Rio - what is wrong with them?

[Pszemol]

Not having RIO pump before I have read many warnings on several
newsgroups to not buy them... When my refugium finally arrived from
Dr FostersSmits.com I realised that RIO 400 pump was in the set.

Frightened I am asking: what will go wrong with it and when? :-))
On the first look the pump looks like any other pump I have got.
Maybe little bit more "square" :-)))

Signed:
New, still happy, owner of a RIO pump...

[Don Geddis]

"Pszemol" > writes:
> Not having RIO pump before I have read many warnings on several
> newsgroups to not buy them.
> Frightened I am asking: what will go wrong with it and when? :-))

One issue is that it is common, when they shut off, to have trouble turning
on again. E.g. from a power failure, or if you unplug it to clean or
something. You should be sure that your tank doesn't collapse if all the
other equipment comes back on, but that one pump doesn't.

BTW: Usually this is temporary. I've easily repaired mine a number of times
by removing it, and cleaning out all the accumulated gunk inside. Then it runs
just fine again. I interpret this as meaning that the pump has enough power
to keep running if it's already going, but insufficient torque to get started
from a stop if there's even a bit of resistance.

-- Don
__________________________________________________ _____________________________
Don Geddis http://reef.geddis.org/

[Richard Reynolds]

> Not having RIO pump before I have read many warnings on several
> newsgroups to not buy them... When my refugium finally arrived from
> Dr FostersSmits.com I realised that RIO 400 pump was in the set.

a rio 400 probibly is ok ish :) some are more prone to failure than others IME anything
under 600 will give you a good life, IMO rio failures get reported more often as the
company has no interest in supporting us. they also have 2 pumps that fail more often than
the rest of them.

> Frightened I am asking: what will go wrong with it and when? :-))
> On the first look the pump looks like any other pump I have got.
> Maybe little bit more "square" :-)))

generally the first thing that happens is they fail to start, then secondly they shutoff,
the old ones had caused a few fires as I recall that was fixed.

--
Richard Reynolds

[Raymond]

"Pszemol" > wrote in message >...
> Not having RIO pump before I have read many warnings on several
> newsgroups to not buy them... When my refugium finally arrived from
> Dr FostersSmits.com I realised that RIO 400 pump was in the set.
>
> Frightened I am asking: what will go wrong with it and when? :-))
> On the first look the pump looks like any other pump I have got.
> Maybe little bit more "square" :-)))
>
> Signed:
> New, still happy, owner of a RIO pump...

The RIO pumps are one of the most popular pumps out there. I have been
told that they sell more submersible pumps then any other
manufacturer. (I can't verify this) There have been somewhere on the
order of one dozen or so people in this and other groups say that
their RIO pumps have shorted out or other wise malfunctioned and in
the process leaked toxins into there system and wiping out everything
they had or at least several of the systems occupants.

I believe these accounts to be true.

My personal experience is somewhat different. In the eight or nine
years that I have been using them I have had three fail. One of them
developed a crack in the cord and started leaking current into the
water. Since I have a GFI this wasn't a problem other than it tripped
the GFI. The other two just quit working and did produce a bad smell.
(Even though they were in the water at the time) This did not seem to
be a problem with any of the fish or coral. Since I caught this within
24 hours or so and I had other pumps providing circulation within the
tank, it was simply a matter of replacing the pump.

All pumps fail. It is just a matter of when and how. Many people feel
that even though the odds aren't that great, it is better to just use
a different brand of pump.

FWIW The last pump I bought was a Mag 9.5.

Oh yeah one last piece. All of my personal experience has been with
RIO 2100 and 2500HP pumps.

[Marc Levenson]

Raymond wrote:

> The RIO pumps are one of the most popular pumps out there. I have been
> told that they sell more submersible pumps then any other
> manufacturer. (I can't verify this) There have been somewhere on the
> order of one dozen or so people in this and other groups say that
> their RIO pumps have shorted out or other wise malfunctioned and in
> the process leaked toxins into there system and wiping out everything
> they had or at least several of the systems occupants.

If you'll go to ReefCentral.com, look up the thread "Let's Count the Broken RIOs" in the
Reef Discussion forum. The thread hasn't had much activity, but you'll find a lot of
unhappy owners.

> I believe these accounts to be true.

I've had a number of them fail, much to my aggravation. Usually the only way to get
them to restart is to hit them on the side, once they are submerged. Rio 600 several
times, Rio 2100 and 2500 as well.

> My personal experience is somewhat different. In the eight or nine
> years that I have been using them I have had three fail. One of them
> developed a crack in the cord and started leaking current into the
> water. Since I have a GFI this wasn't a problem other than it tripped
> the GFI. The other two just quit working and did produce a bad smell.
> (Even though they were in the water at the time) This did not seem to
> be a problem with any of the fish or coral. Since I caught this within
> 24 hours or so and I had other pumps providing circulation within the
> tank, it was simply a matter of replacing the pump.

Sorry to read it, but not a bit surprised. They are cheap though, and I think that is
why so many people have bought them, including me. I just know better now.

> All pumps fail. It is just a matter of when and how. Many people feel
> that even though the odds aren't that great, it is better to just use
> a different brand of pump.

The Mag pumps have a 2 or 3 year warranty.

> FWIW The last pump I bought was a Mag 9.5.

Good pump. I just had to have one exchanged that was a few months old, but the flow is
excellent!

> Oh yeah one last piece. All of my personal experience has been with
> RIO 2100 and 2500HP pumps.

These are the most prone to fail, and a pyrotechnic way. 8(

Marc


--
Personal Page: http://www.sparklingfloorservice.com/oanda/index.html
Business Page: http://www.sparklingfloorservice.com
Marine Hobbyist: http://www.melevsreef.com

[Richard Frey]

I've owned 7 RIO pumps - 6 of them never made it past 2 years.

4 400 GPH were used as recirc pumps in the tank - cycling on off several
time a day. The bearing started whining and finally the pumps gave out. They
were really noisy when started.

2 2500 gph were used to power the skimmer, one failed, the other leached
electricity into the sump - no GFI - I found out the hard way, can you say
electrocution?

The last one is used weekly to mix water for a water change. Noisy, but it
runs

I replace the 4 recirc pumps with Maxi-Jet 400 gph(?) - they have been
running fine for 2+ years and you still have to 'listen for them' to know
when they turn on & off. They show no sign of failing any time soon...

IMHO Maxi-Jet are worth the extra $$$

"Pszemol" > wrote in message
...
> Not having RIO pump before I have read many warnings on several
> newsgroups to not buy them... When my refugium finally arrived from
> Dr FostersSmits.com I realised that RIO 400 pump was in the set.
>
> Frightened I am asking: what will go wrong with it and when? :-))
> On the first look the pump looks like any other pump I have got.
> Maybe little bit more "square" :-)))
>
> Signed:
> New, still happy, owner of a RIO pump...