Mr. Saltwater Tank’s Review of the Tunze Silence 1073.05
Germans are know for their great engineering and anything Tunze comes right out of Germany.
But why would I get excited about a variable speed return pump from Tunze? I’ll show you why.
Browse the Store! Questions?
Dang buddy, clean that eheim up!
Its going into storage man! I’ll give it a good vinegar soak before it goes to sleep tho!
Mark are you not losing GPH from eheim?
Hey i love the vids! very informational!! i wish i had a tank like yours!! check out my channel when you get a chance and tell me what you think!! im a huge fan and my channel seems to be groing fast but any tips would be greatly appreciated!!
hey nice review wish i had the money to buy that brand could you do a review on mag drive pumps.
p.s. that clam is getting pretty big 🙂
Hey. Your video is not showing up on the iPad!!!
Hmmm…can you send me yours to test it out?! 😀
I’ll look into that. Thanks for the heads up.
Mag drives are easy..I ran one for a year:
– loud
– run hot (when I got rid of mine, my tank temp dropped a full degree)
– suck a lot of electricity
Sure they are cheap, but you pay for what you get. I’m glad I got rid of mine.
JD…what’s the link to your channel?
Matt…I lost some when I used it, but not enough to warrant not using the T fitting.
Oh sorry i didnt put my link!! its http://www.youtube.com/user/JDStarm
let me know what you think!!
THANK YOU
JD Starm
Very nice review. I also just bought mine last week and I am very happy with it. It also replaced an Eheim.
It’s nice to hear how you guys pronounce TUNZE there. Sounds really classy. We pronounce it here as TOON-TZE (with the OO like in cartoon and the E like in cell).
Greetings from Europe!
OceanAquaristic..howdy from the other side of the pond! Pronouncing Tunze is another topic that leads to lively debates among reef keepers here in the states. No one knows for sure the correct way to say it!
Mark – I’m looking to replace a Velocity T4 which although wonderfully silent is putting an incredible amount of heat (a 7 deg hike) into my system ( 70G cube + sump = total system volume 100G). You mentioned the Tunze 1073.5 can be used externally – my interpretation I can plumb it into the bulkhead on my return. Did I understand you correctly ? My needs – silence, no (or minimal) heat into the system and external return. Will it fit the bill?
Thanks, Sandy
Sandy…just so I’m clear, you want to go out of your sump, into the Tunze and then up (via a flexible lose or PVC) to your bulkhead?
Hi Mark – yes, that’s right. The pump would sit outside the sump (ie dry), connected via appropriate plumbing (I have a bulkhead in the sump for an external return pump) and return up to the tank bulkhead via PVC. I read the Tunze product manual after I asked you the question (guess I should have done that first, sorry) and it appears to be doable. I just wonder how quiet the pump is when used externally ?? I will give it a go. I am hoping to achieve silence, no (or minimal) heat transfer, maintenance of adequate flow…. If this pump performs well for you on a 90G, I think it would do fine on my 70G ( I also have a 90G and a 34G…my addicition is kind of getting out of hand).
Thanks
Sandy
Sandy…I’ve never tried it out of water, but I’m calling Tunze USA today so I’l ask them!
Great – thanks!
Have you compared this to the Sicce Silent pumps. I’ve had 3 Sicce pumps for a few months, and these pumps are IDENTICAL. The only difference is that the Sicce pump does not have an AC adapter, and doesn’t have a flow controller in the powercord, but it does have the flow-changer in the face. Is this a simple re-name, or is there something different?
Also, I run a Sicce pump in-line on my 75 freshwater tank. It is TOTALLY silent and is actually room temperature. If it’s as similar to the Tunze pump as I think, then yes you can run it out of the water.
Chris..this Tunze pump is pretty much the SICCE pump as the two companies co-developed it. That being said, I’ve never had good luck with SICCE pumps and I make sure I avoid them since the ones I had were loud!
Tunze’s input on this pump must have helped b/c it is quiet as can be.
Great review! I’m beginning my journey from freshwater to saltwater. I am trying to catch up and read all of your articles, which are wonderful. The Internet forums are nice but too many ideas out there, it’ll make you go crazy. I went ahead and decided on the SWC skimmer based on your videos and I really like how I can now just follow your videos now to break in and fine tune the skimmer with ease!
My question for you….researching return pumps and “flow rates” can be very confusing. Do you have a simple guideline for us? Or is it simple trial and error which would make this return pump an easy choice. My tank will be 75 gallon (with the all glass overflow kit) with the ADHI refugium sump model 30. I believe the sump says it can handle 1000 gph but do you have to match the return pump to the sump and overflow kit? As you can see, it gets confusing to a person looking at starting a saltwater tank! Thanks again and great website!
Mark – as promised, follow-up feedback… I now have the Tunze 1073.5 plumbed external to the sump feeding the return to the display tank (70G cube) via a combination of flexible hose and PVC. The pump is indeed silent when used externally and is not putting any heat into the system. I have it cranked up to its maximum and the flow into the tank is good. If you recall I was using the Tunze to replace a Velocity T4 which although very quiet caused a 7 degree hike in the temperature of the tank . I’m very pleased with the outcome. Thanks to you for your initial review of the Tunze pump which steered me in this direction.
Cheers
Sandy
Sandy…thanks for the feedback. Tunze makes great gear and you always get what you pay for.
Steve-
I’m a fan of less flow through a sump…I’m talking 1x or 1.5 your total system volume an hour. Keep in mind that a 1000 gph hour pump won’t return 1000 gph to your tank. Some water pressure is lost through having to lift the water against gravity. This is called “head pressure” and most manufacturers will publish a graph showing how the head pressure varies with head height.
For your tank, I’d look for something in the 400-700 gph range depending on the head pressure graph of the pump you are looking at. Getting the right pump will be more of a hit or miss as until you hook it up to your tank, you won’t know how much flow you are really getting. Or just pickup the Tunze silence and take the guess work out of it!
Thanks Mark! You have sold me on the Tunze silence. You have a great website and you offer great advice for beginners looking to get into the hobby.
Mark,
whats the dimensions ( w x L x H ) of the Tunze pump ?
I have a very confined space that I was looking to use it in.
Thanks,
Rick
Thanks to your video, I decided to go for the 1073.020 for my 11.4 gallon that I have in the works!
I am still in the process of setting up my new nano, and I was going to do all PVC plumbing with my new Tunze Silence 1073.02, but I am not sure if I should or not. The hole coming from my return fitting fits a .5 inch piece of PVC. Is there a way to go half PVC half vinyl tubing? or all vinyl tubing.
Great website!
Joey…there should be a 1/2 PVC fitting that will be slip or threaded on the return side (from your tank) and the other end is a hose barb (from your return pump).
I had a question about this pump and the WXM for your Ecotechs. Basically, do you think it’s possible to setup a profile on the Apex for Feeding, so that the Ecotech’s go into to feed mode or lowest speed and the Tunze Silence downshifts to the lowest setting for 5 minutes and then all pumps/powerheads resume back to normal settings? I’m trying to automate my feeding routine between my MP40ES’s and if I upgrade my return pump to the 1073.05. I’m just getting too much left over food in my filter sock and I’m sure it’s adding unwanted nutrients to food that wasn’t able to be consumed. Thanks!
Seems that the link is broke. (/tunzesilence) I’m getting one now that my return died.
I have a 400 litre (105 gallons) tank with a 150 litre (40 gallons) sump. Do you think that Tunze 1073.50 will do the job? or do you think i need something “bigger”.
Thanks
Thomas..it will likely work assuming your head pressure doesn’t exceed that of the pump
I’m a bit concerned about the quality of this particular pump. My first Tunze Silence Electronic lasted about one month before it got extremely loud and had to be replaced. A few weeks later I got a replacement pump, and it died after running just a few hours inside my sump. Now I’m waiting for a replacement pump again… I’m not sure I’m ever going to trust this pump…
Hi Mark,
I am starting a 90 gallon Aqueon drilled aquarium that is going to be housing LPS and SPS with fish and I am looking for suggestions for the equipment I will be needing. Since this is my first sump style aquarium I really have no clue how to set it up or anything. I was looking at a Reef Octopus NWB-150 with the new Aquatrance pump for my skimmer but after that I do not know what return pump or other equipment I need to get. I was looking at some DSunY programmable lights which look decent and fit in the budget. I would appreciate any help you could send my way.
Thanks
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