Treefer32
Valuable Member
- Joined
- Apr 1, 2013
- Messages
- 1,466
- Reaction score
- 1,033
- Location
- Fargo, ND
- What state or country do you live in
- North Dakota
Hello, I have a 350 gallon display that I know I have in sufficient turnover, by the stringy algae that grows around fish poop in my sand bed. It's a harder form of hair algae. More like chaeto but not chaeto... It seriously wrapps itself around fish poop and looks gross. This tells me I don't have enough circulation, but am not sure what I should be aiming for in this size of tank.
My overflows handle around 2400gph and they're pretty close to maxed out if not over max. I have an MP40 (had 2 but one just completely stopped working - dry side won't turn anymore.) The MP40s are around 7 or 8 years old and stored for a few years in an unheated garage and got well below 0 numerous times. So, who knows what happened.
So, I have 1 functional MP40 and I've added 1 skimz S18 on top over the overflows.
The skims is rated at 4700 gph at max. The MP40 is around 4500 gph at max. I'm adding a second Skimz S18 this week. (They're really good work horses.)
So, 4500 + 4700 + 2400: Overall circulation right now is 11600 gph at max. Adding a second skimz will increase that by almost 30% to around 16,200 gph.
Don't take me wrong my corals are doing great, LPS are growing the best, SPS are keeping their color and growing. Not fast, but growing. I just need to find a way to get the algae off the sand bed and get it filtered out.
Is circulation of 16,200 gph enough for a 350? I've been told by fish stores that I should have around 30,000 gph. My tank would be covered in Powerheads unless I go with behemoths like MP60s. I'd still need like 3 -4 of those to get remotely close to 30000 gph.
Suggestions?
My overflows handle around 2400gph and they're pretty close to maxed out if not over max. I have an MP40 (had 2 but one just completely stopped working - dry side won't turn anymore.) The MP40s are around 7 or 8 years old and stored for a few years in an unheated garage and got well below 0 numerous times. So, who knows what happened.
So, I have 1 functional MP40 and I've added 1 skimz S18 on top over the overflows.
The skims is rated at 4700 gph at max. The MP40 is around 4500 gph at max. I'm adding a second Skimz S18 this week. (They're really good work horses.)
So, 4500 + 4700 + 2400: Overall circulation right now is 11600 gph at max. Adding a second skimz will increase that by almost 30% to around 16,200 gph.
Don't take me wrong my corals are doing great, LPS are growing the best, SPS are keeping their color and growing. Not fast, but growing. I just need to find a way to get the algae off the sand bed and get it filtered out.
Is circulation of 16,200 gph enough for a 350? I've been told by fish stores that I should have around 30,000 gph. My tank would be covered in Powerheads unless I go with behemoths like MP60s. I'd still need like 3 -4 of those to get remotely close to 30000 gph.
Suggestions?
I need to spend a couple thousand on circulation pumps.. I had a 220 before this that I ran 2 MP40s and that was it. That was severely underpowered too! UGG!
