Peninsula Tank Vortech Programming Help

chilake08 · 10/14/2015, 08:18 PM

So I have a tank that I have been slowly breaking in, and before I jump the gun on purchasing any new coral I want to try to fix some of the issues I think i'm seeing.

It is a 3' long x 2' wide peninsula ~65gal tank with 2 MP40s on either side of the overflow. Currently I have the MP40s programmed to essentially run on alternating intensities. As one powers up to ~50% the other powers down to 5%. Each one runs for about 1.5-2hrs on reef crest or lagoon before switching.

The original idea was to help create various alternating currents through the tank over the course of a day. But what I have noticed is that 1) the far end of the tank, while getting some flow, doesn't seem to be enough to keep algae in check and 2) even at its lowest setting an MP40 is enough to disrupt gyre flow being created by the other.

Options:

1) crank up the settings to really push the water flow coming out of the active MP40, but possibly creating non-optimal conditions around the rock work closest to the pumps.

2) Completely shut down the low-activity MP40 when the other one is running. This would prevent the competing flow, but my concern is that it will either be hard on the pump or risk getting snails/shrimp/fish camping out in the non-running pump only to have them shredded when it boots back up

3) Abandon the alternating flow premise and run the pumps together rather than alternating.

Any ideas or experiences would be greatly appreciated

10/14/2015, 08:18 PM	#1
chilake08 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Boston Posts: 110	Peninsula Tank Vortech Programming Help So I have a tank that I have been slowly breaking in, and before I jump the gun on purchasing any new coral I want to try to fix some of the issues I think i'm seeing. It is a 3' long x 2' wide peninsula ~65gal tank with 2 MP40s on either side of the overflow. Currently I have the MP40s programmed to essentially run on alternating intensities. As one powers up to ~50% the other powers down to 5%. Each one runs for about 1.5-2hrs on reef crest or lagoon before switching. The original idea was to help create various alternating currents through the tank over the course of a day. But what I have noticed is that 1) the far end of the tank, while getting some flow, doesn't seem to be enough to keep algae in check and 2) even at its lowest setting an MP40 is enough to disrupt gyre flow being created by the other. Options: 1) crank up the settings to really push the water flow coming out of the active MP40, but possibly creating non-optimal conditions around the rock work closest to the pumps. 2) Completely shut down the low-activity MP40 when the other one is running. This would prevent the competing flow, but my concern is that it will either be hard on the pump or risk getting snails/shrimp/fish camping out in the non-running pump only to have them shredded when it boots back up 3) Abandon the alternating flow premise and run the pumps together rather than alternating. Any ideas or experiences would be greatly appreciated