Sump Noise Reduction

[Chris H Reef]

Hey all,

I recently upgraded my sump to have a larger return pump and man is it loud.

I used a vinyl tube to connect the pump to the pvc pipes hoping that would reduce the sound but it’s still pretty loud. I also put my sump on a rubber mat. Any tips on how I can reduce noise?

One of my pvc pipes is touching the cabinet my tank sits on. Maybe that’s causing the vibrations to sounds louder?

 

[X-37B]

Put a piece of foam between the pipe and the wall to reduce vibration.
Slowing the flow helps. I shoot for 2-3× turnover. Higher flow, bigger pump equals more noise.
What pump were you using and what did you upgrade to?

 

[14 foot reef]

The pipe is probably causing it, but a few things you can try.
What type of pump, brand model # ? - this will help determine some actions.
Try to separate that pipe from stand with a rubber type gasket or silicone to isolate that possibility.
Sometimes its the resonating sound coming from the pump and "Echoing" through the sump. Think Acoustic guitar :) To fix this, you could add a high quality silicone from Mcmaster-Carr between bulk head and pump, depending on pump suction power, ( We don't know as I type this ) You will want to keep it very short to avoid sucking shut. ( Very short ) its just a vibration reducer nothing else.

 

[Dread Pirate Dave]

Vinyl hose is still pretty stiff. Possibly switch over to a silicone hose?

 

[BZOFIQ]

What pump did you use? No mitigation is going to be effective if you started with a very loud pump.

 

[Chris H Reef]

I had a Syncra 357GPH and upgraded to a Syncra 1,000 GPH (might not be exactly 1,000 I can’t remember but it’s much more gph than what I had.)

 

[Chris H Reef]

The pipe is probably causing it, but a few things you can try.
What type of pump, brand model # ? - this will help determine some actions.
Try to separate that pipe from stand with a rubber type gasket or silicone to isolate that possibility.
Sometimes its the resonating sound coming from the pump and "Echoing" through the sump. Think Acoustic guitar :) To fix this, you could add a high quality silicone from Mcmaster-Carr between bulk head and pump, depending on pump suction power, ( We don't know as I type this ) You will want to keep it very short to avoid sucking shut. ( Very short ) its just a vibration reducer nothing else.

I think that could be what’s happening because I can feel the plywood back and sides vibrating and resonating

 

[Chris H Reef]

I had a Syncra 357GPH and upgraded to a Syncra 1,000 GPH (might not be exactly 1,000 I can’t remember but it’s much more gph than what I had.)

I have a 75 gal display and 20 gal sump

 

[14 foot reef]

I think that could be what’s happening because I can feel the plywood back and sides vibrating and resonating

Work on the pipe and plywood first, per website Sicce, that's their quietest pump line.
Is pump internal or external with bulk head ?

 

[mboley]

Put a piece of foam between the pipe and the wall to reduce vibration.
Slowing the flow helps. I shoot for 2-3× turnover. Higher flow, bigger pump equals more noise.
What pump were you using and what did you upgrade to?

Well, not necessarily, depends on the pump. I have a Varios 6 DC pump at 7 x turnover and it's completely silent.