RETURN PUMP DILEMA OPINIONS wanted

ddc0715

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ok heres a project that i have been avoiding for a long time. first some history.

I had a reef octopus hy7000 return pump that needed a new impeller because it keeps sticking. During my hunt for a return pump fix. I found 2 little giant external pumps from a guy for 50 bucks so I bought them. at this point in the past, I was fed up with pulling the RO pump out of the sump return chamber, that was a wet pain in the -------. anyyyyway. an external seemed to be the solution at that point in time. I mean you all know you have very little time and can not wait on a part since it was the return pump.

so I installed one of the external pumps above my water heater in the garage and ran the plumbing thru the wall because my fish room and this room shared a common wall. the dims are close.

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I like this setup but it's got one problem... if I have to shut the return down for any reason, the return pump loses its prime and runs dry, given the fact that it sits higher than the water line in the sump and the plumbing just hangs over the top of the sump. the blue arrows are normal operation flow, and when it's off it flows in reverse and empties the lines. since these external pumps is a magnetic drive pump it does not create suction when restarting. (BELIEVE ME I HAVE TRIED) but yoda said. and I am tired of dealing with this #feedup.

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today I had to remove it completely (there is one union on each line on the garage side) to perform a cleaning of the pump. I LIKE TO HAVE NEVER GOT IT RESTARTED. How would I go about solving this loss of prime? I have obstacles in my way of several ideas.

1. I only have 8" from the edge of my sump to the wall there's no way to drill the sump in place and even if I could drill in place; the revised plumbing going into the water heater room (from the bottom of the sump) would hit the water heater.

2. my fish room sump (48"L) can not be shifted left because the is another wall on the left and my ac return duct in the way.

how do I keep this setup, I like an external pump, but this priming issue is really A BIG BIGGGGG PROBLEM. Thanks in advance. i will field questions, cause I can not predict what you may ask. lol


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ddc0715

ddc0715

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I keep coming back to an internal pump as an answer but dang THATS A WET MESS WHEN CLEANING ONE.
 

KrisReef

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A swing check valve in the sump, and maybe add a u- loop above the pump to fill with water that will provide pressure and water above the pump to help keep water in the line. A swing check near the inflow at the tank, and it might just work?
 

Alchameth

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A swing check valve in the sump, and maybe add a u- loop above the pump to fill with water that will provide pressure and water above the pump to help keep water in the line. A swing check near the inflow at the tank, and it might just work?
I was gonna suggest a ball valve on the DT like and let the siphon fill the line, but that seems much easier.
 
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