Masterflex lu

[Bpb]

As the title says. Looking for a masterflex setup. I'd really rather not have to track down a bunch of separate pieces so hopefully someone will have the whole setup (drive/controller, motor, pump head, tubing, ect). Prefer the brushless variety willing to spend a bit extra if it's one of the nice digital versions.

I've got this cross posted on a few other forums as well. Trying To cover all my bases. There are SOOOO many of them on eBay and I'm not real versed on being able to identify which ones are best for our purposes. They're all from medical surplus sellers that state sold as is and cannot guarantee they work. Well not ALL but an overwhelming majority. Would rather buy a working unit from a hobbyist

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[victoly]

Yeah, they kind of make it hard with the number of varieties and cryptic nature of their model numbers..

i would recommend getting one with an easy load head (like this one), as someone who has had to load a non-easy load, it sucks (they look like this)

What is the intended use?

[Bpb]

Meant to say pump *

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[Bpb]

Calcium reactor of course. Talking to someone on RC about buying one.

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[Bpb]

Naturally I'll take the best deal though

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[victoly]

just a few things to keep in mind, those pumps *can* be pretty loud. depending on your price sensitivity, I'd think long and hard about a DOS if you're into the whole apex deal.

[Bpb]

I am. The one I'm looking at is a digital brushless one which should be fairly quiet. A carx on a 90 gallon won't save money long term, but I do believe that a stable carx is fundamentally superior to 2 part dosing. I know I'd regret getting a dos. If this doesn't work out I can still sell it and get a dos and have money to spare afterward

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[victoly]

Fair enough. Just make sure that it's designed for continuous use and that it has variable speed (or you're very sure that your fixed flow rate is well known).

Don't skimp on tubing, as the quickest way to lose function in a peristaltic pump is via cracked tubing.

[Bpb]

All noted.

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[Bpb]

The unit I'm looking at/considering is a masterflex L/S 7524-40 digital console with easy load head and tubing. It's a discontinued model, and has a brushed motor, but having heard several of these the noise shouldn't be too much of a problem.

I shot an email to Cole Parmer asking more questions about the unit but it looks like a solid offering for the price. That being said

I'm still open to offers or suggestions. I'd ideally like a brushless model, but I understand the cost goes up significantly. $500+ for a used pump is a hard pill to swallow

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[FarmerTy]

Why'd you decide you needed a peristaltic? Has your effluent not been consistent?

I only ask because I've only used one reactor that really needed a peristaltic due to its design... it was just flawed and could never keep a stable effluent flow so I ran one briefly on it before the noise drove me nuts. It's not even that crazy loud but when you used to do groundwater sampling for 10 years and most of the time you were running peristaltic pumps for 12hrs/day nonstop for a week, you can understand why hearing that sound again made me grate my teeth.

[FarmerTy]

FWIW, the MTC Procal does not require a peristaltic pump. A simple tee off my return line and it's been holding effluent flow pretty steady. It has a flowmeter built in for me to gauge it.

My old Korallin didn't require a peristaltic either... It actually was designed to run slightly pressurized so having a needle valve on the effluent flow allowed me to control the consistency of the flow and it didn't over pressure the reactor as it was designed for it. I tried this with a generic PM reactor and it gave me fits as it wasn't designed for pressure. I had to put the needle valve in the inflow instead but it managed to keep a pretty steady effluent flow as well without needing a peristaltic.

[Bpb]

I actually don't have the reactor yet. But I'm not leaving it it chance. Rather than waiting to see if the effluent is stable, I am just biting the bullet and guaranteeing it will be. You've had success clearly with the return pump method, but I've just simply read too many complaints about clogged valves and lines leading to consistency issues. And have yet to read a single complaint about Masterflex performance. Same as my reason for buying a higher end dual stage regulator with top shelf needle valve. Do people run calcium reactors on cheapo regulators? Yes. But having had one fail before...on the planted tank, it's just not a risk I'm willing to take on a calcium reactor. Same situation.

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[Bpb]

Ty do you put your valve before the reactor or after it?

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[FarmerTy]

I actually don't have the reactor yet. But I'm not leaving it it chance. Rather than waiting to see if the effluent is stable, I am just biting the bullet and guaranteeing it will be. You've had success clearly with the return pump method, but I've just simply read too many complaints about clogged valves and lines leading to consistency issues. And have yet to read a single complaint about Masterflex performance. Same as my reason for buying a higher end dual stage regulator with top shelf needle valve. Do people run calcium reactors on cheapo regulators? Yes. But having had one fail before...on the planted tank, it's just not a risk I'm willing to take on a calcium reactor. Same situation.

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Fair enough, just wanted to share my experience with the 4 CaRXs I've run and only needing a peristaltic for one of them.

The valve location depends on the CaRX but generally, you'll want to put it before the reactor as most aren't designed to run with much pressure at all and you'll end up with leaks.

[Bpb]

Good deal. I mean this next question in 100% literal seriousness with zero sarcasm (for some reason when I ask it in my head it has a sarcastic tone. It shouldn't). What is it about your system that prevents your valves from clogging? Not so much from precipitate (especially if it's before the reactor), but from bio film and sludge. Even my dark drain and return lines always get a layer of film that coats them. How do you prevent such a phenomenon from happening to your tiny 1/4" water lines that feed the reactor? It presumably happens on a masterflex fed (or sucked rather) reactor, but they have such tremendous torque they can muscle through it without issue

I constantly have read dozens and dozens of stories in just about every single calcium reactor related thread or anecdote, that the feed valves clog, frequently, and lead to horribly unstable effluent rates and ph fluctuation inside the reactor. I almost never read or hear of anyone running their reactor off a manifold and getting a stable effluent and ph.

I am ignorant. I have never owned a calcium reactor. I'm just making certain to do it right and cut no corners. I've cut corners enough on my time on this hobby. Sometimes it's been fine, but sometimes I've been burned, and from what I understand, a calcium reactor can burn you about the worst of anything if you do it wrong.

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[FarmerTy]

You got me sir, I've never had that problem... and this coming from a guy that uses no mechanical filtration... well... if you want to be picky, yes, my skimmer could be considered mechanical.

I'll say that the sponge in my CaRX reactor does get clogged up with a ton of detritus by the time I have to refill my media every 6 months but it has never affected CaRX performance. Or maybe it has but I've always been on top of the adjustments.

I've actually never had any issues running a CaRX that I can remember... 5 years of solid performance from multiple different reactors. The pH probe had always warned me prior to anything going south... that and my obsessive alk testing.

All 3 of my reactors that didn't require a peristaltic were run off the manifold for my return pump. The only time I ever had anything clog was when I decided using a Tom's Aqualifter was a good idea to run a CaRX. That was in my newb phase when I first got a reactor.

[FarmerTy]

I think the dangers of a CaRX are overblown. A heater could nuke your system just as quickly as a CaRX, hence the temp probe. A CaRX has the same ability, hence the pH probes.

Tons of reefers use a heater with no issues yet a heater can warm up your tank high enough in a day to nuke everything. With a CaRX, with the effluent rates we use and the little CO2 that is used, it would take a lot to bring the alk up enough to nuke everything in a day, especially considering the range at which alk can be run, 7-11 dKh. You'd literally have to go full bore on the CO2 and liquefy all your media to the point that it would blow your system up with alk. At that point, I sure hope your pH probe is telling you something is wrong.

[FarmerTy]

One last thought, I've always run a decently robust effluent stream. Not really a full stream but definitely more than a drip. Though you end up burning through your CO2 a little bit quicker, it helps avoid the pitfalls of flow that is too slow. That could have repurcussions not only on the inlet stream with detritus and other things clogging it but also on the effluent drip, with alk precipitating and hardening, causing clogs on the effluent end.