ECOTECH MP40 Nightmare !!!!!

chappy · Oct 2, 2013

Seriously I have 4 on a 210 with all types and sizes of fish .not to be mean but your problem is not your vortech ifs your bio load or your salinity level
Run and get a poly filter and see what it pulls out then do some serious testing on important parameters.I believe you s a I'd the tank has been running through may that's like 5 months way to soon to have large numbers of fish in a tank .hope some of this helps and hope I read about you setting up the
Tank in May correctly gl

motoxjunky21 · Oct 2, 2013

Hey Chappy ! What exactly do you mean by get a poly filter and see what it pulls out ? For testing my water I use an API reef master kit and also bought the calcium and phosphate tests to go along with it. I checked my water just the other day and everything shows good. What exactly are you calling the important parameters ? Is there another test that I need to be using thats not included in what I already have ? My salinity is spot on at 1.025 consistantly. The tank was setup in May but the rock and the water and a good portion of the sand was from a teardown tank the was very sucessful and levels were checked before I put anything major in. This wasnt a brand new build that I just loaded fish into right from the start.

ChristopherKriens · Oct 2, 2013

I agree. Fish were dead or close to it before they hit the powerhead. This can happen, but not as frequently as you're describing and definitely not with a healthy 6" fish.

Pappy · Oct 2, 2013

motoxjunky21 said:
Hey Chappy ! What exactly do you mean by get a poly filter and see what it pulls out ? For testing my water I use an API reef master kit and also bought the calcium and phosphate tests to go along with it. I checked my water just the other day and everything shows good. What exactly are you calling the important parameters ? Is there another test that I need to be using thats not included in what I already have ? My salinity is spot on at 1.025 consistantly. The tank was setup in May but the rock and the water and a good portion of the sand was from a teardown tank the was very sucessful and levels were checked before I put anything major in. This wasnt a brand new build that I just loaded fish into right from the start.

What were your numbers? And did u get an alk and mg kit also? Those are important parameters. Personally I wouldn't bother with the phosphate kit by api as it's not accurate ime. If u see algae u have phosphates.

This was live rock and sand transferred. Did u rinse the sand? And the nitrate api kit read carefully as far as shaking bottle for a minute and waiting for 5 for color to read. My guess is that you have a nitrate or alk issue....if you're absolutely positive your nitrate kit is reading right then do it again and then have someone else check it with theirs as well.

Pumps don't kill fish we do

think about ocean currents in reef environment...wayyyyyyyyy more powerful than anything we could ever buy.

Dowtish · Oct 2, 2013

I run 2 mp40s on a 85 gallon bowfront, and I run them at 100% and have never had an issue. Something is not right....

chadderboxx · Oct 7, 2013

Agree 100% with everyone else Fish on powerheads or sick/unhealthy fish to begin with. I have had two mP10 running 100% half the time and only lost one coral beauty That was being harassed overnight. My 2 inch clown almost sleeps on top of one the powerheads and never have had a problem with that. I think the biggest Success to any problem is test test test and change your water change water change your water.

shred5 · Oct 7, 2013

I have never seen or heard of a mp40 doing this,. Mp60s are known to to this sometime..

miamiangler · Oct 15, 2013

I have 2 MP10ESw and had 2 tangs die because they got stuck to the pumps . they were still alive when I got two them ,but there was too much damage to safe them . I also had a foxface get sucked into one but it`s doing fine . I have dialed down the pumps and run both at night at 40 %. Seems most of the fish get close to the pumps at night .

ColaAddict · Oct 15, 2013

I only get fish stuck to MP40 if they are weakened by disease or about to die. Never had healthy fish get sucked by the powerheads

IBEW41 · Oct 15, 2013

have my mp40s at 80% never ate a fish how do you test your salinity with a refracto meter or swing arm?have you tested ammonia, alk and nitrite levels I see your tank is just recently been set up

Letoan · Oct 15, 2013

I had 2 running max on my 125 for 2 years with all sort of fishes, none ever got stuck. My blenny favorite feeding spot was the powerhead.

fraggardner · Nov 14, 2013

Bummer
I've had Fish go over my overflow but not into my pumps
2 mp40
1 wp40

tektite · Nov 14, 2013

I made a cover for mine, that doesn't impede flow much:

Even a similar cage with 1/4" netting would work to keep the fish away from the suction zone while not affecting flow at all. That's an awful lot of fish to lose to the powerhead, unless they're already not healthy.

What fish species specifically have been killed?

reef. coffee & curly hair · Nov 14, 2013

Tektite that is really cool! I like that industrial look. And I agree with many on here, fish must have already been unhealthy. Been running mp40's at 90% on custom wave mode in a 5 ft tank for years and have yet to lose a fish. Good luck and sorry for the losses.

tektite said:
I made a cover for mine, that doesn't impede flow much:

Even a similar cage with 1/4" netting would work to keep the fish away from the suction zone while not affecting flow at all. That's an awful lot of fish to lose to the powerhead, unless they're already not healthy.

What fish species specifically have been killed?

Rick's Reef · Jan 6, 2019

@tektite - love the cover. Care to post or message details on the construction? Looks like screen material from a big box home improvement store but curious how you built the frame. I am using the foam covers.

Old thread but thought I would add. I just reinstalled 2 mp40s on my tank. I've been using Maxspect Gyres because I didn't want the ear muff look (plus my son will pull them off the tank

). But I wanted more flow so I put the MP40s back on along the back of the tank.

When feeding I like perfectly no flow so I set the MP40 feed mode to be OFF. Well wouldn't you know the first time they turned off my Tailspot Blenny swam up to perch inside one of the wet sides and feed from there (dart out, grab mysis, swim back inside the wet side and perch again). Fortunately I witnessed it rather than walk off after 2 minutes of feeding and let the timer automatically restart without me being there to observe).

My feed mode is now set to run the MP40s at a constant 10%. I have a couple of buttons and toggle switches to an I/O cable that I use to trigger certain things (feed mode 5 minute timer, feed mode with skimmer off for an extended duration after for phyto feeding, a toggle switch to trigger 100% on the Gyres during turkey baster cleaning, etc). I will probably change one of the toggle switches to be my 100% everything off mode for feeding so it can be turned off after visual inspection of the wet sides to make sure nobody is hiding in there.