Wave makers

[cgthebeast]

I decided to set up a wave maker for my 25g reef tank..... But I'm pretty clueless haha. I use a hydro Koralia 240 power head now, but I need any info that need an suggestions on what to buy. Also i can get 2 pcs 3200 gph waver maker power heads for 3 bucks, seems loke alot but once agian, clueless Thanks

[Dav3]

Are you doing a bare bottom tank?
3200 from a single powerhead is way overkill for a 25 gallon. Even two 1600 are overkill.. You will want a couple of lower flow powerheads.

[aquandrew]

+1 did you mean 320gph? unless they are adjustable

[cgthebeast]

Originally Posted by Dav3

Are you doing a bare bottom tank?
3200 from a single powerhead is way overkill for a 25 gallon. Even two 1600 are overkill.. You will want a couple of lower flow powerheads.

No it's been setup 7 months an has a 2 Inch sand bed. I will be sure to look for lower ones

[cgthebeast]

Originally Posted by aquandrew

+1 did you mean 320gph?

Nope, I really, REALLY, clueless on powerhead a an wave maker hhaha but I know good eBay deal when I see one....

[Dav3]

While you are shopping I strongly recommend skipping any with suction cups and go strictly with powerheads/wave makers with magnets instead.

[aquandrew]

are you going to add more powerheads? wavemakers do best with 3 or more powerheads. what you want to achieve is turbulence; a state of confusion, movement or agitation

[cgthebeast]

Originally Posted by aquandrew

are you going to add more powerheads? wavemakers do best with 3 or more powerheads. what you want to achieve is turbulence; a state of confusion, movement or agitation

Yep, at least 2 more. But I still wanna know the inner working of wavemarkes, as there current, it's stirs the sand bed but what else?

[aquandrew]

Originally Posted by cgthebeast

Yep, at least 2 more. But I still wanna know the inner working of wavemarkes, as there current, it's stirs the sand bed but what else?

stirring the sandbed, releases chemicals that help the corals flourish, while the turbulence mimics that of the ocean and promotes for an even healthier system. if you are looking for a decent, cheap system, drfostersmith.com has ocean pulse wavemaker quadro for 79.99. it can control 4 powerheads with bursts from 10 seconds to 6 minutes. you can control each powerhead for different bursts, and get it set up with the most turbulence you can create. this is the one i am ordering for my 75

[aquandrew]

wavemakers only have adjustable current, if you get an expensive one with powerheads designed specifically for the system. this one will allow you to put whichever powerheads on it, that you want.

[mr_X]

You don't need a wave maker. You can have a perfectly healthy, thriving system without them.
You do not want the sand bed stirred. There are no chemicals in the sand bed to help with coral health. All a sand bed is made out of is sand.

[aquandrew]

so its only in the ocean that the sand bed releases nutrients? in one of my books, thats what it says while explaining turbulence

[mr_X]

There are all kinds of things in the ocean. The ocean floor is loaded with all sorts of stuff like detritus, mud, and the like. A closed system is a completely different ball game. You do not want to disturb a sand bed that is full of detritus because it will overload your small water volume with nutrients and cause you problems.
The sand we add to our tanks is void of mud and such and will not release anything. It's basically comprised of whatever it's made of- calcium, or silica. Nothing will come out of it.
Once it's been in the tank for a while, it will start to build up nutrients. Nutrients that you don't want in your water column.

[aquandrew]

ah i see. sorry, my mistake

[cgthebeast]

Oh, we'll thank you for clearing that up. Hmm, I think I might just add 1 more power head to help circulate the water column then.