andy Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 Does anyone have a skimmer that's running a modded Sicce PSK-2500? That pump is supposed to be soooper-doooper, and I'd like to hear a real-world opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R-3 Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 They are sooper dooper Andy! Are you thinking of adding one to your skimmer? Where have you found them by themselves? Later Ryan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sol Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 They're pretty good. They're fairly noisy (not like a gen-x or anything, but much louder than a eheim or laguna). They run kind of hot. The air to watts ratio is fantastic, and the air to water ratio is quite good. If you want the same pump for a 1/3 the price, the quiet one 3000 is identical to the sicce. IMO, at this point there's no reason to use skimmer pumps other than the askoll/laguna based models. You can buy a laguna powerjet 1500 for $150 vs the sicce for $125, and the laguna will get easilty 1800 LPH of air vs the sicce's 1000, will have a better air to water ratio than the sicce, and be much quieter to boot. Sol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted November 4, 2008 Author Share Posted November 4, 2008 I'm more curious than anything -- honestly, I think it'd be too much pump for my RC-135 copy. I'm currently running a mesh-modded Eheim 1248 and it is a bit of a disappointment, pulling about half the air that the Ocean Runner 2500 it replaced did (Eheim: 300 lph, OR: 750 lph). I'm considering picking up an Aquaclear 702 and building a custom volute for it; some people on RC are getting good results and it's a cheap compromise. I've found listings for the Sicce at http://www.marinesolutionsinc.com/catalog/Pumps/c25/p135/Sicce-PSK-2500/product_info.html & http://www.protein-skimmer.com/shopping.asp?id=446996&itemid=10098&ct=0&shopperid=71332&merchantid=446996&shop=itemdetail.asp Not sure if they have them in stock or not. Sol, how are people modding the QO3000? Just meshmodding it, or doing some volute work as well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sol Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 Depends how much air you want out of it. With just a mesh mod the QO does 800 or so; if you bore out the inlet, outlet, and volute, you can get it up to 1100 or 1200 lph. I've never heard of an eheim 1248...do you mean 1048? Or 1250? Sol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted November 4, 2008 Author Share Posted November 4, 2008 Brain fart. It's a 1250. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lowman Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 I just bought on RC an Aquabee 2000 pump and a ASM skimmer. I am going to put the Aquabee on the ASM. Wish me luck!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted November 4, 2008 Author Share Posted November 4, 2008 Let us know how it goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jayR Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 Hi Sol, Do you have to mod the QO 3000? If so, what mods are needed? Links? My octopus 3000 impeller just busted and planning on a replacement. TIA JAY R Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sol Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 At a minimum, you'd have 1. mesh mod it (grind off the impeller paddles, drill holes, zip tie on PF4 mesh) 2. make a venturi (I'd use a classic herschel venturi, see http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=1475538) Ideally, you'd also use a dremel to 3. bore out the intake for less restriction 4. contour/enlarge the volute 5. bore out the output for less restriction (in that order of importance/usefulness.) There's a thread on modding these pumps somewhere on reefcentral but I don't know where. Sol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted November 4, 2008 Author Share Posted November 4, 2008 That's a great venturi thread. Much better than all the pvc-fitting frankensteins out there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted November 4, 2008 Author Share Posted November 4, 2008 Quiet One 3000 Mod Thread: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=10408254#post10408254 Aquaclaear 802 (70) Mod Thread: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=955274&perpage=25&pagenumber=1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sol Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 Looking through that QO thread I disagree with a lot of what they're doing--mostly the total crap they're using for venturis. Remember, guys--if you're running your venturi wide open and the pump isn't cavitating, the venturi is the limiting factor. To maximize air, you need a venturi that can supply more air than the pump can handle. Then dial down the air with a valve on the air intake until the pump stops cavitating. Sol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted November 4, 2008 Author Share Posted November 4, 2008 Sol, any suggestions on balancing venturi intake against pump start-up problems? My meshmodded OR2500 had loads of trouble getting itself started (as in, it couldn't -- blowing into the intake line to get it started always resulted in humiliating gales of laughter from my wife), but it hated any restriction on the venturi input. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chewie Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 I'm currently running a mesh-modded Eheim 1248 and it is a bit of a disappointment, pulling about half the air that the Ocean Runner 2500 it replaced did (Eheim: 300 lph, OR: 750 lph). It takes alot of work for the 1250 to perform. You need to enlarge the output of the pump to 3/4" like this and also enlarge the inlet of the pump without ruining it like this Make your own venturi and use 1/4" ID tubing like this And then you get #'s like this The Sicce IS too much for a 6" body. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chewie Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 Unattached to the skimmer it is 720LPH, and aroung 600-660LPH attached. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted November 4, 2008 Author Share Posted November 4, 2008 Thanks Chewie, that's awesome. I did increase the opening on the intake to the volute, but not by that much; I also enlarged the output, but again not by that much. I was hoping to, but was fighting the clock. What are you using as a venturi? I experimented with a couple of designs, but couldn't find anything that worked as well as tapping the airline directly into the volute. Once I get my nitrates back under control, maybe I'll pull off the pump and go crazy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chewie Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 in the 2nd pic you can kind of see that the airline is just tapped in directly. I just drilled the hole as close to the pump as possible and shoved it in w/o blocking the flow. I used epoxy for the reducer and played with different sizes until I got the # I wanted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted November 4, 2008 Author Share Posted November 4, 2008 I see now, thanks. Guess I better decide if I'd rather muck around with the Eheim, or build a custom volute for the Aquaclear. Oh, yeah, one more thing -- is that 12 lpm solid, or does it bounce? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chewie Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 Solid. With larger ID reducer it bounces. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted November 4, 2008 Author Share Posted November 4, 2008 Yeah, I may just have to drill that baby out then. 750 lph seems about the most a 6" body/3.5" neck can reasonably handle. The custom volute Aquaclears are pulling over 1000 lph; I'd hate to end up with a twitchy foam cannon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R-3 Posted November 4, 2008 Share Posted November 4, 2008 They're pretty good. They're fairly noisy (not like a gen-x or anything, but much louder than a eheim or laguna). They run kind of hot. The air to watts ratio is fantastic, and the air to water ratio is quite good. If you want the same pump for a 1/3 the price, the quiet one 3000 is identical to the sicce. IMO, at this point there's no reason to use skimmer pumps other than the askoll/laguna based models. You can buy a laguna powerjet 1500 for $150 vs the sicce for $125, and the laguna will get easilty 1800 LPH of air vs the sicce's 1000, will have a better air to water ratio than the sicce, and be much quieter to boot. Sol Is that really the price difference? Only $25? Seems like its a lot more when buying a skimmer. Yeah If you can get a Laguna go for it. They straight rip from what I have seen. Later Ryan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted November 4, 2008 Author Share Posted November 4, 2008 Those are some seriously goofy looking pumps Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sol Posted November 5, 2008 Share Posted November 5, 2008 Is that really the price difference? Only $25? Seems like its a lot more when buying a skimmer. Yeah If you can get a Laguna go for it. They straight rip from what I have seen. Later Ryan The price difference is because lagunas need (or at least always are given) a custom volute. There's a lot of labor in that, compared to just a new impellar for the sicces. Those are some seriously goofy looking pumps Which ones are goofy? Sol' date=' any suggestions on balancing venturi intake against pump start-up problems? My meshmodded OR2500 had loads of trouble getting itself started (as in, it couldn't -- blowing into the intake line to get it started always resulted in humiliating gales of laughter from my wife), but it hated any restriction on the venturi input.[/quote'] A couple things in response to this (some having nothing to do with venturis): 1. Obviously make sure the impeller isn't rubbing against the volute walls. 2. Minimize the water level the pump is sitting in. Less head pressure at startup will make for easier startup. 3. Use less mesh. Maybe 2 layers instead of 3? 4. Use a well designed venturi. The issue with a lot of the PVC venturis is that they create a lot of turbulence which robs energy that would otherwise be used for drawing air. The (perhaps counterintuitive) thing is that with a well designed venturi, you actually need less of a restriction to draw the same amount of air. The ideal venturi would have a very gradual contoured inlet, and a pretty rapid increase in diameter after the throat (I'd draw a picture, but I'm lazy). But the LFP venturi I linked to earlier is probably as good as you're going to get without a mill, lathe or mold. My suggestion is to make a bunch of different LFP venturis, and use the least restricting one that still cavitates the pump. If these things don't help, you might be up crap creek. OR's don't have very strong magnets. Yay Obama! Sol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted November 5, 2008 Author Share Posted November 5, 2008 The OR died, was just trying to find out what might have been the problem in case I run into something similar in the future. I think the venturi was the problem. Oh, and it's the Laguna pond pumps that I think look goofy -- little UFOs (party)Obama! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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