180 circulation advice
- Thread starter gaubow
- Start date
RazerCorals
Member
What type of tank will you be keeping? That will really depend on the flow. Will it be a closed loop? Otherwise I would just have your 2 overflows to move about 1000-1200 total and then get Tunze Streams for powerheads.
Yarr
Active Member
my 180 will be fed by an external 11000l /h pump.. out via 2 x 3 sides overflows and in through 2 holes in the back. Id consider a closed loop circuit in addition to your return aswell. Id do it that way if i hadnt alreay stretched by budget far beyong where it should have stopped 
tommyp
Member
For sps eductors and a medium to high head pump. run two eductors at each end. nothing moves water like them. You could run four one at each corner and a three-way mechanical ball valve to switch between two of them. It is a lot of money. But they take up a little less room than streams and you have to run a return anyway.
You could also do a stream and a wave box but that gets pricey quick but so does this setup if you do the ballvalve. but you could easily get a decent pump and two eductors for around $400. less than a wavebox.
Is the 180 going to be custom? With mine I went over the top with the returns so that the drains were the only holes in the tank. if it is a normal aga or whatever you could just use all the holes as drains and plumb over the back if it is against a wall. if it is in the middle of a room you would have to figure something else out.
You could also do a stream and a wave box but that gets pricey quick but so does this setup if you do the ballvalve. but you could easily get a decent pump and two eductors for around $400. less than a wavebox.
Is the 180 going to be custom? With mine I went over the top with the returns so that the drains were the only holes in the tank. if it is a normal aga or whatever you could just use all the holes as drains and plumb over the back if it is against a wall. if it is in the middle of a room you would have to figure something else out.
Thanks.
It is a regular 180 aga with dual overflows. I am going to use one hole in each one for a return and the other for a return from my sump. I am going to point them down to the respective corners to keep them stirred up.
I have one tunze 6011.10 on the 90 that I am upgrading from already and will be using that. The return from my sump is a mag24 coming from 10feet below in the basement.
So, with those two circulation things going, I think that I am going to have 3 or four holes drilled into the back/middle area for a closed loop. This way, I can put the closed loop on a timer to shut down at night, thus lessening the flow for the night, while not completely eliminating it because I'll have the one tunze and my returns going.
Does this sound acceptable? I just need to find out what pump I will use for the closed loop to give me the gph I need.
Let's see... a 180 tank. The tunze is about 1900gph
The Mag 24 at 10ft is about 1000 gph.
Any experience with the pump that I need for the closed loop would be greatly appreciated. I would rather spend alittle more now and be happy.
Thanks for reading
It is a regular 180 aga with dual overflows. I am going to use one hole in each one for a return and the other for a return from my sump. I am going to point them down to the respective corners to keep them stirred up.
I have one tunze 6011.10 on the 90 that I am upgrading from already and will be using that. The return from my sump is a mag24 coming from 10feet below in the basement.
So, with those two circulation things going, I think that I am going to have 3 or four holes drilled into the back/middle area for a closed loop. This way, I can put the closed loop on a timer to shut down at night, thus lessening the flow for the night, while not completely eliminating it because I'll have the one tunze and my returns going.
Does this sound acceptable? I just need to find out what pump I will use for the closed loop to give me the gph I need.
Let's see... a 180 tank. The tunze is about 1900gph
The Mag 24 at 10ft is about 1000 gph.
Any experience with the pump that I need for the closed loop would be greatly appreciated. I would rather spend alittle more now and be happy.
Thanks for reading
tommyp
Member
It all depends. for sps double it. If you want a flowy softy tank then somewhere in between Call me crazy but the 1100 from the sump will do very little in a 180. I had the sequence which does twice that and it hardly did anything until the eductors. The tunze will move some water so that is good but I wouldn't get overly excited by its 3000 gph. Get a sequence 4200 for the basement run and run eductors. If your overflows can't handle it ballvalve down the sequence. Run your mag 24 on the CL for now or ditch it. Not very effiecent. I would say another sequence on the cl if you have the cash in the future.
Don't go by GPH or turnover it doesn't really mean anything like watts per gallon. You can have a crap load of theroretical flow and it will not be effective. Push the flow until you think you over did it. or if your running sand then you will be in trouble with the stuff moving around on you. You will know when it is too much. 180 is alot of water to move around. it is funny how the fish adapt to the flow. when I started running the eductors all the fish hid. now they get blasted across the tank. everything will adapt to flow unless you have a lot of flowy hammers. but I wonder how they deal with nature as the currents where they are found can be pretty strong
Don't go by GPH or turnover it doesn't really mean anything like watts per gallon. You can have a crap load of theroretical flow and it will not be effective. Push the flow until you think you over did it. or if your running sand then you will be in trouble with the stuff moving around on you. You will know when it is too much. 180 is alot of water to move around. it is funny how the fish adapt to the flow. when I started running the eductors all the fish hid. now they get blasted across the tank. everything will adapt to flow unless you have a lot of flowy hammers. but I wonder how they deal with nature as the currents where they are found can be pretty strong
Yes, Mad, I figured the 10' of head for the return on the mag 24.
Now, I just have to figure out of I want to drill the tank find a pump that will give me great flow on a closed loop... or spend the $800.00 on additional tunze streams. This would give me 3 at 3000/gph in my 180. I don't know.
Now, I just have to figure out of I want to drill the tank find a pump that will give me great flow on a closed loop... or spend the $800.00 on additional tunze streams. This would give me 3 at 3000/gph in my 180. I don't know.
tommyp
Member
I would just use penductors and a sequence for the return and your tunze. you would have plenty of flow and it wouldn't be nearly as obtrusive as the three tunzes. It would be around $450 if you got everything new. The eductors put alot of back pressure on the pump so it cuts the flow through the sump down. If you need more flow than that add a tunze later but I doubt you will.
A closed loop is okay too. but you are adding another big pump and holes in the glass.
These are just my opinions based on having basically the same setup, basement sump and all. If electricity is cheap where you are by all means add more pumps. but I have found for me that the eductors give me alot of flow for no money. You have to run a return anyway. They also add alot of backpressure which is actually a plus because it cuts the flow through the overflows. Before the eductors I had to have the sequence throttled back or it would be too much flow. With the eductors the sequence is wide open and the flow through the sump is not bad. I still get some bubbles but that is more my sumps fault than the amount of flow.
A closed loop is okay too. but you are adding another big pump and holes in the glass.
These are just my opinions based on having basically the same setup, basement sump and all. If electricity is cheap where you are by all means add more pumps. but I have found for me that the eductors give me alot of flow for no money. You have to run a return anyway. They also add alot of backpressure which is actually a plus because it cuts the flow through the overflows. Before the eductors I had to have the sequence throttled back or it would be too much flow. With the eductors the sequence is wide open and the flow through the sump is not bad. I still get some bubbles but that is more my sumps fault than the amount of flow.
Thanks for the help Tommy. I looked through your tank chronicles and am jealous... sweet. What sequence pump did you get, and would you still recommend one that strong? I understand what the eductors do, but do they go on the ends of my returns from the sump? Do they just screw on, or is there some other place they go? powerhead?
Thanks.
Thanks.
mkpaulson
Active Member
Gaubow, Have you looked at the ocean motion closed loop system? I have one on my 210 and love it. it is little pricey but you get really good flow and you don't have all the power cords to deal with. take a look at my to chronicle and see if it is something you could work with.
http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums/reef-chronicles/4314-mkpaulson-210-all-glass-megaflow-5.html
http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums/reef-chronicles/4314-mkpaulson-210-all-glass-megaflow-5.html
tommyp
Member
Thanks the tank is starting to shape up.
I got the 3200 I think. I got it used off andy at mrc it is this one. If you are thinking of going that way I have been thinking I would upsize to the next larger one add a mechanical ballvalve and remove my streams. So I could be persuaded to part with it.
It would probably be dandy for your setup and if it is too much for the overflows then just ballvalve it down a bit or use both returns as drains as well and go over the back. I don't think I would go with the 4200 or whatever on stock overflows. The eductors knock down the flow quite a bit though.
here is the page. it is the ones near the bottom
http://www.marinedepot.com/aquarium_pumps_mdm_sequence_750_1000_series.asp?CartId=
The eductor just screw on the end of the return plumbing. I put a syphon break hole in my plumbing near the top of the water so that I could mount the eductors any level in the tank. When the power goes out the small hole breaks the syphon and doesn't drain the entire tank.
the ocean motions are cool but they don't work so well with the eductors
I got the 3200 I think. I got it used off andy at mrc it is this one. If you are thinking of going that way I have been thinking I would upsize to the next larger one add a mechanical ballvalve and remove my streams. So I could be persuaded to part with it.
It would probably be dandy for your setup and if it is too much for the overflows then just ballvalve it down a bit or use both returns as drains as well and go over the back. I don't think I would go with the 4200 or whatever on stock overflows. The eductors knock down the flow quite a bit though.
here is the page. it is the ones near the bottom
http://www.marinedepot.com/aquarium_pumps_mdm_sequence_750_1000_series.asp?CartId=
The eductor just screw on the end of the return plumbing. I put a syphon break hole in my plumbing near the top of the water so that I could mount the eductors any level in the tank. When the power goes out the small hole breaks the syphon and doesn't drain the entire tank.
the ocean motions are cool but they don't work so well with the eductors
Thanks for chiming in MK, I probably would be overwelmed with all of the plumbing. I am thinking about the sequence from the basement to both of the overflows and adding the eductors. I'll then add the tunze and see where that leaves me... if i have too, I could add another tunze for about $400.00 and that should be fine. This would more than double my flow from the 90 that I am upgrading from, and since i am going to a 180 that should be ok, I think.
I just hope that I don't regret not drilling any holes in the back of the tank because the lfs will do it for me before I get the tank...
I just hope that I don't regret not drilling any holes in the back of the tank because the lfs will do it for me before I get the tank...