Fish Tank Pumps

Find the perfect pump for your fish tank. We list some of the different types and information on how to select the correct pump below.

VicTsing Aquarium Air Pump

Hygger Aquarium Air Pump, Ultra Silent

flintronic Submersible Water Pump

VicTsing Submersible Pump

Uniclife Quiet Aquarium Air Pump

When looking for a new water pump you will need to consider which filter you currently have, the gallons per hour and watts. In general which filter you have will narrow down the pump you need to buy as they are required to be compatible.

GPH

You next need to check the water pumps GPH or Gallons per Hour rating. This is simply the amount of water that it is capable of pumping each hour. In general you want to look for a pump which has a GPH around 5 times the volume of your tank to make sure that it is powerful enough.

The GPH rating you find on the box or information with the pump is actually its maximum flow rate in top conditions, so you may want to consider this when purchasing as pumps can become less powerful over time and the length and head height can also affect its output. Most products will let you know the maximum height it can be used at.

Wattage

Although wattage is seen as a less important factor, it is a good idea to look for one that uses as less power as possible and runs at an efficient rate. This will simply mean that you use less energy over time to power it, in essence saving you money over time when it comes to utility bills!

Different types of fish tank pumps

There are a few different types of water pumps for your aquarium, which we will give some details on below to help you find the right one for your tank…

Submersible

Often used in the bottom of a wet/dry filter they are run within the tank underwater. The main job of this pump is to clean water by directing it up through the filter and then bringing the water back out into your fish tank. They are quite to run and don’t need any custom work to install.

In-Line

Found outside of the aquarium these are installed using inlet and outlet hoses and can be installed in two different ways. A free flowing installation pumps after the filter has done its job, meaning less effort and pressure when pushing water back into the tank. Pressure setups are placed before the filter and feeds water through the actual filter, it can cause quite a bit of pressure so you need to look for a specific in-line pressure pump to carry out this job.

The right pump for your aquarium

All water pumps come in different shapes and sizes so picking one that not only aesthetically suits your fish tank, but fits correctly and does the job can be a hard choice. If you have a smaller aquarium it is worth looking for smaller versions which don’t take up space and even with larger tanks it is worth trying to get one as compact as possible to reduce the amount of space and clutter taken up by pump and filters.