# Ran a submersable pump dry. Help?



## small fry (Oct 14, 2010)

Hey guys. I went on a week long camp afew weeks ago. During the camp my mom reported that the sump was outrunning the tank. I forgot to ask her to unplug the sump pump so it wouldn't run dry.

Unfortunately, when I got home I had everything to do and I completely forgot about the sump issue, even though I didn't fail to feed the fish. Yesterday I realized to my horror that there was a decient amount of protein building up on the surface. I forgot to fix the pump/sump circulation!

I have a sufficient amount of water in the tank right now, enough to get everything started. I have a huge problem, though. My sump was left plugged in the entire time! It was sitting in a dry sump! Aside from all the benefitial bacteria in the sump dying, I don't have a working pump! I don't know what to do. I don't have $80 to spend on a new pump. Suggestions please?

The tank is a 30 gallon tank. The sump is a 10g sump. The pump is a "Quiet1" pump rated for, I think a 55g tank (but I had the flow set lower).

Anyone know anything I could do to fix it, anything I could do to get the water circulating between the tanks, or any alternative to a sump less than $80? I don't know what to do. *sigh*

Any tips or suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks guys!

small fry,


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## Reefing Madness (Jun 26, 2011)

Pull it apart and see how bad the impellar has seized in the housing. If you are able to get it out without tearing up the housing, you can get another impellar for it. If the inside of the housing is rather rough, lightly sand it smooth. Don't get to crazy with it, you just want to knock down the high points so the new impellar sits inside without grabbing the sides.
Lifegard Aquatics


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## small fry (Oct 14, 2010)

I haven't found any defects on the internal [spinny-thingy] part. The propeller isn't turning at all, even though I can turn it easily by force. The propeller is one of those with the magnet-looking thing at the bottom with a metal rod thingy that sticks out to turn the propeller. I have seen other kinds, so I don't know if that helps any.


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## zof (Apr 23, 2010)

I don't have much of a clue but given what you've said it sounds like the motor over heated and burned out, best luck will just be to run to the pet store and grab a $20 pump, your only dealing with a 30 gallon tank so I don't think you would need a high capacity one.

edit : I just realized I was in the salt water section... might want the nicer pump then, sorry


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## onefish2fish (Jul 22, 2008)

save for a new one


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## Reefing Madness (Jun 26, 2011)

Bummer, your internals overheated and froze up. Was hoping for you that it wasn't that. But...Sorry, its more or less dead.


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## small fry (Oct 14, 2010)

Thanks for the information. I figured it was probably overheated and fried. One of my Saltwater friends actually told me about a much cheaper pump (about $35) that would work better. I may be able to order it before I have a complete tank crash. I may be able to get the tank fully functional again pretty soon.


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## Reefing Madness (Jun 26, 2011)

small fry said:


> Thanks for the information. I figured it was probably overheated and fried. One of my Saltwater friends actually told me about a much cheaper pump (about $35) that would work better. I may be able to order it before I have a complete tank crash. I may be able to get the tank fully functional again pretty soon.


 I don't know about if the one your getting will work better, Quiet One Pumps are one of the best out there, and very cost efficient to run.


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## small fry (Oct 14, 2010)

It is a pump called the Rio Plus Aqua Water Pump. I am trying to decide between the 382gph ($21) model and the 642gph ($31) model. The output from the Quiet One was 285-ish. Comments?


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## onefish2fish (Jul 22, 2008)

i dont think the quiet one #1's are much more then $31? i could have sworn i heard bad things about rio, like them leaking electricy into the tank... (maybe im confusing that with another brand?)


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## Reefing Madness (Jun 26, 2011)

Aquarium Water Pumps & Water Movement: Lifegard Aquatics Quiet One Aquarium Pumps


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