Yet another question about flow from a newbie??

[fijiwigi]

On Dec 20th I get a christmas bonus and am planning on dropping $1000 maybe a little less into my 46g tank. A sump/refuguim, protein skimmer, RO/Di unit, a bunch of power heads, Salt water mixing tub, more sand a couple buckets of salt etc.. etc..
My question is about how much flow I need. The return pump for the sump will probably be The Oceanrunner 2500 (650gph) and Power heads 2 hydor koralia's and 2 maxi jets 1 I will put in the salt water mixing tub. I was thinking 2 koralia 2's(600gph) on the rear corners facing the front bottom of the tank and 1 maxi-jet1200 (295gph) placed in the back center facing toward the front surface.

What factors into the filtration GPH rule I think the skimmer does not really and I am unsure if the power heads factor into the equation since they don't filter water really. with my 46G I need about 1000GPH of flow Should I get the oceanrunner 3500(900GPH) or even the 6500(1700GPH) I am also worried about the small refugium section of my sump having too much flow.

I was thinking I should buy a canister filter but do I really need to. Can I just get a pump with the right amount of flow. A little bit confused here and the decision I should make.

What I want to know is if you were in my shoes with a 46g tank what would you buy to complete your filtration setup. Forget about variations and possibilties. What would you do????? FijiWigi

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

You need to size your return pump based upon the rating for your overflow, and not how much circulation you need in your tank. That's what powerheads are for. I'm not a sump guy, so maybe someone else can chime in on how to properly size your return. Or search the archives... I know that question comes up fairly often.

 

[cmor1701d]

Kurt is correct. An overflow is rated for a certain gph. You do not want a pump rated higher that that. If you get one that matches exactly it will actually be a little lower due to head height.

You want to maintain 10x -20x water volume of flow from all sources. That would be the return pump and all power heads in the tank. You are correct that the skimmer is not added to this number.

Skip the cannister filter if you have (or plan to have) 70 -95 pounds of base/LR in the tank.

 

[fijiwigi]

Ok sounds good. My Overflow says it is rated on a 55gallon at 500GPH with a mag5 pump. or on a 75 gallon with a mag7 pump 700GPH. I think if I stick with the oceanrunner 2500 I should be ok? it is rated 625GPH. With My sump I will have about 55-60 gallons of water.

The Hydor Koralia power heads from what kurt says are overrated on flow(from what I understand) the 600gph from a koralia is really like 200gph from a maxijet. If this is the case I should buy 2 of the Koralia 2 (rated at 600gph)

625gph from the pump and 1200gph from the powerheads is 1825gph is 40x turnover but if the 600gph rating is really like 200 that would be 1025gph= 22x turnover.
SHOPPING LIST
custom built sump with small refugium section(10"x6") and Tunze Nano Protein skimmer from spaquatics $400.00
Overflow from aquacrylics $92.00
Refugium light from hardware store $30.00 or so
RO/DI unit 100gpd from melevs reef $200.00
Lighting timer $20,Purigen $20,Refractometer $45
Hydor Koralia2 (2) $80, Maxi jet(1) $20
Salt water mixing tub $20
2 buckets of Oceanic Salt $110
another 30#s of marine white sand $25 (petco)
Live rock rubble $20
Grand total $982.00 and either a cansiter filter rena xp or another 45# of live rock for another 200 dollars probably have to wait a paycheck or 3 later.

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

The Hydor Koralia power heads from what kurt says are overrated on flow(from what I understand) the 600gph from a koralia is really like 200gph from a maxijet. If this is the case I should buy 2 of the Koralia 2 (rated at 600gph)

It's not that they're overrated - I'm sure it puts out 600 gph just like it says. However, it puts out a more dispersed flow "cone". The MaxiJets put out all their flow over a 1/2" diameter. The Koralias put out a cone that is about 2-3" diameter at the outlet of the powerhead. In comparing the two, you really have to think about current velocity, not just gallons/hr. I would guess that the velocity of the water (inches/second) coming out of a Koralia 2 is about the same as a MaxiJet 900, even thought the flow out of a Koralia (gal/hr) is about 3x more than the MaxiJet.

I'd probably go with two Koralia 2 powerheads, even though it seems like a lot when you look at the gal/hr. If it ends up being too much, you can always take one out and use the other as a spare.

 

[fijiwigi]

Thanks Kurt for all of your input its been a great help.

 

[lando]

Gotta love that Christmas bonus! All good advice so far. I would just add that the amount of flow (gal/hr) is only half of the situation. IMO, the direction of the flow is also important. Positioning powerheads so they work with (or against) your return pump to create chaotic flow is important. Better yet, look into wave-makers that will create more of a current effect in your tank.

 

[cmor1701d]

It looks like the Ocean Runner 2500 drops to about 500 gph at 39" (1m) of head height. That should match your overflow rating quite nicely.

I switched out my Maxi-jets for the Koralia's. They have much higher flow than the MJ's over a wider range. The MJ's are very narrow output so I ended up adding the hydor flow rotating deflector on them.

 

[roka64]

I love my Koralias. I have seen snails crawl across them and not get stuck. I do agree, they put out a cone shaped flow. I have 2 of the 2s in my 55 and one Maxi-jet (pointed at the top for extra surface ripple).

 

[fijiwigi]

I love my Koralias. I have seen snails crawl across them and not get stuck. I do agree, they put out a cone shaped flow. I have 2 of the 2s in my 55 and one Maxi-jet (pointed at the top for extra surface ripple).

Thats what I was thinking I would do. Which Maxi-Jet do you have and what other gph flow do you have?? Do you have a sump

 

[roka64]

I am not sure on the maxi-jet and I don't have a sump on my 55. IMO, you have too much flow if your sand is constantly being moved and your critters are pinned up against the edge of the tank! LOL! I haven't set up a sump, (but will on my 125) so you can use that to cause awesome surface ripple, depending on how your outputs are set up.