Too much flow with Maxspect Gyre 350?

[huckjai]

Hey Reefers. I just added a pair of clowns to my 96 gallon peninsula tank. It is 54inches in length, 24 wide, and 17.5 high.

I'm running a single Maxspect Gyre 350 in the back. I had it running at 20%, and the clowns swim with the flow all the way to the front of the tank and stay in that area.

If I dial it down to 10%, the clowns will swim around the tank a bit, but seem to swim with the flow as well but stay near the middle of the tank.

At 20% do you think they will eventually swim around the whole tank? Or is it too much flow? I'm worried there won't be enough flow at the front of the tank if I keep it at 10%. Unfortunately, there is no 15% setting. And don't want to add a power head on the front for aesthetic reasons. I just currently have it on the forward flow setting. Haven't played with other flow patterns yet.

Or do clownfish just like to swim with the current?

Anyone have some input?

Thanks!

 

[ScottB]

Clowns in a reef IME tend to hang in a single area. I have clowns in SPS frags systems moving ridiculous amounts of water and to me they seem super happy with the flow and move around a lot. I dump a ton of food in there though so they are bound to love it.

I know that clowns are most all captive bred now, but in the wild they live in 2-6 feet per SECOND currents.

 

[huckjai]

Clowns in a reef IME tend to hang in a single area. I have clowns in SPS frags systems moving ridiculous amounts of water and to me they seem super happy with the flow and move around a lot. I dump a ton of food in there though so they are bound to love it.

I know that clowns are most all captive bred now, but in the wild they live in 2-6 feet per SECOND currents.

Thanks Scott! I'll leave it at 20% for the time being.

 

[ScottB]

Thanks Scott! I'll leave it at 20% for the time being.

Actually I should condition my statement. The clowns I have in my fast water systems are adults. MY LFS sells them cheap if they are homicidal and refuse to pair up. I need them for fish poop = coral food.

If your clowns are juveniles, then too much current can be a little tough for them to navigate.

 

[huckjai]

Yup, they are still a bit young.

 

[Mical]

I'ld leave it at 20% your clowns will adapt.

 

[mta_morrow]

Try using the alternating current setting.
Ramp up-2 sec
Ramp down -2 sec
Max 20%
Reverse 20%
Max dwell-15 sec
Min dwell - 8 sec

This will keep your Sand bed clean and give them a break.

And that’s a huge gyre for that tank!

 

[huckjai]

Try using the alternating current setting.
Ramp up-2 sec
Ramp down -2 sec
Max 20%
Reverse 20%
Max dwell-15 sec
Min dwell - 8 sec

This will keep your Sand bed clean and give them a break.

And that’s a huge gyre for that tank!

Thanks for the tip! I knew I should have gone with the 330 instead. Haha.

 

[User1]

As @mta_morrow suggest, use the controller to help. I'll second the size for the tank but on the flip side it does allow room to upgrade which means you will already have the wave maker. The other thing that is important to know that tank maturity and coral growth play a big factor in how the gyre's, or any pump for that matter, work. More mature tank and coral growth means you have things blocking and directing flow. Moon base 9 rocks and newly cycled tank means smooth surfaces and more room for higher current(s).

I had 2 x XF250's in a new tank upgrade last year with 150 lbs of pukani rock. I moved over a 40 breeder and it wasn't enough to break up the gyres. I ended up taking them off line for a bit and only recently added one back in for this very reason. They move a lot of water and in some cases even lowering them down on the power still does not help.

 

[jsvand5]

I can’t imagine how one 350 is too much. I have two in my tank ramping up to 100% and clowns are fine. Running at 20% they barely put out anything. My tank is 6ft but I’m looking to add another one because 2 don’t provide enough flow even at 100%.

 

[User1]

I can’t imagine how one 350 is too much. I have two in my tank ramping up to 100% and clowns are fine. Running at 20% they barely put out anything. My tank is 6ft but I’m looking to add another one because 2 don’t provide enough flow even at 100%.

5280 GPH in a tick under 100 gallons. I have a 210 gallon that is 54" wide and 2 XF250's is too much and my tank is deeper and taller. That isn't even factoring in if there is coral growth on the rocks to help break the flow.

@pelphrey has a video here somewhere on this or a thread. The Gyre's are really great but when buying over sized for future growth (tank upgrade or corals) they can be difficult to get dialed in due to nothing to break the flow.

 

[mta_morrow]

Here is another option that I used for a while. Swap out 1 cage so that it’s upside down. So if you have an A and a B cage on like stock, you will have 2 A cages and rotors. Then use alternate gyre program. Have the run time the same for max and min. This way only 1 cage is truly pushing water at a time effectively cutting flow in half.

 

[User1]

Here is another option that I used for a while. Swap out 1 cage so that it’s upside down. So if you have an A and a B cage on like stock, you will have 2 A cages and rotors. Then use alternate gyre program. Have the run time the same for max and min. This way only 1 cage is truly pushing water at a time effectively cutting flow in half.

That is actually a awesome point. The reverse flow won't do much for flow but it will actually clean the blade and knock debris out of it as a good side effect. I forgot to mention that.

Great point @mta_morrow

 

[jsvand5]

5280 GPH in a tick under 100 gallons. I have a 210 gallon that is 54" wide and 2 XF250's is too much and my tank is deeper and taller. That isn't even factoring in if there is coral growth on the rocks to help break the flow.

@pelphrey has a video here somewhere on this or a thread. The Gyre's are really great but when buying over sized for future growth (tank upgrade or corals) they can be difficult to get dialed in due to nothing to break the flow.

somehow mine don’t seem to put out near that much flow. They definitely move some water but I have dead spots in the middle. I added a coral box pump in the center to give more flow but I may still need another gyre on the back wall.

On 20% there is no way it’s too strong for his 54” tank.

 

[huckjai]

somehow mine don’t seem to put out near that much flow. They definitely move some water but I have dead spots in the middle. I added a coral box pump in the center to give more flow but I may still need another gyre on the back wall.

On 20% there is no way it’s too strong for his 54” tank.

20% in my tanks seems like decent flow. It isn't too strong, but maybe a bit too much for my juvenile clowns. I definitely see them swimming harder than at 10%. But maybe they are ok with swimming harder. They don't seem to get tired and keep swimming. But when I look at them, they seem like they are getting a work out.

 

[lavoisier]

They really should be fine. Do you ramp down during the night? Can you post a pic of your rock work?

 

[huckjai]

They really should be fine. Do you ramp down during the night? Can you post a pic of your rock work?

Yup, I ramp it down to 10% overnight. Will post pics of my rock work when I get home. Never aquascaped before, so don't be too harsh on me.

 

[lavoisier]

Yup, I ramp it down to 10% overnight. Will post pics of my rock work when I get home. Never aquascaped before, so don't be too harsh on me.

Not at all I've got a couple of place where the rock breaks the flow to offer my little buddies a chance to catch a breather if they fancy one.

 

[huckjai]

Not at all I've got a couple of place where the rock breaks the flow to offer my little buddies a chance to catch a breather if they fancy one.

Actually I have some pics on my phone. Should be plenty of spots for them to rest. But seems like they just like to keep swimming.