I went to manards today to get a new pump and all they had were Sunterra pumps. Right now I have a 350GPH little giant. My pond isn't very big so I don't need a very big one. It is 850 GPH 120V-60HZ-75Watts. 1 inch inside diamiter output. Submersable. Is it going to cost a lot to run? I have a small stream and probably 800 gal pond. Is it to big for the pool ? I didn't get it , I wanted to wait for advice about it. Linda
How good is the Sunterra pump?
You will get a good flow with 850 GPH The general rule I use is a pump that will change the water over every two hours. So if your pond is 1600 gallons, 800 GPH is good. You need to take in consideration on how high and how far it has to push the water. My pump raises the water up about 20 feet but not straight up, its on an incline. The pump's volume is a little less than half the pond's volume and it works great. The waterfal has two drops, one 4' high and one 2' high and the water flow is excellent. I don't know about Sunterra pumps, mine is an Ecovort. You could call a pond supply that sells several brands besides Sunterra and ask which brand gets the most returns. As for cost I have never figured it out but I did not notice a huge increase in my electric bill when I run it all the time. Hope this helps.
Linda,
Here's a simple formula for figuring out how much it will cost to run that pump:
#ofwatts the pump uses x 24 hours /1000 x cost of your kilowatts x days in a month = cost per month
some pumps don't list the watts. If not, then amps x volts = watts.
I've been shopping around for pumps and have found a huge difference in energy efficiency between them. I almost bought a Tsurumi pump because it is supposed to be fabulous and run forever, but the watt usage indicated it would be around 45.00/month to run. OUch! I opted instead for a cheaper but more efficient Cal pump that should be around 20.00- 25.00 to run per month. It was so much cheaper that even if I have to buy another one next year, I'll still be ahead.
Good luck.
Melissa
Tsurumi pump is what we have in our pond!!!
