power head questions

[celbrise]

just changed my substrate from a large grain sand to a courser more natural sand. other one idk wth it was but i think it was base rock ground up. my tank is 55gals long fish only with base rock and i think 1 rock encrusted with coralline algae ( bought it at the store but i am not sure if it's coralline or paint looks like paint imo but doesn't feel like it.

1. is my power head too strong if it is pushing my sand regardless what direction it is facing? currently have it facing up for more water movement at the surface as i am running a cannister filter with no spray bar. i think it is 700gph aqueon power head. pretty cheap one.

2. should i keep my power head on 24/7? if not how long do you keep it on per day ( i only have 1 ).

3. any recommendations for my tanks if my power head is too strong/bad quality and how much GPH it should be. i am planning to run 2 if possible one on each end and idk if i can but if possible switch my output on my cannister to a spray bar in the future.

 

[jay0705]

Power head should run 24/7. If its moving sand just position it a bit different. Yes u can use 2. I use 2 in most my tanks

 

[celbrise]

is the GPH for my current tank good though or should i go lower? currently it is 900gph i believe on a 55gal long. might go to the store buy a weaker one or simply the same one and just put them on timers

 

[lmforbis]

I have 2, 800 gph power heads, one on each end, in my 40 gallon 3' long tank. I think yours should be fine with two. In my 6' tank I have 2, 800 gph and 2 that are adjustable speed but I have them set at around 1500 gph. A lot of current is good.

 

[celbrise]

i bought a 700gph power head same brand works good. not sure what i am going to do though as the water surface is splashing too much with the 900gph one on and it blows the sand away like nothing. 800gph im sure would of been fine for me but i can't find any 800gph in the stores here. currently my tank has like 3 big piles of sand and bare spots because of the 900gph power head. i also think it is too strong for my fish to swim in.

will play around with it tomorrow but if it keeps pushing the sand i think i will just swap it out with a 700gph one or try to find a 800gph one. not sure why but no matter how i place it the sand always gets swept with this power head can't adjust the speed either which sucks.

 

[jay0705]

Do u have any lr to help divert some flow?

 

[celbrise]

i have base rock mostly and one rock i bought that is encrusted with corraline algae. i am not sure why but even if i point the power head straight up it still blows the sand away. should i be stacking the rocks higher? currently they are all stacked about 2 high a little under half way of the tank.

i didn't want to stack it too high as they are free flowing and i didn't want to smash my fish they often fall over. i was planning to get my tank together fix it up tremendously as right now it's a mess and then just spread the existing coralline algae

 

[jay0705]

Hmm. I have little issue w my heads. I point them at the rock. Have u tried front to back? Place it in back and let it blow towards front

 

[celbrise]

tried it once and it was much worse that way. the 700gph one i bought seems to be doing a good job regardless it is weaker. it's blowing the crap around i don't see any stationary spots although i am sure their might be since i currently took out the 900gph for now. i am going to try and stack my last rock and point it on see where that gets me but on the box it said 900gph rated for 55gals-90/95 gallon tanks. my fish also don't seem so stressed out from the strong current when the 900gph one is on. some of the fish literally are struggling to swim and at night they wedge inbetween rocks to keep from floating away when i just had the 900gph on. not sure if that is normal in general.

also i sadly won't be keeping any corals in this tank. just found out all corals are illegal to keep in my state so in the end it will be a FOWLR tank.

should i still try to keep the 900gph going at this point or simply swap it out? thinking of buying another 700gph one and pointing it in the opposite direction and keep them on timers

 

[lmforbis]

I keep my power heads lower in my tank maybe 60 -70% of the way down then direct them up just enough to make the top turbulent but not enough to splash out.

 

[jay0705]

Ah Hawaii yes. Blowing fish around is not normal no lol

 

[celbrise]

i think i fixed the problem. i just built the rocks a little higher and as you said directed the flow towards the back rocks since they are the highest and it has stopped the sand pushing. majority of the fish seem to be swimming fine. even my clown which seemed to have the most trouble before. plus all the crap stuck inbetween the rocks blew out and i was amazed how much crap their was.

seems like the only thing pushing the sand away now is my puffer. think i will keep it like this for a while and then switch on the 700gph for night time. had it pointing up before but too much splashing. just angled it down a little surface movement seems fine. probably will have to let it sink a little to get better water movement as it pretty topped off other then that i think it should be fine now. thanks for the help appreciate it.

 

[jay0705]

Excellent

 

[pegasus]

I have FOUR 800GPH power heads in a 3' long 40 gallon tank. I also have Fiji Pink sand, which is small sand. The secret to keeping my sand in place is simple... I have the power heads on a controller that alternates the flow. If your power head is on all the time it will create a laminar (straight line) flow, which if allowed to continue, will create a strong current. Alternating the current prevents this laminar flow, so sand doesn't get blown around. I see some grains moving around every now and then, but as far as bare spots and sand dunes, they don't happen. A wavemaker and two or more power heads are wonderful additions to your tank. The changing flow keeps stuff from building up in dead spots in the tank, and it's healthy for your fish. The current is always shifting in the ocean, and you should try to recreate that effect in your tank. Just my 2c...

 

[celbrise]

my power heads only have 1 speed sadly they are cheap ones. i saw one that i can adjust the speed and wave patterns i was going to buy but it atm i just bought a new power head probably break that one in a bit for like a year before buying a better one. are their any differences between a power head and a wave maker? or are they practically the same thing.