Pics of my new 190g plumbing!

[turtlespd]

Jason,

I thought the same thing when i first had my ampmaster. I thought what are the chances..well it seems everyone i know has a ampmaster problem.. prettymuch 89-90% earlly seal failure. Those who have replaced the seals dont have the problem anymore but like i said the nature and designs of these pumps will have seal issues regardless of quality. My main concern as stated by other is using it as a return, sure the turn over rate and flow is awsome and it was the same thing i was going for but my stuborness got me and one day after doing a water change the pump simply failed and would not restart for a good 30 min. Both of my pumps did not leak so i thought maybe i got the good batch "what ever that means". I was so scared to leave my tank because we have brown outs and black outs durring the summer out here and to come home to aoverflowed or dead tank is just one of the things i can do without. Im going to swap mines out for a iwaki when i get some cash. I still have it as a return and still regret it.

Paul

 

[King Jason]

Thanks for the comments (good or bad)

Noise is a big concern for me. I have heard the Iwaki's are loud. The AmpMasters are silent. I currently have a QuoteOne on my 60g (everyone says they suck...it's been running for over a year and no problems). I guess I like to push the envelope! But I only hear the bad things AFTER I purchase the pump...they never show up when I'm asking questions about the pump BEFORE I purchase it!

But that is neither here nor there…What are the reasons for the pump to fail? Any specific examples? What happens when it fails? Leaks? Just doesn’t turn on? What?

 

[turtlespd]

A few faults with the AM. They will begin to leak at the seal. They will Stall for no good reason and also and the one problem i really hate they will not restart. I think they are great pumps but for the wattage and gph they put out i cant find anything out there that is any better but for a return its just risky. Although i have had mines as a return for over a year now. I just live with the risk factors and hope atleast one of my pumps will restart when power goes out. When i do get a power outage i head home within the hour and most of the time the pumps have restarted. I would just use something more reliable as areturn pump. I agree, Iwaki are really loud and i have seen them last 10 years with no issues. For 300 bucks that is what i expect. I wouldnt really care if i had to replace my seals on the DOlphin pumps periodicly but it seems like they are alittle too touchy. I have seen other pumps such as Baylor and sequence last alittle longer that a ampmaster would but like all the designs from a engineers stand point will need seals to be replaced. I will still use a AMpmaster for only close loop.

I currently have a Leak issue that was very small and now has made a nice puddle of salt creep under my stand, i would say about 12" atleast. I also have the restart issue. Never have the pump stalled but i can sure name a few local reefers you can talk to about a stalled on. Within 4 hours of install i had a buddies stall in freshwater. He had the seals replace and didnt have any problems after that.

Paul