Our comments
Despite the curiosity of approaching a new pump, the results far exceeded our wildest expectations. The pump proved to be perfect in maintaining the premise made, and this is a detail that happens extremely rarely, especially when it comes to flow rate, a value in which we often fall short of the declared data. But not in this case. Where all the values are practically coincident with what the company declared.
The conclusions page is really full of material, partly because of the comparison we are going to make with similar pumps whose performance we have measured over time.
The comparison with other pumps
Very interesting turns out to be the comparison with all the other pumps I have been able to measure to date, namely ASF, Eheim, Hydor, Tunze, Sicce, Corallinea, Waveline and Ecotech Marine, of which you can see the aggregate data in the following table. Each of these pumps can be found on our reviews page.
We sorted the table by what we defined to be the reference value of the pump-that is, the product of the flow rate times the head divided by 2. Thus obtaining the area subtended by the two quantities. This we believe is the only method for comparing homologous pumps. If the reference value deviates greatly, the pumps, in our humble opinion, are not comparable.
| Pump | Head | Scope | Reference value | Consumption | Price | Efficiency | Economic Efficiency | Annual Cost |
| Eheim 1250 | 195 cm | 1205 l/h | 1175 | 23.8 w | 98 € | 50,6 l/h*w | 12,3 l/h*€ | 56 € |
| Newa Jet 1700 | 200 cm | 1638 l/h | 1638 | 31,2 w | 43 € | 52,5 l/h*w | 38 l/h*€ | 74 € |
| ASF NewJet DC 2000 | 290 cm | 1770 l/h | 2566 | 25,2 w | 99 € | 70,2 l/h*w | 17,9 l/h*€ | 60 € |
| Sicce Syncra 3 | 296 cm | 2375 l/h | 3515 | 42,3 w | 100 € | 56,1 l/h*w | 23,7 l/h*€ | 100 € |
| Rossmont Riser RX 3200 | 281 cm | 2766 l/h | 3886 | 53,7 w | 115 € | 51,5 l/h*w | 24 l/h*€ | 127 € |
| Eheim 1260 | 350 cm | 2434 l/h | 4260 | 62,1 w | 155 € | 32,2 l/h*w | 15,7 l/h*€ | 147 € |
| Tunze 1073.50 | 436 cm | 2143 l/h | 4672 | 38,8 w | 180 € | 55,2 l/h*w | 11,9 l/h*€ | 92 € |
| Sicce Syncra 4 | 380 cm | 3709 l/h | 7047 | 94 w | 160 € | 39,5 l/h*w | 23,2 l/h*€ | 222 € |
| Corallinea BQ5000 | 404 cm | 3504 l/h | 7078 | 83,2 w | 120 € | 42,1 l/h*w | 29,2 l/h*€ | 197 € |
| Rossmont Riser RX 5000 | 364 cm | 4128 l/h | 7513 | 83,7 w | 145 € | 49,3 l/h*w | 28,5 l/h*€ | 198 € |
| Waveline DC6000 | 392 cm | 4008 l/h | 7857 | 50,2 w | 283 € | 79,7 l/h*w | 14,1 l/h*€ | 119 € |
| AMTRA Stream Sump 4000 | 430 cm | 3690 l/h | 7934 | 44 w | 159 € | 83,86 l/h*w | 23,1 l/h*€ | 109 € |
| Hydor Seltz D6000 | 450 cm | 4194 l/h | 9437 | 53 w | 125 € | 79,1 l/h*w | 33,5 l/h*€ | 125 € |
| Ecotech Marine Vectra M1 | 610 cm | 4944 l/h | 15080 | 89.5 w | 399 € | 55,1 l/h*w | 12,3 l/h*€ | 212 € |
It can be seen from the table that from the economic point of view, i.e., with respect to the flow rate generated per single euro this pump Amtra is in the average of affordable pumps. But as far as technical efficiency is concerned, considering only maximum values, this Amtra Stream Sump 4000 is the best ever measured to date. Almost 84 l/h per single watt!!! So if the pair of values you need match, or are at least close to this pump you have no excuse not to buy it. Besides, it is an adjustable pump, what else would you want from a pump?
The Report with Stated Data
Let us now look at confidence with the manufacturer’s stated data.
Head
| pump | head | measurement | deviation |
| Amtra Stream Sump 4000 | 420 cm | 430 cm | +2 % |
The head measure has very little deviation. The pump delivers what it promises.
Flow rate
| pump | scope | laboratory measurement | deviation |
| Amtra Stream Sump 4000 | 4.000 l/h | 3.690 l/h | – 7,8 % |
The deviation between measured and declared flow rate is close to 8%, very few times we had gone so close to the declared values. Chapeau! Also because the differences are often on the order of 40%.
Energy Consumption
| pump | consumption | laboratory measurement | deviation |
| Amtra Stream Sump 4000 | 43 w | 44 w | + 2 % |
The power consumption is about 2% higher, we can say that it is perfectly coincident with what is claimed.
Correspondence to stated data
Finally, just as a term of comparison, we can give a match value against the data stated by the house for what concerns flow rate, head and consumption.
| pump | head | scope | consumption | Final Value (in absolute value) |
| Amtra Stream Sump 4000 | 102 % | 92% | 102 % | 98,7 % |
To find out whether or not the pump is right for you, based on the head you have in your aquarium, I recommend reading the following articles:
- How to choose a return pump for a marine aquarium
- Calculating the flow rate of the lift pump in aquarium in automatic mode
The second especially will tell you the estimated flow rate in your aquarium based on your boundary conditions and the pump you have chosen.
Conclusions
The reference value of the AMTRA Stream Sump 4000 return pump is 7,934 l*m/h, where for comparison the declared reference value is 8,400, a loss contained at just under 6%. Recall that the reference value is the area subtended by the flow and head values. In practice we are going to do the operation of (flow rate x head/2).
The 6 percent loss currently represents excellent value, given that virtually all direct competitors are doing worse, much worse.
For our aquarium we always have to consider what it actually expresses the pump, not what it should have expressed with respect to the stated data. But in this case the two values considered are virtually identical. An excellent added value when choosing.
PROS
Excellent performance and coincident to the claimed values, compared to the average of the category
Very well constructed
Quiet
Modulable over 9 steps
Ultra-simple maintenance
Extremely quiet
CONS
Nothing to report
Disclaimer: We thank Amtra for providing us with the Amtra Stream Sump 4000 pump for this review.
Where to buy the pump
As we said in the article, the pump is sold at a list price of 159.99 euros, and you can buy it on the Amtra clicking here. If you click on the link, however, you will find the 20% discount already applied so you are going to pay 127.99 euros, even more competitive than what we wrote in the article.
You can also find the pump on Amazon, specifically by clicking here, for only 117 euros. The Amazon link is sponsored so we may take a commission in the case of your purchase. Your price does not change of course, whether you use the link or not.
The prices are obviously today’s prices.
