thanks & flow rates

[pipermurphy]

First off thanks for all of your help so far in getting things going.

My next question is,
Can you have too much water flow. In my 75g SW I have a Rio3100 in my sump @ 700gph along with 3 surge 750's each @ 200gph so that is about 17X tank vol. Is that excessive? Right now it is a FOwLR. To be a soft coral tank. I am through with the cycling and have 2 true perc clowns, a damsel, and a goby, along with 10 hermits. There is also 4" LSB & 85lbs of LR. Is this a good setup?

 

[Guest]

Sounds good.

You may hear mixed reviews on the choice of pump. RIO's seem to not be liked here. I don't have a problem yet, however, I hear they have a short life span and lock up, as well as heat issues. but hey, mine is working great...I have a RIO pump and it is doing great.

Your tank should be doing good for filtration with the LR provided...What king of filtration are you running in the sump?

 

[pipermurphy]

Originally it was a wet/dry, but was told by others here to remove the bio-balls. So all I have in the sump is my heaters. I don't know if this is right, or should I do something else.

 

[loganj]

Sounds like you're on the right track to a successful tank! Some folks have as much as 30x flow so you're ok there. What I have read, and it makes sense to me, is that you want turbulence instead of current. Aim your PH's and pump return so that their flow hits each other.
I would watch that Rio pump closely. If it died, I'd go with a Mag Drive or a good external (Little Giant, Iwaki,...). I have a Rio on my skimmer and it quits about once a week. Gonna replace it with a Maxi Jet someday....
Logan J

 

[Guest]

I have a Rio on my skimmer and it quits about once a week. Gonna replace it with a Maxi Jet someday

Do you think you might have a defective RIO pump on your skimmer?

I have a RIO 800 on my skimmer and it has never quit. actually, it is the most reliable pump I have.

I have a MAXI-JET 100 that is a real POS...so I don't know....I guess we all have had bad pumps one time or another.. As I heard in this hobby, sometimes you just can't always get quality for less money..

 

[loganj]

Well, I got three of the Rio 200's with the skimmer. One wouldn't run at all, one wouldn't run more than about 10 min, and the other will run about a week at a time on average. On the other hand, I have never had a MaxiJet that quit or failed to restart after a power outage. Just my experience so far....
Logan J

 

[Guest]

Hmmm, ok, I was just wondering...Must have been a bad time on the assembly line? he he

 

[fishfreek]

When you tear a rio and a maxijet apart they are at the core the same basic type of motor. They use a magnet and electricty to rotate the impeller. I have found if I clean the PH's real good by basicly taking them apart and scrubbing them down with my fingers under the sink that they perk up to just like new condition when I plug them back in again.