BlueAbyss
05-28-2009, 12:06 AM
I purchased Taam Rio 800 RV pump for use in a DIY protein skimmer. Before purchasing, I searched for reviews and was unable to find a commercial review in any publication. I also searched forums, here and NR, and found some mention but no one that had actually used one of these pumps. The price was right though (25 bucks) so I went ahead and ordered one from mops.ca.
I received the pump yesterday. Upon taking it out of the box, I found that the build quality was generally good, and the pump is appropriately small. This pump has been modified at the factory with a different impeller, volute, and intake than the stock pump.
View of the intake with the front housing taken off:
http://i633.photobucket.com/albums/uu56/TheVastMajority/002-2.jpg
View of the impeller in the housing:
http://i633.photobucket.com/albums/uu56/TheVastMajority/008-1.jpg
The impeller is fitted with fins that can point in one direction or the other... they are attached with plastic pins that go through the impeller and attach to the other side of the fin. I'm not sure why they wouldn't have just used a solid impeller.
I first tested it in 8" of clean freshwater to see the average size of the bubbles. In this test, the pump puts out a large number of bubbles, but they seemed much too large to produce foam. By changing the amount of air the venturi is able to pull, I was able to change the size of the bubbles, but not to the extent that the bubbles looked small enough. I also attempted changing the hoses around, it didn't seem to make much difference.
Out of the box, I don't think this pump will do very well as a skimming pump due to the large bubbles.
Further modified, I think this pump could be excellent, so I have begun some simple modifications and will explore further methods as time goes on... More to come!
I received the pump yesterday. Upon taking it out of the box, I found that the build quality was generally good, and the pump is appropriately small. This pump has been modified at the factory with a different impeller, volute, and intake than the stock pump.
View of the intake with the front housing taken off:
http://i633.photobucket.com/albums/uu56/TheVastMajority/002-2.jpg
View of the impeller in the housing:
http://i633.photobucket.com/albums/uu56/TheVastMajority/008-1.jpg
The impeller is fitted with fins that can point in one direction or the other... they are attached with plastic pins that go through the impeller and attach to the other side of the fin. I'm not sure why they wouldn't have just used a solid impeller.
I first tested it in 8" of clean freshwater to see the average size of the bubbles. In this test, the pump puts out a large number of bubbles, but they seemed much too large to produce foam. By changing the amount of air the venturi is able to pull, I was able to change the size of the bubbles, but not to the extent that the bubbles looked small enough. I also attempted changing the hoses around, it didn't seem to make much difference.
Out of the box, I don't think this pump will do very well as a skimming pump due to the large bubbles.
Further modified, I think this pump could be excellent, so I have begun some simple modifications and will explore further methods as time goes on... More to come!