A new pump from Pentair Aquatics

A few weeks ago on Saturday I installed a new pump in one of our animal tanks. It is Quiet One Aquarium Pump 3000 - 780 gph from Pentair Aquatics. It can directly connect to Lifegard Module Filter System. But I didn't do that. I didn't want to do the plumbing job for all the circuitry of the PVC pipes under the tank on weekend. I just used plastic tubes to put it in.



Little Giant pumps were originally installed when Paul purchased them in 1997. Since then we had been using them with no specific reason despite their frequent failures. I like this new one better. It's real quiet. It is waterproof. And it's cheap (~$60)! Little Giant pumps usually cost more than $200. I will switch from Little Giant to Quiet One for all tanks.

Dissecting a Little Giant

We use Little Giant Pumps for our animal tanks. This pump looks sturdy, but it often fails if you don't lubricate it like every 6 months or so like a Harley Davidson. You have to baby-sit it all time. Just like HD, this Little Giant is proudly made in the USA. By the way, I saw Georgia Aquarium uses Iwaki pumps, which are more like Honda in reliability compared to HD. Today, I had to shut down one of our tanks to replace the filter. Then, this little giant failed to restart.
So I had to restore it.


Here’s the tricky part: you need a flat-head screwdriver and a hammer to remove this small flip mechanism.


Components include: the water propeller, motor, inlet-outlet section, main shaft with fan, end cover, and magnet ring.



Inside the motor, everything needs a thorough cleaning.