powerhead help for 180

[gkrane]

I need a recomendation for the amount of powerheads needed for my new 180.Placement as well. 72x24x24. I am really sold on maxi-jets but dont know what size.Its my first big tank and i want to get it rught at least equipment wise from the start...

 

[humu]

don't get the powerheads! belive me you will hate them. you should do the right thing first and get oscillators. www.sea-swirl.com
has the best.
this is how my set up for my 180 is gonna be:
return pump:mag12
circulation: closed loop,ampmaster, 2x1"seaswirl

a closed loop is just running pvc from your tank to the pump, and back up to your tank.

 

[myreef]

I agree with Humu, do a closed loop. Much better and you get the ugly powerheads out of your tank. Either do a seaswirl or just gray schedule 80 PVC coming back in your tank. You can look at my DIY section for closed loops on my Tenecor tank. Good luck.

 

[srbayless]

Howdy,

I also recommend sea-swirls if you can afford them. If you are like most of us, you probably can't swing the cash for them.

In that case, definitely go for the Maxijet powerheads. I would use 2 MJ 1200s on each end, facing lengthwise. Put the MJs high, up close to the surface and have the nozzles facing towards the bottom of the opposite side. With all 4 setup this way, the flow from each MJ will intersect and create some nice random turbulents.

I would then use some smaller one on the back panel, say MJ 600. Put them about 1.5" feet in from each side, and have the nozzle facing the opposite front corner. This again with give some nice turbulents.

This is just a suggestion, based on my opinion that create random water flow is better than having a constant jet of water flowing straight across your corals.

How you setup your powerheads will depend greatly on how you aquascape your tank with liverock. Having 2 islands of rock will mean placing the powerheads in different location than if you had one "hump" of rock running the length of the tank.

Good luck,

Scott.

 

[toptank]

I didn't want powerheads in my tank, so I bought 2 gemini whick I sure do like. They put out 960gph. I have them on my 180, 1 one each corner and on times so that they rotate coming on and off.

Barry

 

[srbayless]

Howdy,

Sardaukar, that is correct. You can get some very nice water movement with only 2 seaswirls. Because the water moves back and forth, the overall watermovement is very random.

It is just impossible to create the same type of water flow with powerheads. You could try with the Zoomed powersweeps, but they are not all that reliable, and you would need quite a few to get the same GPH as 2 seaswirls.

Scott.

 

[Marty M]

gkrane,
Sea Swirls are excellent. Only the outlet is visible in the water. One 3/4" Sea Swirl replaces at least 3 maxijets. You could get by with just a couple of Swirls, but I would still use a couple maxijets on a timer, as well, for super random current. You can add lockline attatchments to direct/concentrate flow anywhere, but my corals and especially the fish love the turbulence from leaving them wide open. I use 2 Maxijets behind the rocks, totally out of sight, just to eliminate any dead spots back there.

 

[Sardaukar]

Im not sure i understand how these sea swirl things work...The sump return pump pumps the water through the sea swirl device? So isnt it just like a BIG powerhead? So you could use maybe 2 sea swirls (am also setting up a 180 gal) instead of a dozen powerheads?