The decoration of a reef tank varies from one hobbyist to another. Regardless of which decoration pattern you follow, you should definitely consider using live rocks as a part of it. Live rocks not only enhance…. The little fish Nemo that stole our heart in the animated movie Finding Nemo is as adorable as it was in the film.
Many people got so fascinated by this lovely orange clownfish that they started to have clownfish as pets. And then, they start wondering how to breed clownfish. To breed clownfish, the first….
Every fish owner becomes curious to learn more and more about their little friend inside the fish tank. And if it is a clownfish that you have, the curiosity becomes endless. One of the first things that a clownfish owner asks is: how do clownfish sleep? Clownfish often sleep at the bottom of the tank…. One of the key requirements of maintaining the quality of a reef tank is keeping its salinity level strong. But the challenging part is to keep the salinity rate stable.
Although it is a little challenging to keep the salinity rate stable, it is a vital part of maintaining a reef tank. There is an…. Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Skip to content. What Is A Powerhead? Where to Place Powerheads in a Reef Tank? So, where to place powerheads in reef tanks? Seems confusing? Okay, let me explain the whole thing with some points. If your reef tank is dominated largely by LPS corals or any invertebrates that feature long tentacles, it is a no-no to place the powerheads in a way so that the water flow strikes them directly.
Too strong direct water flow damages the soft tissues. Moreover, make sure that you do not position your powerhead in a certain location from where the long tentacles do not get sucked up inside and leave the powerhead damaged. Make the best use of the glass panels and the aquaspace to let the corals get the indirect but strong water flow. Those will help deflect the water around the whole aquarium. Large soft corals need constant water flow to keep them standing up.
Place the powerhead in a place that lets them enjoy indirect and pulsing water currents to keep them upright as they love to stay like this naturally in the ocean. Corals with tentacles and stinging sweep torch corals, for example , you have to place your wave pumps in a location that gives them indirect water flow. Make sure that the tentacles do not sting other corals.
SPS corals can bear direct water flow towards them. So, you can place the SPS corals in the upward or middle position of your reef tank so that they receive strong direct water flow along with a good amount of light.
Your ultimate goal should be leaving adequate space for the corals to thrive besides letting the water flow circulate throughout the aquarium. Keep enough room behind the rock wall so that strong water currents can flow.
Placing your wave pumps in the back will let you use both the rock work and the glass wall for better circulation. Do not position the powerheads in a way where the strong water current is directed towards the rock work. It is because most of the corals are going to grow at that portion of the aquarium.
There are certain points in the reef tank where the water flow is very little. Those points are heaven for cleanup crews. However, ensuring some current flow at those areas will help you to siphon and clean the debris and the leftover food pretty easily. You should mount the powerheads either at the upper or middle portion of the aquarium.
Avoid placing the powerheads at a low portion as that will blow the substrate around. Mounting the powerheads too close to the water surface might create too big waves or suck in air. It is not the powerheads that should be at the center of your focus.
Instead, you should focus on fish and corals. It is best to place the powerheads in darker or shadowed areas of the tank created by the absence of powerful lights so that they get less attention.
In case there is a black background on your aquarium, it will be a good idea to mount the black powerheads on the back wall. You can swivel the powerheads to change the water flow direction. Black powerheads blend marvelously well with the similar background of the tank. Anchoring the gorgonians and soft corals in a place that helps to hide the powerheads is another great idea you can implement on your reef tank. Wild reefs are naturally very turbulent and creating natural flow patterns will help keep debris suspended in your tank, promote proper gas exchange, and help deliver food and nutrients to your tank inhabitants.
In this video we are going take the guesswork out of shopping for powerheads and show you guys how to choose the appropriate powerheads for your tank. First and foremost, I should probably note that using powerheads is not the sole source of water flow in most reef tanks. For this video, we will be discussing internal water movement which only applies to powerheads or internal wavemakers.
Choosing a return pump and gauging return water flow through your filtration should be addressed separately and you can check out our video below for more information:.
When looking at powerheads you will notice a couple of different basic styles. They move a large volume of water at a lower velocity making it much easier to get water movement in every nook and cranny of your tank.
The flow patterns produced by these wide flow type powerheads is also very natural and the most popular choice for reef tanks. You will also see the classic jet stream style powerheads such as the Cobalt MJ powerheads and Taam Rio powerheads.
These powerheads can produce a very strong stream of water flow but the output is very focused. To learn more about the versatility of MJ pumps, check out this video:. The MaxSpect Gyre produces a laminar water flow pattern that is very unique and has several unique benefits compared to traditional powerheads. You can find out more about the Gyre by watching this video:. When sizing a powerhead, you need to take into consideration the size of your tank and the type of corals you plan to keep.
When keeping a tank that is predominately Soft Corals and LPS, you want to accomplish a total tank turnover of times per hour. When keeping SPS corals, your target turnover should be times per hour. For example, if you have a 50 gallon SPS dominant aquarium; you want to have a total internal flow rate of — GPH coming from a wide flow type powerhead.
Ultimately, you want water to be moving in every inch of your aquarium leaving no room for stagnant water or dead spots in the tank. The more sensitive your corals are the higher turnover your tank will require so that nutrients and heat are better distributed for your corals. A reminder that these are only recommended ranges and there are always exemptions to rules. You should always research your species to ensure that you are providing them with a healthy environment.
This setup has the largest range between 40 and times per hour so you definitely want to check what end of the spectrum your corals would prefer to be on.
The type of pattern that you choose though ultimately depends on the inhabitants of your reef tank. The main objective is to ensure that that flow rate is fast enough for the fish and corals in your tank and that the pattern is allowing everything in your tank to get fresh water to them and the waste-filled water away from them.
Some fish do not like high water movement so it can be detrimental to them if you spring for the faster flow rate you can manage. Always research your specific species before implementing system changes. Also, consider what type of substrate that you have in your tank. If the substrate is really fine, you run the risk of creating an underwater dustbowl with a flow type that is too powerful for the tiny particles. Essentially, it is a stagnant section of your tank that slowly collects waste, food particles, algae, and other nasties as time goes on.
The waste that does collect their though will slowly mess with the water quality in the rest of the reef aquarium which is why you want to avoid doing this as much as you can while designing your flow patterns. It might even take a little bit of trial and error as you get used to the equipment and its influence on the water. That way you can see how the live rock plays into the overall flow of the aquarium without risking any fish or corals that you may have already introduced. Short answer, yes, or some piece of equipment that will contribute to the flow rate in your tank.
Powerheads move the water within your reef aquarium to ensure that the water flow is distributing nutrients, heat, and encourage gas exchange. It also allows waste to be picked up easier by protein skimmers. Many inhabitants in your tank need some type of flow to make sure they are receiving the necessary nutrients. The size of the powerhead you have will depend on the needs of your tank.
The most obvious factor being just how big is your tank? A larger tank means more water that needs to be moved so a larger more powerful powerhead might be necessary.
What you need to consider when you are researching equipment is will it be able to keep up with the demands of the tank. Chances are you will need more than one powerhead if your tank is large enough. Again, the number of powerheads will depend on the size of your tank and the type of flow that you are trying to create.
Usually, most aquarists will opt for two powerheads so they have more control over direction and flow patterns. Like I said in the previous section when you design the flow pattern in your tank try to visualize it.
Is the water flow moving to all the corners of the tank? Just remember that too much flow can also be a problem. Always cater to the needs and preferences of the inhabitants of your tank. Where you decide to place your powerhead will help to determine what type of flow that you will be able to create within your reef aquarium and make it much more conducive to tank coverage. The first thing you need to consider is what type of inhabitant you have in your tank. Do you have LPS corals or soft corals that do not need as much flow?
Think of the other objects and creatures in your tank and how they might feel about the water flow being sent directly at them? If you have a bare bottom tank, you might consider placing a powerhead lower in the tank to help create the best flow and distribute a lot of the waste that gets dep[osited on the bottom. This will help to keep your reef aquarium a little cleaner for a little while longer. This applies to your fish too. You can even try creating a diagram on paper to help visualize how the water may be moving around your tank as a result of different powerhead placements.
Create a few designs and take into account the objects in your tank that might influence water flow through the tank like live rock. No one design fits all for powerhead placement.
You need to do some research on your specific species and apply the lessons learned here to create the best flow for your tank. The best powerhead will be largely subjective and dependent on the needs of the reef aquarium but there are a few that can be recommended based on their features and affordability.
My top pick is the Ecotech Marine Vortech line due to its magnetic design. The electronics are outside of your aquarium which is safer and creates less clutter in and around your display tank. Second, maintenance is much easier since you only need to clean the wet-side and it can be inexpensively replaced if the blades wear or become damaged. Third, they provide a lot of control for producing various types of flow.
0コメント