Water Circulation...Looking for YOUR thoughts!

[tigerluv700]

I am looking for opinions on how much water flow is sufficient for my 90 gl sw reef tank. I have mostly soft corals (bubble, leathers, polyps) and currently have 2 maxijet 1200 power heads and one Rio 1700 power head located at three different locations inside the tank. In the sump, I have a Rio 2500 pumping water back into the tank with a "Sea Swirl" rotating return device.

I recently purchased a Hydor Koralia circulation pump 1200 GPH and was hoping this one pump could replace the three mentioned above (keeping the Rio 2500 as the pump in the sump).

Thoughts?

Thanks so much!
Cindy

 

[Len]

Hi Cindy,

Do yourself a huge favor and ditch those Rios. I've had more of them fail (some catastrophically) then any other pump. I would not trust my life (literally) or those of my fish to Rios. Replace the Rio 2500 with a Mag 7 or 9 pump when you can.

The one Hydor is probably not enough. I'd consider getting a second. A wavemaker would be something nice to have, but not necessary. Another circulation alternative is two Seio pumps. These provide a lot of flow and are affordable.

 

[tigerluv700]

Dear Len:

Thanks so much for your advice!

What size SEIO pumps (if I get two) would you recommend?

Thx!
Cindy

 

[Len]

I'd consider two M1100.

 

[SnowManSnow]

somthing else to keep in mind is that the MJ's do put off some heat.. so keep an eye on your temp if you add more pumps.

Just somthing to have in the back of ur mind.

 

[mr_X]

2 koralia 4's in a 90 will be quite excessive imo. i have 2 in my 125. i guess it depends what corals you will end up with, but my frogspawn, xenia and ric's are holding on for dear life 8O .

 

[LA-Lawman]

i agree with Len,

i have two seio 1500's on thier wavemaker. i like them but they are big.... i also have two maxijets modded to streams. they work great!!!