Icecap vs maxspect gyre on 80 gal deep blue

[Mauhamed Dahan]

I'm looking to purchase one of the tyres. I know the maxspect can control 2 gyres at once. Anyone have both?

 

[GoVols]

@Mauhamed Dahan

Welcome to Reef 2 Reef

Going back up for some input!!

 

[mitch91175]

Go with the Maxspect if you ask me. I have the XF250 and its great on my 60x24x10 frag tank. I heard that the Icecaps aren't built as well as the Maxspect.

 

[Mauhamed Dahan]

Go with the Maxspect if you ask me. I have the XF250 and its great on my 60x24x10 frag tank. I heard that the Icecaps aren't built as well as the Maxspect.

That's what I was thinking. I was told the icecap was last the generation of the maxspect.

 

[leahfiish]

If you only need 1 pump then the icecap is a better value. If you want 2 (like one on each side) you may want the maxspect because you can sync them

 

[SneakyTortuga]

sadly i have both a icecap and maxspect on a 80 gallon 48x24x16.... my ecotech died so i decided to get one. when i went to the store they only had icecap 3k so i bought it (2 months ago). then when i went to rap this past weekend and they had the maxspect 2300 for 30% off.

icecap:
the icecap is quite large. pushes TONS of water but i cant turn it over 50%. its silent under 50% but over it becomes audible. cleaning it is easy enough. youll notice it needs to be cleaned because it will slowly start pushing less water. i just compensated by turning it up to 70% so i could get another week or 2 before i had to clean it. disassembly is basic enough. just take it apart and let it soak in vinegar. overall Im happy with the product.

maxspect:
significantly smaller in size. pushes less water but i have it set to 70% which is more than enough and matches the icecap that is set at 50%. its slightly audible at 80%. ive only had it in the tank for a week but so far so good. it comes with spare bearings and blades in the box.

i said sadly in the beginning of the post because i wish i just would have gotten 2 maxspect so i could have them alternate with one controller making it easier to program. i have them alternate now by setting one up at 10% for 2-3 hours and the other at 50% random flow then they switch. i would just go with maxspect just because if you plan on getting a second pump its worth it and they come with spare parts. if you plan in the future on getting a bigger tank get the 2500. the 2300 is more than enough flow for the 80 gallon but with a bigger tank i would have to say it doesn't have enough power

 

[Mauhamed Dahan]

sadly i have both a icecap and maxspect on a 80 gallon 48x24x16.... my ecotech died so i decided to get one. when i went to the store they only had icecap 3k so i bought it (2 months ago). then when i went to rap this past weekend and they had the maxspect 2300 for 30% off.

icecap:
the icecap is quite large. pushes TONS of water but i cant turn it over 50%. its silent under 50% but over it becomes audible. cleaning it is easy enough. youll notice it needs to be cleaned because it will slowly start pushing less water. i just compensated by turning it up to 70% so i could get another week or 2 before i had to clean it. disassembly is basic enough. just take it apart and let it soak in vinegar. overall Im happy with the product.

maxspect:
significantly smaller in size. pushes less water but i have it set to 70% which is more than enough and matches the icecap that is set at 50%. its slightly audible at 80%. ive only had it in the tank for a week but so far so good. it comes with spare bearings and blades in the box.

i said sadly in the beginning of the post because i wish i just would have gotten 2 maxspect so i could have them alternate with one controller making it easier to program. i have them alternate now by setting one up at 10% for 2-3 hours and the other at 50% random flow then they switch. i would just go with maxspect just because if you plan on getting a second pump its worth it and they come with spare parts. if you plan in the future on getting a bigger tank get the 2500. the 2300 is more than enough flow for the 80 gallon but with a bigger tank i would have to say it doesn't have enough power

Good deal! I bought two maxspect 230 and advanced contriller on eBay for 300!!

 

[SneakyTortuga]

Good deal! I bought two maxspect 230 and advanced contriller on eBay for 300!!

psshhhh what a deal

 

[Mauhamed Dahan]

psshhhh what a deal

I know. I couldn't pass it up. It had just been posted too. Good deals on eBay. I can buy stuff here yet. So it's eBay for now.

 

[fishbox]

Just curious if you guys have build threads on your tanks? I just got an 80 gallon deep blue rimless and could use some ideas

 

[Mauhamed Dahan]

Just curious if you guys have build threads on your tanks? I just got an 80 gallon deep blue rimless and could use some ideas

I haven't bought the tank yet. Local shop sells the timeless with overflow for 425. I am working on sump right now

 

[fishbox]

I haven't bought the tank yet. Local shop sells the timeless with overflow for 425. I am working on sump right now

What's your plans for the sump?

Also, I have the Ice Cap 3k Gyre on my 40B and love it. It moves a ton of water. Mine is dead silent (tank is 10ft from my bed) unless I forget to clean it as scheduled or if microbubbles build up in the blades. I give mine a quick toothbrush scrub monthly but I also do a full breakdown and soak in vinegar every 4 months. Also I easily combat the microbubbles by setting the pump to run in Reverse mode a couple times a day for at least a couple minutes. I also feel that it's built very well I've had no issues with mine. However I do kind of wish that I was able to synchronize with a second pump somehow. I'm also contemplating on whether I should get the maxspect gyre so that I can synchronize. But I'm not sure the cost really warrants that feature. I mean honestly it seems like the name of the game these days just to have random flow and to me it doesn't get more random than having two pumps running in a random mode that aren't sing together. It's just pure chaos flow which I like. So I'll probably end up going with another ice cap

 

[Mauhamed Dahan]

I have 40 breeder as the sump. Bought a Fiji cube 40 breeder sump kit for the baffles. I have my backup return In parallel it's jebao dcp 6500. Trying to get a varios 6 for my man return. Reef octopus 150 for my skimmer. 4 Brs dosers And 2 kessil a360we.

 

[Mauhamed Dahan]

Oh and the gyres now and brs large doser for ato.

 

[Mauhamed Dahan]

I've spent about 875 so far

 

[fishbox]

I've spent about 875 so far

That's it! [emoji23] Just wait till you put water in it.

And you're plans sound good so far. I'll keep an eye out for your build thread or feel free to drop me a message with a link when you get started.

 

[Mauhamed Dahan]

That's it! [emoji23] Just wait till you put water in it.

And you're plans sound good so far. I'll keep an eye out for your build thread or feel free to drop me a message with a link when you get started.

I know it's a slow build. I have a 5 freshwater tanks in my house. It's about time I go into saltwater. And i will definetely send you a message when i get to it. Hope everything goes well with you too. I'll keep an eye out for other xf230s on eBay for you. If i find anything reasonable ill pm you

 

[fishbox]

I know it's a slow build. I have a 5 freshwater tanks in my house. It's about time I go into saltwater. And i will definetely send you a message when i get to it. Hope everything goes well with you too. I'll keep an eye out for other xf230s on eBay for you. If i find anything reasonable ill pm you

Yes keep me posted. I'm also moving in slow motion but I did start a build thread to report my progress if you want to follow along

https://www.reef2reef.com/index.php?threads/380105/