Do I have enough filtration/flow?

bms

bms

Member
ok so i am setting up a 60 gallon FOWLR which is almost into its second week of cycling. i have a rena xp2 canister filter and a HOB style filter/protein skimmer combo. the canister filter is rated at 300 GPH and the HOB is rated at 400 GPH so i have about 700 GPH of flow. is this enough filtration/flow for this tank? i am thinking of adding a sump but only if i really need to. i have about 60 lbs LR and about 70 lbs LS/crushed aragonite. once my tank is fully cycled i will be adding (not all at once of course) a couple of clown fish, an anemone, maybe a blenny, (i would love to have a yellow/purple tang or blue hippo tang but i fear my tank is not large enough :-/), and maybe one or two other smaller fish like a flame angel or some other type of dwarf angel.
 
pete159

pete159

Member
its not so much the GPh as to where the outflow is directed.
What you have will drop the water in from the top, which is fine for the surface, but you still need to have power heads in the tank. i would get 2 power heads and put them at the sides of the tank, anemone need lots of flow. They also need very powerful lighting so make sure you look into that.
 
bms

bms

Member
was planning on getting at least one powerhead this week. will take your advice and go with two though because i do plan on getting an anemone and i want it to do as good as the sebae i have in my 40 gallon bow front. he is doing great with the powerhead i have in there so i would suppose i would need two to have the same results in a larger tank especially being flat and longer. what kind of lighting would be suitable to keep a carpet anemone or bubbletip happy? id rather like to stay away from MH because of the heat and i dont want to have to buy a chiller cuz its already hot enough where i live.
 
crypt keeper

crypt keeper

Active Member
add the sump it only helps. Trates need to be low with a coral tank. You need to wait at least 6 months before adding an anemone. Im not sure on the lights make a post in the coral section. your flow is pretty good.
 
aquaguy24

aquaguy24

Active Member
pump for the protein skimmer shouldn't be considered into ur turnover rate as the water just pours back into the tank via gravity....just get a couple of powerheads...2xkorallia#2 or #3 should do the trick...as for lighting u can do T5's with individual reflectors...current usa nova extreme pro and sunlight supply TEk lights are some good examples...
 
bms

bms

Member
ok, didnt know that but it makes sense about the flow rate calculation with the HOB filter. well i now have 2 canister filters since my dad decided to kick in some cash on my project and the rena is only rated up to 45 gallon tanks. one is rena that is rated at 1000 liters per hour (263 GPH) and another that does 1200 liters per hour (316 GPH), and i also purchased a koralia #2 that is on its way in the mail however i dont know if that would be overkill. with the two canister filters there is TONS of flow in the tank (the fish get into one of the streams and are swimming but stay in place..its like a treadmill for fish LOL). its only a 60 gallon tank and it has nearly 580 gallons per hour of flow rate and 980 gallons per hour of filtration. i also have two overflows and am debating putting one of them on there and adding a sump since i already have a 20 gallon tank and all the acrylic and glue that i would need to build it left over from a project that i changed my mind about doing for my 40 gallon tank (ended up buying an acrylic sump from my LFS instead). but that is to be considered a little further down the road when i have more time.
 
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