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Aquascape Pro and the Aquasurge - Clearing the Clog

June
16th
PondMeister

 


The Aquasurge pumps are a great replacement for the old Aquascape Pro pumps at low head heights and at or below 5000 gph. They are much less expensive up front, much more energy-efficient, have a 3 year vs a 2 year warranty and do not need to be kept in water when removed for the winter.

For example, currently the Aquascape Pro 4500 costs $579, takes 625 watts ($45.60/Month), has a 2 year warranty and pumps 4500 gph at 5′. Compare that to the Aquasurge 5000 which costs $415, consumes only 250 watts ($18.24/Month), has a 3 year warranty and gets out 4,280 gph at 5′

There are a few differences between the Aquasurge and the old Aquascape Pro pumps however.

As the Head Height becomes higher the disparity becomes greater between the 2 pumps. At 15′ of head height (head height is the vertical distance from WATER LEVEL to the top of the waterfall PLUS 1′ for every 10′ of horizontal distance), the Aquascape Pro4500 gets out 3300 gph compared to only 2377 for the Aquasurge 5000.

Also, the Aquascape Pro pumps were more solids handling pumps than the Aquasurge and have that 1″ opening that can swallow and spew pieces of stuff out to the Biofalls. The Aquasurge is not as much of a solids-handling pump and the cage seems to protect the pump..but at the same time, catch a lot of debris that can choke the pump from getting water.

I have 3 different skimmers – each with an Aquasurge 5000. Two of the three, I have to clear the cage at least every week or two. I can always tell when the flow slows down that it’s time to clear the cage. My filter mats on my 3rd skimmer fit very tightly and very little debris gets thru to the pump so I rarely have to clear that cage. Moral of the story – make sure your mats fit snugly and remember to keep a watch on the cage and make sure it stays cleared. 

Lastly, the Aquascape Pro pumps have much more power to force water up or thru pipes that may be too small than ideal. We have had several customers who had pipes that were smaller than 2″ and the Aquascape pros were able to force more water thru than the corresponding Aquasurge pumps.

AquaSurge Pumps by Aquascape


date Posted on: Thursday, June 16th, 2011 at 11:28 pm
Category Pond Products, Pond Tips.
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2 Responses to “Aquascape Pro and the Aquasurge - Clearing the Clog”

  1. Frank Dupree

    You’re exactly right! I’ve just experienced this for myself. I thought that there might be something wrong with my new pump but there wasn’t. It was the debris that could not move through like it did with the old pump.
    Thanks!

    June 17th, 2011 at 7:04 am
     
  2. D. Reeves

    What does a check valve do and what does a new one cost? Do they come with the pump? My aquascape 7500 was replaced in Sept. 2011 and I was told I had to replace the check valve and it wasn’t covered by the warranty.

    March 10th, 2012 at 4:44 pm