Water circulation levels
- Thread starter dmitry
- Start date
smarls
Member
It's not quite that simple, and acceptable turnover rates vary depending on (i) what corals you plan to keep, and (ii) your specific tank set-up.
I guess a general rule of thumb (and as with all general rules, take it with a grain of salt) is that for SPS tanks, you want somewhere around 20X turnover. So in a 100 Gallon tank, you want about 2,000 gallons per hour turnover from your power heads etc.
For softies / LPS, you probably want around 10X turnover, as they do not need quite the same agitation from flow as the SPS corals require. I guess low flow would be somewhere around 5X turnover, but it depends on what you keep - meaning for an SPS tank, 10X might be considered "low SPS flow". At some point (lets just say 5X and less) there is not enough flow to properly facilitate the oxygen transfer at the surface, so personally I would shoot for am minimum of 10X egardless of what you keep (unless of course it is sea-horses or something like that, in which case you need really low flows).
However, whatever your actual turnover rate, in your tank there will be high flow areas, medium flow and low flow areas. I have about 10X turnover, but I have high flow areas in the middle of my tank (where I generally place Zoanthids), medium and low flow areas at the sides (where I generally place LPS corals). So although I have a "medium flow tank", some areas are very high flow (where the powerhead flows meet), and some areas are low flow.
HTH
Stewart
I guess a general rule of thumb (and as with all general rules, take it with a grain of salt) is that for SPS tanks, you want somewhere around 20X turnover. So in a 100 Gallon tank, you want about 2,000 gallons per hour turnover from your power heads etc.
For softies / LPS, you probably want around 10X turnover, as they do not need quite the same agitation from flow as the SPS corals require. I guess low flow would be somewhere around 5X turnover, but it depends on what you keep - meaning for an SPS tank, 10X might be considered "low SPS flow". At some point (lets just say 5X and less) there is not enough flow to properly facilitate the oxygen transfer at the surface, so personally I would shoot for am minimum of 10X egardless of what you keep (unless of course it is sea-horses or something like that, in which case you need really low flows).
However, whatever your actual turnover rate, in your tank there will be high flow areas, medium flow and low flow areas. I have about 10X turnover, but I have high flow areas in the middle of my tank (where I generally place Zoanthids), medium and low flow areas at the sides (where I generally place LPS corals). So although I have a "medium flow tank", some areas are very high flow (where the powerhead flows meet), and some areas are low flow.
HTH
Stewart
smarls
Member
Nice to see that Jedininja's opinion on this, although IMHO, Jedininja's rates are a little high. However, there is no exact number here, so the replies should be giving you a good range of what flows you should be shooting for. On an SPS level (and I am not sure what corals you are keeping), I completely defer to someone else's experience, as I do not keep SPS corals (only softies and LPS).
As for you other question - some people run the pumps on controllers, and some people do indeed turn off some pumps a night (although you need other pumps on to keep the oxygen exchange working - so youalways need a minimum flow level). I really do not know if turning of some pumps at night is necessary, although I understand it is an attempt to better replicate the ocean environment (usually calmer at night). Personally I do not do this, but I would be interested to see if alot of people do.
You fish should be fine with higher flows, they will find a dead spot and get some sleep...remember, they manage to survive storms in the reef, so they should be ok in the tank.
Of course, as always, there is a disclaimer! I guess to some degree it depends on what fish you have. As I mentioned something with very specific needs (like a seahorse) would not do well in an SPS flow tank, although "normal" reef fish should be fine. Indeeed I have read that many fish (tangs etc.) seem to do better with higher flows, and the higher flows seem to lessen the frequency of outbreaks of ich in a tank.
HTH
Stewart
As for you other question - some people run the pumps on controllers, and some people do indeed turn off some pumps a night (although you need other pumps on to keep the oxygen exchange working - so youalways need a minimum flow level). I really do not know if turning of some pumps at night is necessary, although I understand it is an attempt to better replicate the ocean environment (usually calmer at night). Personally I do not do this, but I would be interested to see if alot of people do.
You fish should be fine with higher flows, they will find a dead spot and get some sleep...remember, they manage to survive storms in the reef, so they should be ok in the tank.
Of course, as always, there is a disclaimer! I guess to some degree it depends on what fish you have. As I mentioned something with very specific needs (like a seahorse) would not do well in an SPS flow tank, although "normal" reef fish should be fine. Indeeed I have read that many fish (tangs etc.) seem to do better with higher flows, and the higher flows seem to lessen the frequency of outbreaks of ich in a tank.
HTH
Stewart
dmitry
Member
At the moment I have no fish in the tank and no corals. Initially I was going to go with fish only and have a bit more than 10X turn-over right now. But I found a way to get good lighting and am considering 1-to-3 corals for my tank and am completely open to suggestions on which are easier to keep! I just ordered two more power-heads that will roughly double my water-flow. And the fish I plan to get are a Clown, a Royal Gramma, a 6 Line Wrasse. These are the ones I'm settled on - I could get away with 1 or 2 more small ones. I'm getting one fish this week!! For corals I've been looking on-line for some descriptions and am finding some conflicting descriptions for hardiness and ease of maintenance. But my long-list of suggestions are Plate Coral, Candy Cane Coral, Trumpet Coral, Elegance Coral, Christmas Tree Coral (these are all LPS, I believe) and a Mantipora Coral (which is SPS.) Perhaps a Gorgonian also. Any thoughts on these?
Incidentally, the descriptions for some of these is that it is best to place them in the subtrate. I have coral sand... would they do ok in it do they need (the much finer) live sand?? :notsure:
Incidentally, the descriptions for some of these is that it is best to place them in the subtrate. I have coral sand... would they do ok in it do they need (the much finer) live sand?? :notsure:
diadema
Member
First we would need to know your lighting and tank depth to give you a thumbs up or down on the corals you're mentioning. Without this information, all I can say is make sure you get photosynthetic gorgonians. The non-photosynthetic kind require heavy feeding and LOTS of flow to keep the algae from growing on them.
reefnut
Active Member
Here's my opinion...
10x Low
15x Medium
20x High
+20x SPS reef
That said, even in a tank with 10x turnover you will have areas of medium and maybe even high flow. In a tank with 20x turnover you will have areas of medium and maybe even low flow. Coral placement is always important.
In a tank with lots of LR the fish can get away from the high flow areas pretty easy.
10x Low
15x Medium
20x High
+20x SPS reef
That said, even in a tank with 10x turnover you will have areas of medium and maybe even high flow. In a tank with 20x turnover you will have areas of medium and maybe even low flow. Coral placement is always important.
In a tank with lots of LR the fish can get away from the high flow areas pretty easy.