Reserator 2 - Removing old pump (or alternatives)

[Tuppence]

Good morning Overclockers.

I've seen dozens of threads from people talking about replacing the rubbish Eheim 1000 that comes with the Reserator 2, and now I find myself in that same position. Nobody ever seems to talk about the how of the problem though, just the with.

After a good couple of hours of fiddling with it, I can't figure out how to remove the old pump, or even get a decent look inside the thing to see how it could work. The pump is at the bottom of the water well, screwed in where my screwdriver can't reach. Taking the screws off the underside of the well itself doesn't release the pump enclosure, but it does allow it to move a bit. There's a black bar going across the underside of the unit to where the power and PC cables plug in - I've tried to remove that, but two of the screws have become worn and will need a specialist tool to remove. Or some super glue and a ruined screwdriver.

Anyway, my specific questions:

1. I've read that I can have the old, broken pump in parallel with the new one. Is this true? Some people said the old one will hinder the flow.
2. Can I have the new pump somehow inside the enclosure while it's running parallel?
3. Does a new pump come with all the bits and tools I'd need to attach it in parallel? If I've understood the guide, i'd merely need two straight barbs. I'd imagine it's just a case of cutting a hole somewhere along one of the tubes and putting the pump between them - the reserator would remain unpowered and the old pump wouldn't do anything, but the radiator will continue to remove heat from the liquid...
4. Lastly, if I can manage to remove the old pump, I'd much rather have a new one which fits in the enclosure. Does anyone know which pump would be best and fits in the Reserator 2 reservoir?

But my main issue is how to get the old pump out - if I could do that, I could easily just look at the existing setup and make a decision from that.

Thanks in advance for any tips you guys have! I'm quite far out of my depth here, so I'm running on fragmented forum advice already.

 

[Diggrr]

judging from the exploded view I'd found here, it looks like that pump base isn't really connected to the black bar at the bottom, so it should be removable. Maybe just a gunked up o-ring is stopping you, though it doesn't clearly show if there's screws from the bar to the base. If there are, then you should be able to remove the bar and the base from the fin/tank parts as one unit.

I did find a replacement pump here that would be a direct replacement (300l/80GPH version). Of course you'd need to get it all apart to do so.

From the looks of it, I'd say you could bypass the pump by simply putting a MCP-350 into the "out" line from the reserator, but that would not be inside the enclosure (probably inside your computer case would be best) and the reserator would remain unpowered.
I'd assume that since the original only does 80 gallons per hour, leaving it unpowered and inline wouldn't really hurt anything considering the power of the MCP-350.
The original 350 also has the correct size fittings, 3/8".

I don't own one myself, but that's what I've found to try and help at least... to the forums!

 

[Diggrr]

BTW, was just thinking again (dangerous, I know), but would you by chance have a dremmel with a thin wheel that you could cut a new slot into the fubared screw heads with?
Is there a good enough angle to use a small hacksaw to do the same? (probably takes 3 hands and a monkey all while standing on your head to reach 'em).