40g breeder

Temp · Nov 12, 2016

i am looking into buying a vortech mp10 or 40. I was wondering if a 40 could be turned down low enough for my LPS coral. I would rather want to buy 1 MP40, rather then 2 MP10, since I am looking to upgrade to 180g down the road.

melypr1985 · Nov 12, 2016

I would think that a 40 would be too much for that size tank even turned down. I could be wrong of course as I've never attempted it. I'll give you a bump an a shout out to the #reefsquad for more eyes on.

dbl · Nov 12, 2016

I would agree with Meredith on this one. The 40 is likely too strong for a 40g. Check out their flow calculator...it may help you select as well.

http://ecotechmarine.com/calculator/

Mstanker · Nov 12, 2016

I have a 40gb reef and i also have a MP10 and it can be way to much.

MaddyP · Nov 12, 2016

I'm running two MP10's at 100% reefcrest in my 40. I wouldn't hesitate to upgrade one of them to a MP40, running on the lower side.

tankaholic · Nov 13, 2016

Hmmm this has been my ? Before i did my 40gal breeder.
I settled on 2 jaebo pp4's...
Originally i had 2 hydras the 1150's...and these were too much...and went from those to the pair of pp4's...

Sabellafella · Nov 13, 2016

Temp said:
i am looking into buying a vortech mp10 or 40. I was wondering if a 40 could be turned down low enough for my LPS coral. I would rather want to buy 1 MP40, rather then 2 MP10, since I am looking to upgrade to 180g down the road.

Either way is fine. If you have plans on a upgrade, buy the 40

Humblefish · Nov 13, 2016

MaddyP said:
I'm running two MP10's at 100% reefcrest in my 40. I wouldn't hesitate to upgrade one of them to a MP40, running on the lower side.

Are you growing SPS in a bare bottom tank? ;) That's the only reason I can think of for running an MP40 in a 40 breeder.

gar732 · Nov 13, 2016

I would definitely go with the 40. I've run a 40 breeder mixed reef with an mp40 with no probems at all. If you go with the 10 the flow is more narrow and you may find yourself needing to supliment depending on your scape. You'll also thank yourself when you upgrade. I currently have my mp40 in a 34 solana while I work on my 45g cube and everything is healthy and happy.

tankaholic · Nov 13, 2016

gar732 said:
I would definitely go with the 40. I've run a 40 breeder mixed reef with an mp40 with no probems at all. If you go with the 10 the flow is more narrow and you may find yourself needing to supliment depending on your scape. You'll also thank yourself when you upgrade. I currently have my mp40 in a 34 solana while I work on my 45g cube and everything is healthy and happy.

Whats your scape look like?
I will post my scape...

tankaholic · Nov 13, 2016

Heres tank shots of my 40gal breeder

gar732 · Nov 13, 2016

tankaholic said:
Whats your scape look like?
I will post my scape...

Here is a pic, you can see the mp40 on the left. I had a pretty minimalist scape and I was happy with the 40. I don't remember what I had it set at but I know it wasn't turn down all the way by any means. And actually the center of the tank in front of the arch could use a bit more flow. I had a bunch of my zoas there and the ones that were else where and received more flow were happier. I sold off my mp10 and just used the 40.

MaddyP · Nov 13, 2016

Humblefish said:
Are you growing SPS in a bare bottom tank? ;) That's the only reason I can think of for running an MP40 in a 40 breeder.

@Humblefish, I am growing mostly SPS at the top, however, near the sand I have many different zoanthids, acans, blastos, and flower nems. I did go with a slightly larger grain sand (Tropic Eden Reefflakes) to keep it from moving. With two MP10's mounted opposite and one slight forward from the other, the sand doesn't move at all.

To add to this, I have around 600 gph coming into the tank from the return.

Humblefish · Nov 13, 2016

MaddyP said:
@Humblefish, I am growing mostly SPS at the top, however, near the sand I have many different zoanthids, acans, blastos, and flower nems. I did go with a slightly larger grain sand (Tropic Eden Reefflakes) to keep it from moving. With two MP10's mounted opposite and one slight forward from the other, the sand doesn't move at all.

I tried an MP40 once in a 40 breeder, and it was rough on my LPS at the bottom even on the lowest setting. Now admittedly, this was using an early model MP40 so maybe even the lowest flow rate was higher than the current models. :confused: In any case, I took all my LPS (and sand) out of that tank and went all SPS, cranked the MP40 up and the growth I saw under halides was a thing of beauty. ;)

MaddyP · Nov 13, 2016

Humblefish said:
I tried an MP40 once in a 40 breeder, and it was rough on my LPS at the bottom even on the lowest setting. Now admittedly, this was using an early model MP40 so maybe even the lowest flow rate was higher than the current models. :confused: In any case, I took all my LPS (and sand) out of that tank and went all SPS, cranked the MP40 up and the growth I saw under halides was a thing of beauty. ;)

You make a fair point, the flow stream on an MP40 is much wider than the MP10. This could be why I'm able to run two at a higher flow vs your experience. I'd like to upgrade at some point, but it isn't a necessity at the moment.

Mstanker · Nov 14, 2016

It also depends on the return pump you have. I have a return pump that's for a 150g tank so with a mp10 I run my MP10 on low settings. With a MP10 and my return pump on a 40gb tank; my mushrooms are getting a nice flow over top of them on 35% flow. Also like other ppl have said if you are going to upgrade to a larger tank in a year or two then i'd buy the MP40. But If I were going to buy a new powerhead I'd buy a maxx gyre.

bairdimusprime · Nov 14, 2016

mp10 might be a bit much on a 40-Breeder.. i had one shooting sand all over the place.
the smaller maxspect gyre might be a good option as you can control its power a little more