Return pump losing power. Why ?

[Vivid Creative Aquatics Verified Sponsor]

I don't know if any anyone has mention this yet - but since its a DC pump i would suspect the power supply. Over time they can wear out, long before the pump does and begin supplying less power.

I only caught it this last time because I noticed the salinity level in the tank slowly creeping up over a month. it turned out to be the pump getting slower and slower. This effected the water level in the return chamber of the sump where the water level is measured for the ATO.

if you happen to have spare power supply or have another pump you can temporarily swap out the brick for - try that and see if it makes the pump run normally

 

[Pod_01]

Can you show me what you use for back-up with those pumps ?

Sure can, I have Red Sea reefer 250 so the pumps are smaller.

I use this:

Reasonable noise, I can hear it but my wife can tolerate it for a week. As mentioned it is intended to moves water till new pump arrives.

I tried this one initially:

This pump sounded like a train in the Red Sea Reefer. My wife told me if that keeps up the tank has to go. So the pump has been collecting dust for 6 years.

Hope that helps,

 

[Idech]

Sure can, I have Red Sea reefer 250 so the pumps are smaller.

I use this:

Reasonable noise, I can hear it but my wife can tolerate it for a week. As mentioned it is intended to moves water till new pump arrives.

I tried this one initially:

This pump sounded like a train in the Red Sea Reefer. My wife told me if that keeps up the tank has to go. So the pump has been collecting dust for 6 years.

Hope that helps,

Thanks ! And for battery back-up ?

 

[Pod_01]

Thanks ! And for battery back-up ?

Hmmm… I live in Waterloo and the longest power outage in the last 15 years was 4 hours. We were notified about this outage 3 months in advance.

I just cannot justify the battery backup. Just wait this statement will bite me in the rear.

I looked into different options but I just can’t justify it.

 

[BeanAnimal]

For me, I stopped correcting people a long time ago.

Me too, Ma’am :p

 

[Faurek]

Clean the pump, don't be nasty.

 

[Idech]

Clean the pump, don't be nasty.

I just did and I clean it regularly.

 

[Pod_01]

Clean the pump, don't be nasty.

Just my observation and I only been doing this for 7 years.

For return pumps the less I mess with them (cleaning etc…) the longer they seem to last. I don’t use Kalk or hydroxide so my pumps don’t tend to build up with calcium.

Now skimmer pump needs to be cleaned regularly or performance suffers. At least the one I have.
I tend to just put them into mild citric solution, let them run for hour or so and rinse. Disassembling just creates problems.

Again just my opinion.

 

[C_AWOL]

Did you try resetting the controller?
This is the same way its done on the vectra despite it being a vortech video.

If this doesn't solve the issue then I suspect the power supply might be having issues due to the power outage since being dirty normally wouldn't cause fluctuations like that (unless you have big random chunks of stuff going through the pump)

 

[Idech]

Now skimmer pump needs to be cleaned regularly or performance suffers. At least the one I have.
I tend to just put them into mild citric solution, let them run for hour or so and rinse. Disassembling just creates problems.

I like this idea, it’s time efficient and takes less effort. I might try it !

 

[Idech]

Did you try resetting the controller?
This is the same way its done on the vectra despite it being a vortech video.

If this doesn't solve the issue then I suspect the power supply might be having issues due to the power outage since being dirty normally wouldn't cause fluctuations like that (unless you have big random chunks of stuff going through the pump)

I don’t know why but I just can’t seem to push the buttons the right way and fail at programming from the controller. I can’t remove it to have a better hold because the guy who installed it screwed the cord tight to the side. I really hate this thing.

For now I have recalibrated the pump with the Mobius app and if it doesn’t help, I’ll try this but don’t have much hope that I will succeed. Thanks !

 

[RoanokeReef]

Just my observation and I only been doing this for 7 years.

For return pumps the less I mess with them (cleaning etc…) the longer they seem to last. I don’t use Kalk or hydroxide so my pumps don’t tend to build up with calcium.

Now skimmer pump needs to be cleaned regularly or performance suffers. At least the one I have.
I tend to just put them into mild citric solution, let them run for hour or so and rinse. Disassembling just creates problems.

Again just my opinion.

I also found this to be the case until I switched to a DC pump. :crying-face:

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

Thanks for your help. What is a « power cycle » ?

A fancy way of saying, unplug it and plug it back in. Haha

I don’t use Mobius. I tried once or twice, but every time it would literally change my settings out of the blue, without me doing anything.

Maybe they have fixed some bugs and I should try it again ?

Wow, I never committed to memory how to program these pumps just using the buttons, nor do I think I would be able to find current literature on how to do it. But your concerns with mobius are definitely warranted.

I just did a complete clean. The only thing I could not remove is the yellow cap because there is a metal piece holding it and I don’t know how to remove it without breaking it.

I have no idea what yellow cap you're referring to. The removal of the volute housing (4 screws) and the pulling out the impeller assembly (magnet and all) is as far as you need to go. The impeller assembly might be stuck in place, but I'm unaware of any metal retainer inside the pump housing. Perhaps a photo might help.

I don’t know why but I just can’t seem to push the buttons the right way and fail at programming from the controller

There is a trick to this, and it took me a while to figure out. In order for the driver to register the simultaneous 2 or 3 button press, they need to be slightly staggered. Meaning you can't press them at the exact same time. They need to be pressed milliseconds apart. I think video gamers have the hardest time resetting these because they've been conditioned with perfect button pressing. Haha.

If it were me, I would like to definitively rule out the power supply. Power outages can cause some weird issues even with the meanwell brand.

If you have a way to test DC voltage at the plug, it might be worth ruling that out.

 

[Idech]

A fancy way of saying, unplug it and plug it back in. Haha

Ha Ha Ha ! I like it !

I have no idea what yellow cap you're referring to. The removal of the volute housing (4 screws) and the pulling out the impeller assembly (magnet and all) is as far as you need to go. The impeller assembly might be stuck in place, but I'm unaware of any metal retainer inside the pump housing. Perhaps a photo might help.

Ok, it’s just OCD me wanting to clean inside that think. It’s full of gunk. I tried with a Q-tip but it doesn’t do a good job.

Here is the cap I was referring to. Mine is yellow, it must be a newer model. The arrow shows you the metal piece that holds the cap in place and that I couldn’t remove.

If it were me, I would like to definitively rule out the power supply. Power outages can cause some weird issues even with the meanwell brand.

I did turn it off on the power bar. Is that the same thing ? I also recalibrated it with the Mobius app as I didn’t have the courage to try with the buttons. Thanks for the tip !

 

[C_AWOL]

As long as the power is turned off in some way or form that should work for a non hard reset.

 

[Snoopy 67]

The arrow is pointing to a spring clip, You should not have to remove it. There are special pliers to remove it.
I run a DC pump with a 5 year warranty.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

Here is the cap I was referring to. Mine is yellow, it must be a newer model. The arrow shows you the metal piece that holds the cap in place and that I couldn’t remove.

Yes, that assembly will come out with some prying. I wouldn't remove that clip. It exposes the bearing. Normally that doesn't require any cleaning. Holding onto the white piece (yellow in your case) and spinning the magnet can tell you if there are issues with the bearing. It should glide smoothly and have little to no resistance when rotating. If there are converns with the bearing, a soak in a mild acid should solve that.

When you're able to get that off, you can inspect/clean the bore and also look for that anti lime bypass. I don't have a free M. But I can snap a photo on a L1 if you need me to, juat to know ehat you're looking for. I'm not 100% certain the Ms have them.

I did turn it off on the power bar. Is that the same thing ? I also recalibrated it with the Mobius app as I didn’t have the courage to try with the buttons. Thanks for the tip !

It's mostly a long shot to say that the power supply is bad, but testing it would be warranted. Turning it off and back on with the power bar does achieve a power cycle, but won't reset any issue within the power supply itself.

It does require a voltmeter to probe the power plug. And it may be out of your realm. You can also grab another power supply with the same output voltage and equivalent or higher amperage rating to rule out the power supply as the culprit. This also might be a tall order too as many people don't have extra power supplies laying around.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

...who knew that reefing required knowledge in so many other disciplines as well?

You have to be an electrician, an engineer, a biologist, a chemist, an interior decorator and on top of all that, be able to think logically. Haha

 

[Idech]

It does require a voltmeter to probe the power plug. And it may be out of your realm. You can also grab another power supply with the same output voltage and equivalent or higher amperage rating to rule out the power supply as the culprit. This also might be a tall order too as many people don't have extra power supplies laying around.

I do have one that I never used. I can’t even remember why I bought it. Would you have a link or video on how to do the test you are talking about?

When you're able to get that off, you can inspect/clean the bore and also look for that anti lime bypass. I don't have a free M. But I can snap a photo on a L1 if you need me to, juat to know ehat you're looking for. I'm not 100% certain the Ms have them.

Thanks but I think the consensus is to leave it alone so I will. I have been known to break things while trying to fix them, lol !

 

[Idech]

The arrow is pointing to a spring clip, You should not have to remove it. There are special pliers to remove it.
I run a DC pump with a 5 year warranty.

These look like very nice pumps ! Not sure I can find them in Canada though.