SAVE A BUNDLE — AVOID THESE PUMPS!

[keyplayer]

I have had a couple of nasty experiences with mag-drive pumps from supposedly quality manufacturers. The latest was a BECKETT 552L pump which had a catastrophic failure after only a few hundred hours of operation. The Impeller Shaft in this pump is made of an extremely brittle/fragile ceramic which sheared off. While this pump LOOKS like it is Heavy Duty, and in fact has SOME HD components and some really neat design features which sold it to me, this CRAPPY shaft negates all other qualities. BECKETT informs me that it cannot be repaired and the entire pump must be garbaged. That, folks is $150+ down the outflow for only a few weeks' worth of service. SO, NEVER buy a BECKETT pump.... you'll be sorry. Similar experience with an Algreen SuperFlow 2000 — a 50¢ part broke and a $100 pump became a paperweight.

Knocking on wood, I have had pretty good luck with Little Giant pumps. Over a year and still pumping away almost silently.

 

[dieselplower]

Second post? seems shady. You trying to sell pumps?

 

[Jason]

Awww man, That means My Beckett 650 is about to die... well I hope not! That is one of my oldest pumps and has worked great so far (Even though I would argue my Pondmaster 550gph is actually a little stronger) with 24/7 use for over 1 year. Mine was only $35 and was a returned item to HD and is the one with the 7" Foam prefilter. How did your Impeller shaft break? Do you have a prefilter? Most Mag Drive pumps from cheapest to most expensive use Ceramic shafts, When mine breaks (if it does) then I will improvise and use something else and or make my own light weight shaft out of, well anything that works, like maybe a Hotwheels aluminum axle or something, Im sure you can think of something! :fingersx:

 

[keyplayer]

(a) MY ONLY interest was to save others from a loss like mine. I Repair and recycle EVERYthing including all my pond items BUT, the Beckett pump has the ceramic shaft FUSED into the magnet body, and swaged and glued onto the flimsy plastic impeller. No jury rigging possible — believe me I've tried! And, yes, I realise that most pumps have ceramic shafts but GOOD ones are either VERY robust, or reinforced with a stainless steel pin, and are REMOVEABLE in any number of possible ways.

 

[JohnHuff]

Second post? seems shady. You trying to sell pumps?

If I were you, I wouldn't cross this guy. According to his post, since his Little Giant pumps has been working for over a year, his experiences with Beckett and Algreen were more than a year ago, and he's still mad. Mad enough to write about them over a year later. Of course, he could have had 2-3 pumps running concurrently, which begs the question if his Little Giant pump was doing so well, why bother with the other two brands.

Also, the tenses and grammar from the first few sentences makes you think that the Bennett experience was recent, until you read the last sentence, where he informs us about the LG pump, which has been working good for more than 1 year.

Interesting...

 

[JohnHuff]

Well, if you really cared, you should have told us about the Bennett and Algreen experience last year. How many of us have wasted our money on Bennett and Algreen during that time? Sheesh. But thanks anyway, but now than never...

(a) MY ONLY interest was to save others from a loss like mine. I Repair and recycle EVERYthing including all my pond items BUT, the Beckett pump has the ceramic shaft FUSED into the magnet body, and swaged and glued onto the flimsy plastic impeller. No jury rigging possible — believe me I've tried! And, yes, I realise that most pumps have ceramic shafts but GOOD ones are either VERY robust, or reinforced with a stainless steel pin, and are REMOVEABLE in any number of possible ways.

 

[keyplayer]

Hey, take it easy guys. The Beckett pump was new out of the box in June of THIS year. And, to answer another query, I ALWAYS carefully screen (and regularly clean the screens of!) the intakes of my pumps and have NEVER had a problem with detritus entering. BUT, I leave an OLD and only minimally screened pump (not LG either!) in my lowest pond all winter where it powers a venturi keeping ice at bay no matter the temperature drop. I have yet to lose a single fish over numerous winters in that pond.

For the record I'm steamed that both Beckett and Algreen purport to be quality products but MY experience with both the pumps AND the manufacturers has been quite the opposite.

 

[sissy]

I found most little giant pumps use a lot of electricity ,at least the ones I looked at .I have 2 becket pumps one in each stock tank and they are over 7 years old so maybe it is just the newer ones

 

[Jason]

SunSun makes some great CHEAP pumps! You can buy them all day in so many makes and models on E-bay, I bought two 500gph for $20!. That IS my oldest pump when i first started, then I bought a second. I like Pondmaster and they are the best built pumps I have, I have never tried a "Little Giant" but I do know a friend with a waterfall feature at their house who does have Blue Heavy Duty Little Giant for that feature and it puts out some water!

 

[dieselplower]

Hey, take it easy guys. The Beckett pump was new out of the box in June of THIS year. And, to answer another query, I ALWAYS carefully screen (and regularly clean the screens of!) the intakes of my pumps and have NEVER had a problem with detritus entering. BUT, I leave an OLD and only minimally screened pump (not LG either!) in my lowest pond all winter where it powers a venturi keeping ice at bay no matter the temperature drop. I have yet to lose a single fish over numerous winters in that pond.

For the record I'm steamed that both Beckett and Algreen purport to be quality products but MY experience with both the pumps AND the manufacturers has been quite the opposite.

OK sorry for beating up on you but it was a strange second post. Welcome to the forum.

 

[keyplayer]

Well, first off thanx for the welcome. Then I have to report that the pump I bitched about turns out to be a Generic Chinese affair which NUMEROUS «Pump Purveyors» including Beckett, Algreen, and probably others stick their label on.

Well, I just found a 1900 gph LG pump for under $100 at Princess Auto. You lucky Americans have TONS of choice. Here in the boonies of Canada everything is overpriced and choice is VERY limited. My thanks to those who suggested economical sources — unfortunately American sources. Getting this stuff into Canada usually involves freight and customs brokerage charges that can DOUBLE the sale price by the time it's received. So much for ««Free Trade»»!

Hopefully this new pump will get me through at least a couple of seasons. Because of 4 months of freezing weather the entire pump and filter system has to be shut down, drained, and protected from rain/sleet/ice so the pumps get a huge holiday every year.

 

[sissy]

I think a lot of pump companies are doing that I got a lauana a couple of months ago and it kept over heating and the sent me another one and it did the same and both made in China .True pumps are cheaper here and more readly avaiable but also makes you scratch your head about which one to pick .To many choices are confusing .

 

[davepratt]

i have had great success with my little giant pump

 

[keyplayer]

Hey! It seems I've stirred up a bit of a hornet's nest over PUMPS.

Let's have a little «contest» here to see who has the longest-enduring pump. As MY pump use is only «part time» I wouldn't qualify but some of you whose pond systems operate year-round must have stories about those exceptional pumps, which, like old Frigidaires, are still running after decades of 24/7/366 service.

I'd be intrigued to discover the winner!

 

[HARO]

Old-style Laguna (no cage). Italian-made, 2,000 gph. Runs full-time. Replaced the impeller after 10 years. Now close to 11 years old.
John