Smallest powerhead?

[LobsterOfJustice]

What’s the smallest powerhead you’ve ever seen? I have a 8” cube. Right now I’ve got a small HOB filter running on it but honestly I just need the water movement, don’t really care about running a filter pad, and the HOB filter is tough to keep silent and makes covering the top difficult. I’d prefer a powerhead to solve these issues but I can’t find anything small enough. Any ideas?

 

[rtparty]

Sicce has a super tiny power head and the Nero 3 is super small as well

 

[ryanjohn1]

Hygar has a tiny one.

 

[OCFishGuy]

Hygger HG-951 Eco Slim Wave Maker Mini Magnet powerhead with Controller This has a very small head.

 

[randomfishdude]

Sicce has a super tiny power head and the Nero 3 is super small as well

Nero 3 is probobly the size of that tank lol

 

[VintageReefer]

Hygger HG-951 Eco Slim Wave Maker Mini Magnet powerhead with Controller This has a very small head.

That is still 1600gph and lowest setting is 40% which is 640gph

I am in same situation and have found one low gph powerhead - it’s 530 but appears it can be dialed down with the controller

ZKSJ Mini Aquarium Pump Wave maker For Aquarium USB Power Connector 530GPH (2000L/H) Circulation Water Pump 5W DC 5V With Magnetic DC Powerhead For Tanks Up to 14 Inches And 5 10 20 Gallons Fish Tank https://a.co/d/a762I1b

 

[NoAhoysLeft]

That is still 1600gph and lowest setting is 40% which is 640gph

I am in same situation and have found one low gph powerhead - it’s 530 but appears it can be dialed down with the controller

ZKSJ Mini Aquarium Pump Wave maker For Aquarium USB Power Connector 530GPH (2000L/H) Circulation Water Pump 5W DC 5V With Magnetic DC Powerhead For Tanks Up to 14 Inches And 5 10 20 Gallons Fish Tank https://a.co/d/a762I1b

I was about to say, I have the Hygger on 40% and it is still not as adjustable as i'd like in my 15 gallon cube.

I will be looking into your suggestion! Glad I clicked this thread.

 

[VintageReefer]

I was about to say, I have the Hygger on 40% and it is still not as adjustable as i'd like in my 15 gallon cube.

I will be looking into your suggestion! Glad I clicked this thread.

FYI I haven’t tried it, still in research mode, but that’s the lowest gph powerhead I could find so far. I have a 15 Waterbox and I really want something in the 200-300gph range. Not 600+

I upgraded my return to a sicce .5 and added a random flow generator, this definitely helped but I still need a little bit more flow.

I found This nano gyre pump which intrigues me, it said it goes down to 396gph

Jebao SCP-50 Sine Cross Flow Pump Wave Maker with Controller for Neno Reef Tank, 396-1320gph https://a.co/d/fWc8Nzd

 

[SliceGolfer]

I used an MP10 in a 5g nano with great success. Simply dial down the flow and hide the wet side behind your rock structure.

A pump only solution could be an ato return pump like this: https://www.coralvue.com/smart-ato-dc-refill-pump

 

[rtparty]

Nero 3 is probobly the size of that tank lol

It’s an 8” cube. The Nero 3 is far smaller than that.

I ran an MP10 for over 6 months on a 12” cube back in the day. It was awesome for that

 

[Hooz]

Besides the 530gph listed earlier, the Jebao ELW-3m is the smallest, lowest flow controllable pump out there that I've found. It's rated at 660gph, but will adjust down to 30% (or about 220gph). I'm running one right now in a Nuvo 10 and I love it. Once I finish getting all the anemones out and move that tank to SPS only, I'll add a second one.

I also run a pair of the ECP-50m "nano" gyres mentioned (newer version with a better controller, app, wifi) in my Nuvo 30L. They move a good bit of water. Might be iffy (i.e. sandstorm) in a small tank.

 

[Macbalacano]

Using Jebao SLW 3 in my waterbox 15G and it is perfect. I have almost all LPS. Its also quite small. Highly recommend.

 

[Tired]

In a tank that size, a cheap fountain pump would do fine, and they make tiny (1.5") ones.

Alternately, if you could find a reliable one, you could attach a small canister filter. Removing all the media should remove all the potential drawbacks of one, and it'd increase your water volume in addition to providing flow. That's what I did with my pico. I'd link you the filter I used, but it doesn't seem to be in production any more.

 

[DaJMasta]

I've got a Nero 3 in a 10 gallon and it goes low enough that the far side of the tank sees only slow flow. Not the cheapest option by any means, but their software/controllability is reasonable.

Have you thought about other methods to generate flow than powerheads? Any kind of HOB filter, reactor, UV sterilizer will get you some noticeable circulation in a small tank, and I'd wonder if there's a DIY option to use air bubbles in a pipe for a partially external airlift pump.

 

[LobsterOfJustice]

Thanks for the suggestions everyone. I picked up a Sicce MI Mouse and I'm going to give that a try.

Have you thought about other methods to generate flow than powerheads? Any kind of HOB filter, reactor, UV sterilizer will get you some noticeable circulation in a small tank, and I'd wonder if there's a DIY option to use air bubbles in a pipe for a partially external airlift pump.

Yes, I'm using two tiny HOB power filters now. But they are difficult to keep silent (not terrible, but any buzz or vibration is distracting in this particular install). More importantly, they make it difficult if not impossible to cover the tank (I'm leaning towards adding a tiny goby to this setup). I'm thinking just one cord going into one corner will be much easier to deal with.