How many times should a reef tank turn over??

payne66801

payne66801

Member
fishieness's Avatar
fishienessj said the info below is that correct????
3 tangs in a 125 is a LOT
3. your tank should turn over AT LEAST 15 times an hour! My fish-only turns over 18 and my reef turns over 25-30 times! Rees are suggested to be at least a 20X turnover rate.
Power do not count towards this guy saying 20x right?? Do they make a 2500 g an hr pump??? Man it would sound like a boat motor lol ??
My lfs guy told me he has never had a problem with his tanks and he has 3 250's and he turns his over 8 times.. reef tanks
He has alot of pwer heads in them like 4 300 gph ones in each tank.
If I do need more than 10 times what type of under the tank kind are good ones to buy??
Right now I have 4 bio wheel filters 2x400 and 2x280..
He is my tank I have had it set up for pushing 3 months now. Yes it looks new but I am a clean freak and hate tons of crud on the glass..

 
payne66801

payne66801

Member
Ok if I include my power heads :
2x400 bio wheel 800
2x280 bio wheel 540
3 x295 maxi jets 585
Adding a skimmer 300
=2225gallons per hr
2225 / 125g tank = 17.8 times an hr
So will that be good?
I would like to do a set up under the tank later when funds come availible... One with the blue balls in it. And have the skimmer in it as well to reduce the clutter in the tank..
 
paulcoates

paulcoates

Member
No offense, but that is some bad math you're doing
2x400 bio wheel 800
2x280 bio wheel 540
3 x295 maxi jets 585
Adding a skimmer 300
2x400 bio wheel 800
2x280 bio wheel 560
3 x295 maxi jets 885
Adding a skimmer 300
The correct total would be 2545GPH
 
payne66801

payne66801

Member
Sorry been up for 27 hrs now. And yes that was horrible lol

Trying to play a game and surf this forum is not working out for me.

Thanks for the math quiz but an answer to my question was more what I was looking for.
 
squidd

squidd

Active Member
My thoughts on Turnover/Suggested turnover rates...
FOWLR : (Fish Only with Live Rock) 10X to 15X Depending on species, some like Box fish/Cow fish need slower water or "some" protected areas, others like Tangs and most Aggressive do better (filtration wise) with more flow due to high waste load.
Reef, Softies only: 10X to 15X Good rate for filtration, but not too fast as some "branching" softies won't open fully if blown around too much...
Reef, Softie and LPS: 15X to 20X with "protected" areas for branching softies (see above)
Reef, LPS: 20X to 25X Excellent flow for filtration and keeping deitrus suspended and movement of micro flora and Fauna food supply as well as "waste" and slime removal from coral bedding areas...
Reef LPS and SPS: 20X to 30X More flow is beneficial to SPS, but some "protected areas" are needed for "pillowy" inflating LPS as they too do not appreciate being blown around.
Reef, SPS: 25X and up, 30X is good, more is better: Most SPS do well in high flow situations, with a combination of random and linear flow patterns (flow control, wave and surge action, mix it up) Benefit to filtration, deitrus suspension, Oxygenation, waste and aelopathy removal and micro flora and fauna feeding...
This is a "General" recommendation for "Total" turnover which is a combination of sump return and supplemental circulation devices "IN" the tank (power heads/closed loop etc...) and with any species there will be exceptions to the rule (some softies are OK in high flow, some SPS don't like getting blasted)
Much of your success and failure with these projected flow rates will come from Rock layout and flow Output direction...Due to varying Rock scape, tank size/shape, and circulation layout (rock/tank wall deflection, caves, competing/canceling effect of flow movement) You may find you need higher or lower "Pump numbers" to get the desired "flow effect" in your tank, sometimes a rearranging of rock scape or redirecting power heads is all it takes, sometimes you'll need to "UP" the pumping capacity...
 
caz

caz

Member
My 75g is between 20-25x... Not sure exaclty as I have my Mag 9.5 turned down a bit to help with bubble control. LPS/SPS tank
Mag 9.5, 3 mj1200's, skimmer, etc...
 
fishamajig

fishamajig

Member
well done squid, I dont think anyone could of said it better themselves, I think the tank needs more flow. personal preferences.
 
dejaco

dejaco

Member
Hey it looks to me that once you add your skimmer your turnover will be like 20x per hour. So I wouldn't worry so much. Add that skimmer for sure, don't skimp, don't wait.
Your lighting looks to be single or double strip lighting with 2 36" pcs. Those will have to be replaced. Most corals will need 4 to 5 watts per gallon. On your set up that would be 500 to 600 watts total. Also look at getting 90 to 100 lbs more rock. Make sure you get precured ready to add to tank live rock. Your tank looks very nice - clean! I would let your back panel go - let it get covered! Try a product called purple up. Good luck don't get discouraged - and realize you will get many opinion fo answers. Use information as research then decide after you have more than one answer saying the same.
 
payne66801

payne66801

Member
I will be adding a power compact later today it is in the mail. a orbit pro it will have 6x96 for a total of 576 watts.
 
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