Return Pump Flow Calculation

[wiselyy73]

My DT is 70g and 25g sump. How much gph do I need? Is it the stronger the better will be?
SPS dominant tank.

 

[Crabs McJones]

My DT is 70g and 25g sump. How much gph do I need? Is it the stronger the better will be?
SPS dominant tank.

SPS Dominant, the more the better. Generally for a return pump 5 to 7 times the tank volume is recommended, but methods such as triton recommends 10 times turnover or better. For sps dominant, even if you're not running triton, i'd still shoot for 8 to 10 times turnover :)

 

[ca1ore]

More is not necessarily better. Depends on how much in-tank flow you have and the degree to which you will need to 'rely' on the main return to augment that flow. If the answer is not at all, then 3-5 will suffice.

 

[wiselyy73]

So 100g will be looking around at 500gph pump?

 

[Crabs McJones]

So 100g will be looking around at 500gph pump?

Yes, and then you rely on powerheads in the display for your display tank flow.

 

[wiselyy73]

Probability around 8-900 will be ideal because pressure lost from turns and elbows, etc.

 

[madweazl]

3-5x like posted above works very well. Your total water volume will likely end up somewhere around 70g.