Rotate Pump Parts
After months and months of use, pumps build up calcium deposits that are difficult to clean. Even if you scrub them by hand and look clean, they still have a layer of build up. So what is the best way to clean the build up off your pumps? Soak the pumps for a few days in white vinegar. It is cheap and extremely effective.
Soak Your Parts
However, you can’t have your main pump turned off for two days while you soak your impellers and back plates. This lack of circulation could kill off your whole tank. So what do you do? The friction caused by the calcium deposits lessens the pump efficiency, until eventually they often won’t even start turning.
Try buying a spare impeller and back plate. The
new parts
cost is about 1/3 the price of a pump, and should literally make your pumps run like new. Now you can soak the other back plate and impeller as long as you want as now there is no hurry to get them back, as you have two sets. Replacing our two BlueLine pumps impellers and back plate, took no more than half an hour. We run a 70 for our main pump and a 55 for the protein skimmer. The water level on the protein skimmer shot way up, showing an increase in efficiency.
Now we can let the
new in, old out for a wash
old parts soak for a good long time and not have to worry about a quick return. The Reef Aquarium DVD, A Set Up & Maintenance Guide is very big on protecting your investment in your tank, and this is a good way to keep keep costs down while giving you another layer of protection for your reef tank.
