a powerhead or any waterproof electronic is, I think the slight raised corner is just because this resin is poured in as a liquid and cures and it rises slightly in the process. If water gets in, it is really dramatic, they look like they exploded, the PU resin bulges and cracks. At about 16:00 in this video you can see how the magnets are made, this is an Osmolator 3 and it uses a softer clear resin for the front as it has to transmit light, but the magnets inside and the basics of layout and assembly are the same. The same magnets, same configuration are in the holder you have they are still unfinished in the video.