On the noise thing, one thing I've noticed with the impingement blocks and powerful pumps is that the blocks do develop a real "hissing" noise. With the "Storm" (which is also doing other things to stir the water up) and using really what are quite dramatically high pressure drops (11mH2O) the block is certainly about as noisy as a case-fan. Dropping back to a more realistic 3mH2O "high-end" level and the noise is audible with your ear near it, but not at any distance.
Perhaps something to consider in the quest for more pumping power.
I tell ya - trying to squeeze even the quite squishable Tygon tubing at 11mH2O (~16PSI) is quite an effort. The tubing certainly does expand quite visibly when the pumps are engaged, which I guess can be something of an argument for 3/8" ID tubing with restrictive blocks. When the pressure's on, the tubing expands and essentially has a larger ID and a consequentially lower pressure drop as a result.
Just random thoughts...
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