Flow questions.. Gyre and placement.

[JustinMN18]

Hello,

I have an Innovative Marine EXT 100, and using 2 Icecap 2k gyres, one on each end placed in the middle of the side glass, at the top. I am getting great flow around the front of my aquarium, but not really the back behind the rocks. I'm noticing this because I'm having a cyano issue, and I feel like the middle of the tank where each flow pattern meets, which then pushes straight down, gets the best flow. Everything else is kinda wavy and calm. I'm wondering where people have put their gyres on a tank like mine (4 feet long, about 2 feet wide). I was thinking of maybe trying to move 1 to the middle of the tank, side glass (or back) and make it vertical and have it go around the tank that way. Thoughts? Not sure. I don't want to start messing with this if this is something that doesn't work well.

 

[sp1187]

I have a 150 XHigh (48x24x30)
2 maxspect gyre 230's
both are mounted vertical on the back glass, next to each side glass.
works for me.
wears the cyano issue? sandbed?

 

[JustinMN18]

I have a 150 XHigh (48x24x30)
2 maxspect gyre 230's
both are mounted vertical on the back glass, next to each side glass.
works for me.
wears the cyano issue? sandbed?

I have some on the rocks, but it is primarily sand bed. The front is like peppered with it, and the back has like large mats of it haha. So you have yours blowing forward then against the front glass and then intersecting in the middle of the front glass? Also, what kind of flow pattern are you using?

 

[sp1187]

flow alternates right to left/left to right. it's set to one of the preset 30 day reef/lunar cycles.
do you have any strawberry/tiger conchs as part of the CUC?

 

[JustinMN18]

flow alternates right to left/left to right. it's set to one of the preset 30 day reef/lunar cycles.
do you have any strawberry/tiger conchs as part of the CUC?

I have 2 tiger conchs. Would you say your configuration works well for LPS corals? Any issues with hot zones?

 

[sp1187]

I have 2 tiger conchs. Would you say your configuration works well for LPS corals? Any issues with hot zones?

I don't keep a lot of LPS, mostly softies. the torch gets whipped pretty good by my return and seems to be happy.
the gyre flow are on one direction so long, and then on in the other direction and they are set at different flow percentage, which changes through out the day and month. I've got a hammer, frogspawn and some blasto's that catch the gyre flow. they are all happy and growing as well.

I'm surprised the tigers don't keep the sand clear. my three are like vacuum cleaners. I had one cyano breakout in the sand only one time, and that was pre-conchs.

 

[JustinMN18]

I don't keep a lot of LPS, mostly softies. the torch gets whipped pretty good by my return and seems to be happy.
the gyre flow are on one direction so long, and then on in the other direction and they are set at different flow percentage, which changes through out the day and month. I've got a hammer, frogspawn and some blasto's that catch the gyre flow. they are all happy and growing as well.

Cool thanks. I moved 1 to the bottom right blowing along the back, and one on the top left blowing accross the top. So far it seems ok. Thank you for the insight!

 

[sp1187]

welcome. are the ice caps flow controllable, so you don't get a sand storm from the bottom one?

 

[JustinMN18]

Yea they are controllable through an app. It's not the best but it's something.

 

[Aldrinlights]

Yea they are controllable through an app. It's not the best but it's something.

Reviving this thread. How's your icecap setup now? Did you ever try putting them both on the back glass like one person mentioned in here? I had one on the side vertical and one on the other side horizontal but I keep getting sand on all the rocks on one side of my tank while the other side was clean as a whistle. What have you found that works well for you?

 

[clifg]

When I had a longer tank I had them on the side like yours but one at the top pointing down and one at the bottom pointing up so the water was essentially tumbling. Then with it allowed to go into reverse it worked great.

 

[Aldrinlights]

When I had a longer tank I had them on the side like yours but one at the top pointing down and one at the bottom pointing up so the water was essentially tumbling. Then with it allowed to go into reverse it worked great.

Please elaborate. You put one on the opposite side lower in the glass pointing up with one higher on the first side pointing down? Did you allow both to go reverse or just opposite side? What pattern worked with this reverse setting?

 

[Kirkslittlereef]

I have my gyres mounted vertically one in the front and one in the back, it seems to work pretty well that way. 5ft wide 112 gal.

 

[Aldrinlights]

I have my gyres mounted vertically one in the front and one in the back, it seems to work pretty well that way. 5ft wide 112 gal.

Vertically one in front? Do you mean it's on the side glass closest to front? Is it pointing across the front glass or to the side toward the back? Are they both pointing the same flow direction or against eachother. Or do they both point cross diag at eachother?

 

[Kirkslittlereef]

They point across the front and back glass, both set to random mode

 

[clifg]

Please elaborate. You put one on the opposite side lower in the glass pointing up with one higher on the first side pointing down? Did you allow both to go reverse or just opposite side? What pattern worked with this reverse setting?

Hopefully, these make sense... I had one on the same side and one on the opposite side. For pattern I don't remember since I switched over to the waveengine, sorry!

Edit: oh! Just remembering I had rocks within 3 inches of each pump so the flow would go over, under, and around and be more dispersed.

 

[JustinMN18]

Reviving this thread. How's your icecap setup now? Did you ever try putting them both on the back glass like one person mentioned in here? I had one on the side vertical and one on the other side horizontal but I keep getting sand on all the rocks on one side of my tank while the other side was clean as a whistle. What have you found that works well for you?

So both gyres opposite of each other at the top using the "opposite" setting sucked haha. It created way too much downwards turbulence in the middle of the tank.

Looking at the tank, I ended up keeping my left side gyre up on the top blowing across the top, and the right one I put vertical, middle level in tank, on the side blowing across the black glass in "opposite' mode.

That seems to work well, I don't have any SPS.

I also have a blast mode setup every day at noon to just blow out the tank, and I also have a "LPS" setting which runs "back" on the right vertical gyre, and that runs for n hour every day.

I did that because my rocks were blocking flow in the back and I was having a cyano issue back there.

I rely on my 2 returns to help with surface agitation.

 

[Aldrinlights]

Hopefully, these make sense... I had one on the same side and one on the opposite side. For pattern I don't remember since I switched over to the waveengine, sorry!

Edit: oh! Just remembering I had rocks within 3 inches of each pump so the flow would go over, under, and around and be more dispersed.

That's awesome thank you for the diagram. I'll do one for my setup once I get it figured out as well.

 

[Aldrinlights]

So both gyres opposite of each other at the top using the "opposite" setting sucked haha. It created way too much downwards turbulence in the middle of the tank.

Looking at the tank, I ended up keeping my left side gyre up on the top blowing across the top, and the right one I put vertical, middle level in tank, on the side blowing across the black glass in "opposite' mode.

That seems to work well, I don't have any SPS.

I also have a blast mode setup every day at noon to just blow out the tank, and I also have a "LPS" setting which runs "back" on the right vertical gyre, and that runs for n hour every day.

I did that because my rocks were blocking flow in the back and I was having a cyano issue back there.

I rely on my 2 returns to help with surface agitation.

Thanks for the update. I had one vertical on the back but just half of it blowing on the bottom half across the glass then the top half was pointed out toward center. It didn't help my cyano issue in the back opposite corner under my overflow box. I will have to try pointing both of them across the back and see how that goes.

I wonder if anyone has had success mounting 2 on the back glass facing toward the front.

 

[JustinMN18]

Thanks for the update. I had one vertical on the back but just half of it blowing on the bottom half across the glass then the top half was pointed out toward center. It didn't help my cyano issue in the back opposite corner under my overflow box. I will have to try pointing both of them across the back and see how that goes.

I wonder if anyone has had success mounting 2 on the back glass facing toward the front.

I have thought about that, but I was worried about surface agitation, and also absolutely blasting from back to front haha I hope you find a good solution! It's tough.