Heading to the LFS to do some upgrade shopping

[ShawnSaucier]

so as the tittle said, heading out to a shop or two today. I'm looking to upgrade my media reactor (mr1) and probably add more flow to the tank.
I'm tired of the white nylon screws on my media reactor, so I am looking to possibly replace with Vertex RX-U 1.5 ( seems it is just a screw top) The only reviews I've read are from 3 years ago, has anyone used a newer version since they have been upgraded a bit? Thinking about using two (rowa and carbon) in the sump and in line with each other.
As far as flow, I'm looking at an MP40qd but wondering on a MP60. I currently have two Tunze 6105's and will continue to use them but place them low and behind the aquascape. I had a Gyre 150 for the last year, which was amazing when it worked. I have been considering 2 MP40's, add one today another in a month or two and placed opposite on either side of the tank, or just an MP60 on one side. Any thoughts?

DT: 5'x30"x2' (187g) recently rescaped and a mixed reef

 

[mcarroll]

Late reply....

I'm tired of the white nylon screws on my media reactor

I lived with a crew of ETSS skimmers and Monster reactors for a while....I don't like thumbscrews anymore either!

Screw-top reators have historically had leak issues....that's more or less where the thumbscrew reactors came from. So definitely get some feedback on the reactor you mentioned to make sure doesn't have the same issues.

Honestly, recycled RO/DI housings are about as good as anything. Get 20" housings if you need more room. Several places are selling complete kits.

As far as flow

The tank (being fairly low, presumably with rocks/coral taking up a lot of that space) seems ripe for slightly more-focused Tunze-style flow....not so much Vortech-style. Their flow pattern is very fat/short and I think they'd be stiffled with so little vertical space.

Maybe add another one or two 6105's, or consider the 6040's for a different role? Maybe hiding a 6015 (or other) in a Tunze Rock would give you a new flow position and make things nicer?

(Hard to make a solid recommendation without knowing more about what you think is wrong or what you're changing with the current flow.)

 

[ShawnSaucier]

Thanks for the reply.. Trip got side tracked yesterday, so I think it was good. You mentioned the one concern that I have with the Vertex. My only real gripe about using an Ro/di housing is visual. I'll be honest, I'm so OCD , my PVC is color coded, and the Vertex would match the color scheme. Lol
I've had Vortechs in past tanks, and I switched to the tunzes with the new tank mainly to be able to direct the flow. But they are an eye sore IMHO. When I added the Gyre to the system, I have to say that the corals responded extremely well to the extra flow. But the unit was so inconsistent. In 6 months I had to swap out two full systems and purchased enough spare parts to fix the third unit that I might as well have bought a fourth. I travel quite a bit for work, and it sucks spending FaceTime sessions with my wife trouble shooting equipment that keeps breaking. So back to Vortechs. I'm thinking with the Tunze pumps adjustability and the "fat" flow of the Vortechs , I can program a flow pattern that will work for my system and still have plenty of head room with flow power ,allowing me to increase the output on each pump as the corals grow.

 

[mcarroll]

It certainly depends on "local conditions" but the Tunze's are generally easy to place out of sight since they can be aimed up (around/whatever) from behind rocks.

Vortechs, by comparison, have to be placed above the level of the rocks so they can have a clear line of sight and reach out into the tank the meager two-to-three feet they're capable of. Not only are they more visible (way more visible from outside the tank), but there ends up having to be more of them due to their relatively small area of effect.

If visibility is really the issue vs adding more Tunzes, maybe consider some of their ceramic rock housings and mount your Tunze's in your rocks?

 

[mcarroll]

You mentioned the one concern that I have with the Vertex. My only real gripe about using an Ro/di housing is visual. I'll be honest, I'm so OCD , my PVC is color coded, and the Vertex would match the color scheme. Lol

This looks to be colored like regular PVC parts.

How about this housing:

Or add a clear "sump" part (or black, or..) to this cap:

Yes, the red pressure-release button is sorta useless for this application, but it's a nod to vanity!!

A 20" version of the all-white filter housing only runs about $30.

A 20" refillable filter cartridge from the same outfit will run you $8.

They make double-wide versions of the 10" and 20" housings too, for only a little more $.