Circulation

Cuixus · Jan 31, 2019

Hey everyone. So I have a 13.5 gallon Fluval Evo, and I’ve recently been trying to tackle the topic of circulation. I had been running the stock pump until recently when I got a powerhead. The pump runs 135 GPH and the hydor powerhead runs 240 GPH. I placed the powerhead right below the pump return and while I have the pump agitating the surface, I have the powerhead working inside the thank so that some low flow will hit the the bottom as well.

Still with all my research I have questions such as, how do I know my circulation is adequate?
How can I improve it? How long do I run the powerhead for? Should I invest in a wake maker since this powerhead does now have a wave mode? Etc.

Help is greatly appreciated

I’ve attached photos to give you a better idea of my aquaescape since I know that it plays a big role in the circulation. I figured if I put the pump under the return pump, then it would creat a circular motion around my rocks

RobZilla04 · Jan 31, 2019

Circulation pump or wave maker should run 24/7 inside the display. Some folks turn it down at night (myself included) to not hard coral which extend to feed.

Recommendations for overall flow range from 5x to 100x tank volume. Wavemakers / gyres are more common these days, but there is nothing wrong with a simple constant powerhead. You may want to look into a smaller version that takes up less space such as the Current eFlux which has different flow modes.

At a minimum you want enough flow in the display to keep detritus and sediment from settling on the sand bed. Beyond that flow is determined by the type of livestock/coral. Softies can get by with minimal flow while high end SPS require significant flow.

jabberwock · Jan 31, 2019

I like those Hydor Korilia powerheads. I would not worry about a wave maker controller in your setup. I would just let it run, unplug it for a few minutes when you feed. I would place it on the opposite end, and opposite side of your pump return about half way down the glass. I realize that may not be ideal for aesthetics, but in my opinion it is the best place to put it for flow. It will work against and with your pump return to really create circulation. If it starts blowing your substrate around, move it higher on the glass, or point more up towards the surface. The one thing I do not like about the Hydors is the goofy cord design (it comes out of the bottom of the power head). I have two 565 gallon per hour units and a controller in my 32 gallon biocube and they run fine upside down. Helps to keep the cord out of the way.

jabberwock · Jan 31, 2019

I was looking at your scape again, and another alternative would be to place the power head on the glass to the left of your return, and shoot it straight across the glass at a 90 degree angle to the return across the back of the tank. The glass and the back of the tank will work very well as a deflector. I bet that would work just fine.

Cuixus · Jan 31, 2019

jabberwock said:
I like those Hydor Korilia powerheads. I would not worry about a wave maker controller in your setup. I would just let it run, unplug it for a few minutes when you feed. I would place it on the opposite end, and opposite side of your pump return about half way down the glass. I realize that may not be ideal for aesthetics, but in my opinion it is the best place to put it for flow. It will work against and with your pump return to really create circulation. If it starts blowing your substrate around, move it higher on the glass, or point more up towards the surface. The one thing I do not like about the Hydors is the goofy cord design (it comes out of the bottom of the power head). I have two 565 gallon per hour units and a controller in my 32 gallon biocube and they run fine upside down. Helps to keep the cord out of the way.

Thank you so much. And you think the 240 is good or should I have gone for the 425 which I think is the next one up? I thought 425 might be an overkill but I saw that some people did they in their 10 gallon tanks.

I also appreciate the advice on the placement! Thank you.

How will I know that I’m achieving good flow?

Hemmdog · Jan 31, 2019

Cuixus said:
Thank you so much. And you think the 240 is good or should I have gone for the 425 which I think is the next one up? I thought 425 might be an overkill but I saw that some people did they in their 10 gallon tanks.

I also appreciate the advice on the placement! Thank you.

How will I know that I’m achieving good flow?

I started with the 425 on my biocube. It was “ok” for a few months but the coral never seemed happy. Once I switched to a mp10 and added some truely random flow my corals health drastically improved. Just my .02

Cuixus · Jan 31, 2019

Hemmdog said:
I started with the 425 on my biocube. It was “ok” for a few months but the coral never seemed happy. Once I switched to a mp10 and added some truely random flow my corals health drastically improved. Just my .02

Thank you!

May I ask what size your bio cube is?

Hemmdog · Jan 31, 2019

Cuixus said:
Thank you!

May I ask what size your bio cube is?

32 with the mp10 at 60%. That’s the magic of mp10’s they are so versatile. You can have one run 10-20% on a pico tank and have great results. Now I have another one in my 90 as supplemental random flow at 80%. They are great, I love equipment that is useful for any size tank, it also makes upgrading tanks seem less daunting if you already have half the equipment ;)

jabberwock · Jan 31, 2019

Cuixus said:
Thank you so much. And you think the 240 is good or should I have gone for the 425 which I think is the next one up? I thought 425 might be an overkill but I saw that some people did they in their 10 gallon tanks.

I also appreciate the advice on the placement! Thank you.

How will I know that I’m achieving good flow?

I think the 240 will be fine for that tank. If you leave it on when you feed, see that the food is blowing around pretty good. You don't want a typhoon or anything. Just some movement is good. If you feed something like reef roids, that is a good time to assess your flow as you can see the little particles traveling around.