Iwaki MDRLT 20 Mini Review

i think the md30rz

loner said:

My waterblock will not be really flow-restrictive, and I will do something with multiple heater cores, but I do see your point. Perhaps I could sell it on eBay and get the MD 55 RLT, 1080 GPH with 26 ft max head

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The high pressure "Z" Iwakis are probably the best choice for the vast majority of WC systems. They tend to be harder to find though.

Wangster said:

What's the highest head pump available with <= 1" inlet/outlets?

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I'm not sure, although the best high-pressure pumps are the Iwaki MDs, Little Giant MDQ-SC's, and the Velocity T1. All have in/out ports at 1/2" to 3/4", and all have impellers and motors designed to run in pressure setups.

The Japanese Iwaki's are considered to be the primo pumps for aquarium enthusiasts because of the high quality and low noise. They are super expensive though.

The Velocity is a super quiet pump (30dB or less), but their stainless steel series had some problems. They are harder to find.

The Little Giant's are less expensive than the Iwaki's or Velocity's, but they are probably louder. I had an older Little Giant 2-MDQ-SC, which is 560GPH & can pump to 14.4' of head. That thing was a beast, both in size and pumping ability. It was loud and SUPER powerful. I ran it in a loop with a Gemini Cool Hi-Flow block & a my massive Lytron radiator and the performance was amazing. I finally sold the Little Giant because I wanted a smaller pump that I could run submerged. That's why I got a Supreme Mag-Drive pump, which has decent pressure characteristics.

BTW, I think a 500GPH high-pressure pump is more than enough for a couple rads & a couple blocks. Seriously, if you saw the flow of my Little Giant, you would not seek a 1100GPH pump. A thing to consider is the wattage that a large pump pulls. My LG was 131W, which is a LOT. Seriously -- that pump uses electricity to push that pressure and electricity is often dissipated into heat. My recommendation is to stick with a pump that gives you a good balance of pressure and wattage.