Internal vs. External Return Pumps & Calcium Reactor vs. 2-part dosing
by
, 06-17-2010 at 10:43 PM (5518 Views)
Hi Folks,
Just wondering what people think about internal vs. external return pumps (say, for a 200G system). Anyone have any advice? From what I gather, external pumps are more expensive to start with, but have a longer lifespan and don't add heat to the system. Does the sump have to be drilled in order to use an external sump or can u just use pvc pipes to go up and over the sump wall? I guess doing so would affect the pump pressure/performance, right?
Also, do most people use a calcium reactor or 2-part dosing? I'm edging towards going in the 2-part direction as a calcium reactor seems pretty complicated and contrary to belief is not really a "set up and forget-about-it system". It looks like you have to carefully monitor and adjust things. If that's the case, isn't it just as easy (and a lot cheaper) to simply manually/automatically dose 2-part? The Bulk Reef Supply 2-part system looks pretty simple and reasonably priced. Anyone have any experience with the BRS 2-part? What about their ROX carbon and GFO reactors too, as well as their reactor media?
Sorry for all the questions!
All advice greatly appreciated,
Graham