water current question

mattgeezer · 02-27-2007, 08:32 PM

hi

, im watching my tanks water flow and thinking that i dont have enough , as i have a 35gal cube w/ one internal 400lph otto ph with 2 filter cups underneath . i also have a hang on skimmer / filter that does 250lph . do you think i need more current or is too much bad !!. would like to know anyone with a similar size tank ,how much current they have or can tell me what i need ..

cheers
matt

coral reefer · 02-27-2007, 08:47 PM

Matt,
Your water movement should be based on the corals that you have or plan on getting! Don't play off of the notion that you need to have so many gph as it isn't at all acurate! Just make sure that you reduce the amount of dead spaces in your tank, for the overall success of your livestock etc.! !

sharkatak · 02-28-2007, 01:08 AM

I agree with coral reefer in that water flow formulas don't need to be exact.I have about 45 times my tank capacity per/hr and it works for me.If I had any smaller fish or delicate corals it would be over the top.The important thing IMO is anorobic areas.Did I get that right?Areas that have no water flow.These areas attract detritus and hence all the problems that come with it.I had trouble with green hair till I put in a 700 lph powerhead to get behind a couple of rocks.The corals look better as the water is moving in different directions against itself instead of one direction.Hope this helps.

mattgeezer · 02-28-2007, 03:47 AM

thanks guys , sharkatak , u say it helped get rid of hair algae ,im always fighting that. thats where im thinking of h20 movement. im as well considering a uv sterilizer too help rid the algae

the levels are fine ? which i thought my p04 would be sky rocketting but its 0ppm and so is nitrates

i just keep scrubbing the algae off 4 days later it starts coming back . ive cut the light back a bit (1hr blue , 8hrs both , 1 hr blue) it slows it down .

not really keen to add anything till i sort it out or unless theres a critter out there that will make me happy and eat all that crap for me , if there is tell me im going shopping ...

sharkatak · 02-28-2007, 04:09 AM

I have a skopas tang and a coral beauty that play constant follow the leader.They are non-stop picking.

mattgeezer · 02-28-2007, 04:14 AM

oooooh skopia tang like the sound of that

sharkatak · 02-28-2007, 04:37 AM

The skopas has been a great addition to my community.There's no aggresion,he is very reef safe and has heaps of carracter.