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Unread 01/11/2019, 04:03 PM   #26
tkeracer619
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I completely understand how it can be frustrating to spend good coin for a product but when you install it, it doesn't perform how you expected. That can really tarnish how you feel about the product, though, the vectra L1 is a great pump so I don't think you have much to worry about. If you do run into an issue you can rest assured Ecotech will take care of you. They want you to be a customer for life.

The early L1 pumps had a part that on the rare occasion would fail, they have since updated the pump. I would be surprised if you have this version if you're just posting about it now. I'm running one of the early L1 and it's been flawless. I too was concerned about it but was told by CS that it really was not a common issue and I have yet to experience an issue with mine. I have complete faith in it. The flow is great, I have mine running at about 70% max. I'm not sure what my actual gph is but it is moving more than I need. I was skeptical of the dc pumps until my L1. They do generally have lower head pressure capabilities than older style pumps but that's one way they get their efficiency and low heat input. I have mine plumbed with 1.5" pvc. 1" is small for this size pump so that will surely reduce efficiency though with your requirements it shouldn't be an issue. Also, those flow sensors definitely restrict flow, I've been using them well before apex rebadged them, you really should be using the 2" sensor.

I think you should give what Tim said a try and not worry about any negative posts or warranty issues regarding an older version. It's not often the president of a company trolls forums looking for customers who may have fallen through the cracks. They're a large company so it's expected that once in a while something gets missed and they have a history of taking care of those who do have extraordinary experiences.

L1 is an awesome pump and ecotech has great support. I think you'll be happy once you reset the pump.


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Unread 01/11/2019, 05:14 PM   #27
ohashimz
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Originally Posted by tkeracer619 View Post
I completely understand how it can be frustrating to spend good coin for a product but when you install it, it doesn't perform how you expected. That can really tarnish how you feel about the product, though, the vectra L1 is a great pump so I don't think you have much to worry about. If you do run into an issue you can rest assured Ecotech will take care of you. They want you to be a customer for life.

The early L1 pumps had a part that on the rare occasion would fail, they have since updated the pump. I would be surprised if you have this version if you're just posting about it now. I'm running one of the early L1 and it's been flawless. I too was concerned about it but was told by CS that it really was not a common issue and I have yet to experience an issue with mine. I have complete faith in it. The flow is great, I have mine running at about 70% max. I'm not sure what my actual gph is but it is moving more than I need. I was skeptical of the dc pumps until my L1. They do generally have lower head pressure capabilities than older style pumps but that's one way they get their efficiency and low heat input. I have mine plumbed with 1.5" pvc. 1" is small for this size pump so that will surely reduce efficiency though with your requirements it shouldn't be an issue. Also, those flow sensors definitely restrict flow, I've been using them well before apex rebadged them, you really should be using the 2" sensor.

I think you should give what Tim said a try and not worry about any negative posts or warranty issues regarding an older version. It's not often the president of a company trolls forums looking for customers who may have fallen through the cracks. They're a large company so it's expected that once in a while something gets missed and they have a history of taking care of those who do have extraordinary experiences.

L1 is an awesome pump and ecotech has great support. I think you'll be happy once you reset the pump.
Well while I agree with you general sentiment, I disagree with some of your conclusions.
1- the melting issue is not just negative reviews, this is something that is proven and admitted by ecotech, hence the "unofficial extended warranty".
2- I do not have data yet that what am dealing with is calibration, so while I am hopeful I will hold off popping up the champagne ha ha
3- there is clear data out there that vectra do not handle head pressure well. Srsly. Red dragon handle head pressure way better and that's sad for me cause I am a supporter of ecotech simce their early lights and vortechs
Mu concern here is how they handled the melting issue. The right thing should have been recall and replace honestly.

I completely agree with you ecotech have had incredible customer support and this is from experince. Just the fact that they jumped on this thread and helped me showed that.
BUT, just imagin if I did not post the thread...I would have thrown away my pump..the rep who dealt with me sent me on goose chase. First asked me to send vids and pictures, only to immediately send me a reply after he received my pictures that the issue is my plumbing fault which was clearly wrong and I called him on it immediately.
My point is, i hope that this is not an indication thay their customer support is trending down..not everyone would go post online and wait for Tim to reply..
I say that out of love not out of grudge..I really do.

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Unread 01/11/2019, 06:22 PM   #28
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Quick update, I factory rest my vectra and tested it again. Indeed the flow improved to around 780gph at 100%.
While indeed flow improved but it's still not that good in my openion.
I basically lost 75% of the rated flow from 5 feet head pressure.....
I also tested a red dragon 100 watt (also rated 3100gph) on the same setup, the flow reads 1600 gph( data sheet say 1900gph at my head pressure, so I know now what's my plumbing limit)...big big diffrence....
So...yeh, that's the end of this.

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Last edited by ohashimz; 01/11/2019 at 06:37 PM.
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Unread 01/11/2019, 06:42 PM   #29
ohashimz
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Originally Posted by tkeracer619 View Post
I completely understand how it can be frustrating to spend good coin for a product but when you install it, it doesn't perform how you expected. That can really tarnish how you feel about the product, though, the vectra L1 is a great pump so I don't think you have much to worry about. If you do run into an issue you can rest assured Ecotech will take care of you. They want you to be a customer for life.

The early L1 pumps had a part that on the rare occasion would fail, they have since updated the pump. I would be surprised if you have this version if you're just posting about it now. I'm running one of the early L1 and it's been flawless. I too was concerned about it but was told by CS that it really was not a common issue and I have yet to experience an issue with mine. I have complete faith in it. The flow is great, I have mine running at about 70% max. I'm not sure what my actual gph is but it is moving more than I need. I was skeptical of the dc pumps until my L1. They do generally have lower head pressure capabilities than older style pumps but that's one way they get their efficiency and low heat input. I have mine plumbed with 1.5" pvc. 1" is small for this size pump so that will surely reduce efficiency though with your requirements it shouldn't be an issue. Also, those flow sensors definitely restrict flow, I've been using them well before apex rebadged them, you really should be using the 2" sensor.

I think you should give what Tim said a try and not worry about any negative posts or warranty issues regarding an older version. It's not often the president of a company trolls forums looking for customers who may have fallen through the cracks. They're a large company so it's expected that once in a while something gets missed and they have a history of taking care of those who do have extraordinary experiences.

L1 is an awesome pump and ecotech has great support. I think you'll be happy once you reset the pump.
Btw a question out of curiosity. When you say the flow is great, did you measure it? Just wondering how are you judging the flow..
Cause I too used to think I do not have issue with the flow until I realized that my bubble kind skimmer is not really working well, after 6 months debugging, I started suspecting maybe my turn around is not as fast and the skimmer is skimming faster than my return. Only then I hooked up a flow meter and behold...

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Unread 01/12/2019, 02:04 AM   #30
tkeracer619
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Can you explain more about how you are calculating head pressure? You keep saying 5ft of head but unless the tank is a foot above the sump you certainly have more than 5. Between the barbs you are using, the 1in id tube, the flow meter, and the amount of water you're trying to force through a tiny pipe and flow meter you're probably closer to 10ft head or more. So it doesn't surprise me at all you are getting what your flow meter says.


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Unread 01/12/2019, 02:15 AM   #31
ohashimz
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Originally Posted by tkeracer619 View Post
Can you explain more about how you are calculating head pressure? You keep saying 5ft of head but unless the tank is a foot above the pump you certainly have more than 5. Between the barbs you are using, the 1in id tube, the flow meter, and the amount of water you're trying to force through a tiny pipe and flow meter you're probably closer to 10ft head or more. So it doesn't surprise me at all you are getting what your flow meter says.
Sorry you answered my question with a question. I would still like to know how do you define good flow...did you measure or based on eye evaluation?
Basically have you quantified what is the good flow you are seeing from your vectra?
As for your questions:

My setup details were in the original thread btw.

Total height from pump to the return hose end is around 5ft with some give and take(there is some more plumbing length from the loc line hoes inside the overflow box) but not much.
Not sure I understand what u mean and why do you think 5ft is too short that tank should be 1 foot above the pump.
My stand is custom and is 3feet, my tank is 2 feet height.
My plumbing is straight from pump to the tank...straight no elbows or anything.
So, my head pressure is around 5~6 feets of 1" plumbing...

Hope that helped

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Unread 01/12/2019, 02:19 AM   #32
ohashimz
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Here is a pic of my return. As you see no matter what I put on the line, it will has to be 3feet total length between pump and tank bulkhead since my stand is 3 feet)
You can see the straight line that is part silicon tubing 1" goes straight from pump to tank...
So I state again, head pressure is 5 to 5.5 feet.


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Unread 01/12/2019, 10:00 AM   #33
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Here is a pic of my return. As you see no matter what I put on the line, it will has to be 3feet total length between pump and tank bulkhead since my stand is 3 feet)
You can see the straight line that is part silicon tubing 1" goes straight from pump to tank...
So I state again, head pressure is 5 to 5.5 feet.


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How many elbows including those that go into the tank? Is it 1” going into the tank or is it reduced down and if it’s reduced down, is it reduced down at the bottom of the tank? Are the return outlets actually 3’ above the return pump or higher? If higher, What is the total height between the return pump and return outlets? The flow sensor: Is that a 1” flow sensor or a larger one? The 1” flow sensor adds a fair amount of friction loss to 1” plumbing. It’s like reducing it down to 3/4”. It’s always best to increase the flow sensor size to reduce friction loss. In the end, I am betting your actual head loss including friction loss is higher than you think.


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Unread 01/12/2019, 10:05 AM   #34
ohashimz
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How many elbows including those that go into the tank? Is it 1” going into the tank or is it reduced down and if it’s reduced down, is it reduced down at the bottom of the tank? Are the return outlets actually 3’ above the return pump or higher? If higher, What is the total height between the return pump and return outlets? The flow sensor: Is that a 1” flow sensor or a larger one? The 1” flow sensor adds a fair amount of friction loss to 1” plumbing. It’s like reducing it down to 3/4”. It’s always best to increase the flow sensor size to reduce friction loss. In the end, I am betting your actual head loss including friction loss is higher than you think.
As I said and as the pictures show...there is no elbow.
Its straight 1" line from pump yo tank bulkhead then to the loc line hoes.
Also keep in mind i tested the same setup with RD3 and the flow read 1600gph, which means this plumbing can handle up to 1600gph.

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Unread 01/12/2019, 10:11 AM   #35
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As I said and as the pictures show...there is no elbow.
Its straight 1" line from pump yo tank bulkhead then to the loc line hoes.
Also keep in mind i tested the same setup with RD3 and the flow read 1600gph, which means this plumbing can handle up to 1600gph.

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But there has to be an elbow in the overflow where the return connects to the Lockline and the Lockline is 3/4” too so you have an elbow at the lockline that goes into the lockline and you are reducing down to 3/4” at the bottom of the tank where it connects to the bulkhead. And I am assuming that the lockline is 3/4” and not 1/2” lockline.

This isn’t a question of whether the plumbing can handle 1600 GPH. This is more a question of the actual head pressure (head height + friction loss) and the pumps power curve when it comes to actual head pressure and I think you have much higher head pressure than you think. That is why I asked those questions. If you provide those answers, I can tell you pretty darn close to what your actual head loss is.


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Unread 01/12/2019, 10:16 AM   #36
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But there has to be an elbow in the overflow where the return connects to the Lockline and the Lockline is 3/4” too so you have an elbow at the lockline that goes into the lockline and you are reducing down to 3/4” at the bottom of the tank where it connects to the bulkhead. And I am assuming that the lockline is 3/4” and not 1/2” lockline.



This isn’t a question of whether the plumbing can handle 1600 GPH. This is more a question of the actual head pressure (head height + friction loss) and the pumps power curve when it comes to actual head pressure and I think you have much higher head pressure than you think. That is why I asked those questions. If you provide those answers, I can tell you pretty darn close to what your actual head loss is.
Yup totally I get it. Again all these details were included in my original post.
Straight 1" line from pump to bulkhead.
Then bulkhead, to Y 3/4" loc line fitting, to 2 loc line return hose inside the overflow box.
I do not use any elbow. If you are referring to inside the overflow box, I avoided using elbows so I do not creat bottle neck where I need a 3/4" elbow which means inside diameter is even smaller than 3/4". So I cascaded loc line hoses from the y fitting at the bulkhead up to the overflow box return opening...does that make sense?
Hope I did not confuse you more ha ha

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Unread 01/12/2019, 10:19 AM   #37
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Originally Posted by ohashimz View Post
As I said and as the pictures show...there is no elbow.
Its straight 1" line from pump yo tank bulkhead then to the loc line hoes.
Also keep in mind i tested the same setup with RD3 and the flow read 1600gph, which means this plumbing can handle up to 1600gph.

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And if your outlet is 4’ above the pump, with a 1” flow sensor, a union, a bulkhead, the reduction at the bottom of the tank to 3/4”, an elbow at the locline and the lockline output, your actual head pressure with friction loss is more like 10’ of head pressure with that pump. Possibly more depending on the reducers and other fittings in and out of the bulkhead.


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Unread 01/12/2019, 10:22 AM   #38
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Yup totally I get it. Again all these details were included in my original post.
Straight 1" line from pump to bulkhead.
Then bulkhead, to Y 3/4" loc line fitting, to 2 loc line return hose inside the overflow box.
I do not use any elbow. If you are referring to inside the overflow box, I avoided using elbows so I do not creat bottle neck where I need a 3/4" elbow which means inside diameter is even smaller than 3/4". So I cascaded loc line hoses from the y fitting at the bulkhead up to the overflow box return opening...does that make sense?
Hope I did not confuse you more ha ha

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So no elbows but the locline creates a lot of friction as well so while you did not use an elbow, the joints in the locline add friction too so you are still going to have over 10’ of head pressure (with friction loss) and not 5 - 5.5’ assuming you are at 48” of height between the return pump and outlets


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Unread 01/12/2019, 10:26 AM   #39
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And if your outlet is 4’ above the pump, with a 1” flow sensor, a union, a bulkhead, the reduction at the bottom of the tank to 3/4”, an elbow at the locline and the lockline output, your actual head pressure with friction loss is more like 10’ of head pressure with that pump. Possibly more depending on the reducers and other fittings in and out of the bulkhead.
Lol.
Man why would union add head pressure? Its 1" union.
Ince again there is no elbow on the setup, there y fitting which present a much smoother transition from the pvc to the loc line.
Agree with you on the 3/4" impact.

This setup is the simplest possible plumbing for a tank overflow, absolutely the simplest.
No elbows, not unnecessary transitions, all vertical. Have one reduction which is the 3/4" which again every overflow would need to do).
Anyway, I think things are clear now and data showed us couppe of things....

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Unread 01/12/2019, 10:27 AM   #40
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So no elbows but the locline creates a lot of friction as well so while you did not use an elbow, the joints in the locline add friction too so you are still going to have over 10’ of head pressure (with friction loss) and not 5 - 5.5’ assuming you are at 48” of height between the return pump and outlets
Ha ha, I think you are guesstimsting way too much..ha ha.

Maybe..

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Unread 01/12/2019, 10:29 AM   #41
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Ha ha, I think you are guesstimsting way too much..ha ha.

Maybe..

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No.. I am actually using a head pressure calculator and the numbers I am providing are conservative. I think your head pressure with friction loss is actually higher than 10’. More like 11-12’ possibly more depending on the actual height of the return outlets

FWIW, I am been doing tank installs for 30 years now. I also work for a pump manufacturer as you are probably aware. No need for me to guess. I am only trying to help.


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Unread 01/12/2019, 10:32 AM   #42
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No.. I am actually using a head pressure calculator and the numbers I am providing are conservative. I think your head pressure with friction loss is actually higher than 10’. More like 11-12’ possibly more depending on the actual height of the return outlets

FWIW, I am been doing tank installs for 30 years now. I also work for a pump manufacturer as you are probably aware. No need for me to guess. I am only trying to help.
Lol. Cheers mate.

Can you share with me a picture or a drawing of simpler and less head pressure overflow in a tank?
Would be good for everyone here.

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Unread 01/12/2019, 10:35 AM   #43
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Lol.
Man why would union add head pressure? Its 1" union.
Ince again there is no elbow on the setup, there y fitting which present a much smoother transition from the pvc to the loc line.
Agree with you on the 3/4" impact.

This setup is the simplest possible plumbing for a tank overflow, absolutely the simplest.
No elbows, not unnecessary transitions, all vertical. Have one reduction which is the 3/4" which again every overflow would need to do).
Anyway, I think things are clear now and data showed us couppe of things....

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Fluid dynamics. Unions add friction. A union is NOT a smooth piece of pipe. There are joints. A union can add .25 to .50’ of head pressure depending on the pump and line size. Heck, there is a difference in friction losses between regular PVC and Flex PVC because Flex PVC is not smooth inside but is kind of ribbed inside. Reductions create friction and also restriction. That 1” flow sensor is a reduction and akin to having a flapper check valve and it also has joints that create friction as well. It all adds up and that is something that most people don’t realize.


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Unread 01/12/2019, 10:53 AM   #44
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Lol. Cheers mate.

Can you share with me a picture or a drawing of simpler and less head pressure overflow in a tank?
Would be good for everyone here.

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There is no easy way to skin this. Your setup is simple enough. If it were me, I would have done things a bit different though to reduce head loss. I would have used a larger 1.25” flow sensor if it were available. I would have used a larger 1.25” union. I normally hard plumb things and with my return setup, my pump has a 1.5” output but I used 2” plumbing all the way to the top of the tank. This includes all union ballvalves and fittings. In my case, I split that 2” line off to a pair of 1” seaswirls. The increased plumbing size results in a major reduction in friction loss.

Since you are reducing down in your overflow, I would have used a 1” bulkhead in the bottom of the tank or even larger if I were having the tank custom made and a 1” or larger PVC wye inside the overflow connected to 1” 90* curved pipe where they attach to the overflows lockline bulkheads. Those locklines that you are using inside your overflow in place of 90* fittings aren’t helping much if anything compared to an elbow since each joint on the lockline results in added friction and it all adds up.


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Unread 01/12/2019, 01:45 PM   #45
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Slief nailed it. I haven't gotten to your questions yet as I was traveling last night. Head loss isn't just a matter of height above the pump, that is a major component but friction losses add up quick, especially when using soft tubing and barbs that restrict flow.

More than just head pressure is at play here, those sensors need laminer flow and when you force 1600gph through a 1in id pipe the water is traveling at almost 11ft per second. It isn't laminer at that point so the sensor is likely giving false readings as well as an increase in head losses due to friction. The RD3 is a nice pump but it costs double the vectra so I'm not sure that is a fair comparison.

No, I don't think ecotech needed to recall the L1 because the issue with the early pumps wasn't as widespead as you think. Mine still works fine, there are plenty of them out there that work fine. As consumers we don't have data on how many actually failed as a percentage so we have to assume that with ecotechs awesome cs that they would have recalled it if there was a high percentage of failures to pumps sold. I suspect most failures have been related to their operational environment and that is why you see some people have multiple failures while some have none. Either way, they extended the warranty to cover that failure, and I doubt a budget brand would do that.

In regards to measuring my water flow, I filled my coral flat with it but I don't care what the actual number is, it's mostly irrelevant as long as it's doing what I want. My plumbing is 1.5in ID so flow is laminer at 5fps, spa flex was used for bends to minimize losses, and the ouputs are 8x 3/4" loc line. At 70% it took about 4 minutes to fill 100gals so its roughly 1500gph which falls right in line with their flow chart.


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Unread 01/12/2019, 01:57 PM   #46
ohashimz
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All...what are we debating here exactly?
The post is about an issue I observed with vectra which lead me to evaluate vectra performance against other pumps.

My plumbing is simple and good representation of most of the tanks out there. Regardless of what you think head pressure is, or what's the hydro dynamics are, the data is simple:

- plumbing is simple and representative of most aquariums.

- vectra clocked 700gph at max speed meaning I lost 75% of vectra performance from head pressure

- RD3 that is spec'ed at the same flow rate as vectra clocked 1600gph on the same setup and head pressur3.
- the customer service feedback originally was wrong and blamed the setup(kind lik what this debate is heading) which turned out to be wrong.

That's all. This is the hard, measured data.

Correct....

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Last edited by ohashimz; 01/12/2019 at 02:48 PM.
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Unread 01/12/2019, 01:59 PM   #47
ohashimz
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As for the recall, I wonder if you hear your carseat belt have very low chance of error and the manufacturer have admitted it...I wonder if you will have the same openion and think they should not recall and replace rather ask you to wait and see till you get in to accident to find out. Then they replace it for you.

Actually this is such a big deal with me, though I improved vectra flow a bit, I removed it from my system until I confirm if my vectra have the same design issue or not.
I cannot risk even the slightest chance that this pump fail when am not home and I have the system down waiting on a replacment.


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Last edited by ohashimz; 01/12/2019 at 02:50 PM.
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Unread 01/12/2019, 02:22 PM   #48
ohashimz
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Forgot to list another data point.
- an old syncra 4.0 that is spec'ed as 900gph with zero head pressure clocked 550gph on the same setup..
- and my final data point, this is the 9th system I have setup at my place over the last 13 years...

I remind you again, all these measurments are at the same entry point of the same plumbing.

So, if you think my plumbing need to be better for vectra to work, please let me know what reefers should do...
But lets keep it real here, tanks, stand heights, return drill holes, bulk heads and return loc lines are all standard for home aquariums and every tank will have to use them. So let's not say for vectra to work on par with other pumps in the market. Reefers need to go do funky plumbing or build custom setups. Otherwise I will day if you care about flow then simply choosing better pump is more realistic. thus far I have not seen any solution to the head pressure that you both are refering to justify vectra failing to perform at..
If you say plumbing should improve please give us better plumbing suggestions so we all learn and adjust...
If you say you think vectra flow is great, please give us your measurment to understand what is good flow in your opinion.
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Last edited by ohashimz; 01/12/2019 at 02:52 PM.
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Unread 01/12/2019, 02:55 PM   #49
slief
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ohashimz View Post
Forgot to list another data point.
- an old syncra 4.0 that is spec'ed as 900gph with zero head pressure clocked 550gph on the same setup..
- and my final data point, this is the 9th system I have setup at my place over the last 13 years...

I remind you again, all these measurments are at the same entry point of the same plumbing.

So, if you think my plumbing need to be better for vectra to work, please let me know what reeferwa should do...
But lets keep it real here, tanks, return drill holes, block heads and return loc lines are all standard and every tank will have to use them. So let's not say for vectra to work on par with other pumps in the market. Reefers need to go do funky plumbing setups.this far I have not seen any solution to the head reasure that you both are justifying vectra failing to perform at..
Please give us better plumbing so we all learn and adjust...

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Different pumps handle head and friction loss differently and depending on a pumps output size as well as its max head pressure and the flow curve of the pump the ultimate head pressure can be different. So the same plumbing can result in different head loss from one pump to the next depending on the pumps output size as well is it’s pressure output.

The Vectra has a 1” output so reducing it down to 3/4” will result in greater friction loss and ulimately greater head pressure than the Syncra 4.0 which is natively a 3/4” output. As such the actual head pressure for the Syncra (with your plumbing) is lower (closer to 6’ of head) than it is for the Vectra L1 which is in excess of 11’ of head. Conversely, the Vectra M1 would result in lower head loss with your plumbing. Don’t get me wrong, I understand your frustration but I am also trying to explain why differerent pumps have different results given your plumbing constraints. If the Vectra was plumbed with 1” pipe all the way to the display including the bulkheads and you used a larger flow sensor, you would have much more flow due to reduced friction/head loss.

Now having said that, based on my calculations of your head loss which are rough and based on a similar pump, the flow from the L1 should be higher than the 700 GPH that your flow sensor is reporting which would put your head loss closer to 14’ if I based your head loss on the reported flow alone. Since I don’t know the exact pressure output of the L1 and can’t calculate the impact of the locline which is more substantial than you may realize, there is a margin of error there that could result in higher head pressure (due to friction losses) than I am calculating. Either way, it might be worth taking the Vectra apart and giving it a deep cleaning to see if that helps. Depending on the age of the flow sensor, those too need cleaing from time to time. But like I said, there are a number of factors that impact ultimate head loss and the plumbing is one factor as is the pumps output size and it’s pressure output capability so ultimate head loss will be different from one pump to the next.


Anyhow, as you can see, I work for a competitor of Ecotech. I have no dog in this fight. I am simply trying to explain why you may be seeing the results you are seeing with this particular pump. And I have nothing against the Vectras. Ecotech makes great products and backs them with great support You will find that I am very unbiased which is why I chimed in here to lend some insite. I am simply trying to explain why you are seeing the results you are seeing and lend you some advice which might improve things for you.


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Unread 01/12/2019, 03:03 PM   #50
ohashimz
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Quote:
Originally Posted by slief View Post
Different pumps handle head and friction loss differently and depending on a pumps output size as well as its max head pressure and the flow curve of the pump the ultimate head pressure can be different. So the same plumbing can result in different head loss from one pump to the next depending on the pumps output size as well is it’s pressure output.

The Vectra has a 1” output so reducing it down to 3/4” will result in greater friction loss and ulimately greater head pressure than the Syncra 4.0 which is natively a 3/4” output. As such the actual head pressure for the Syncra (with your plumbing) is lower (closer to 6’ of head) than it is for the Vectra L1 which is in excess of 11’ of head. Conversely, the Vectra M1 would result in lower head loss with your plumbing. Don’t get me wrong, I understand your frustration but I am also trying to explain why differerent pumps have different results given your plumbing constraints. If the Vectra was plumbed with 1” pipe all the way to the display including the bulkheads and you used a larger flow sensor, you would have much more flow due to reduced friction/head loss.

Now having said that, based on my calculations of your head loss which are rough and based on a similar pump, the flow from the L1 should be higher than the 700 GPH that your flow sensor is reporting which would put your head loss closer to 14’ if I based your head loss on the reported flow alone. Since I don’t know the exact pressure output of the L1 and can’t calculate the impact of the locline which is more substantial than you may realize, there is a margin of error there that could result in higher head pressure (due to friction losses) than I am calculating. Either way, it might be worth taking the Vectra apart and giving it a deep cleaning to see if that helps. Depending on the age of the flow sensor, those too need cleaing from time to time. But like I said, there are a number of factors that impact ultimate head loss and the plumbing is one factor as is the pumps output size and it’s pressure output capability so ultimate head loss will be different from one pump to the next.


Anyhow, as you can see, I work for a competitor of Ecotech. I have no dog in this fight. I am simply trying to explain why you may be seeing the results you are seeing with this particular pump. And I have nothing against the Vectras. Ecotech makes great products and backs them with great support You will find that I am very unbiased which is why I chimed in here to lend some insite. I am simply trying to explain why you are seeing the results you are seeing and lend you some advice which might improve things for you.
You know all standard tanks requires bulk head that transition to 3/4" right?
Byw am asking here not challanging. Is my understanding correct?
If answer is yes, then vectra is not suitable to standard tanks....I know am being too harsh here, I say again I hold ecotech to such high standard.
I buy them over everyone else...true word

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