What direction do I point my powerheads?

Snoopy 67 · Jan 4, 2022

If you find the right one with suction cups see if there is a spot to glue on a magnet.
Then get a pair & glue one on the powerhead the other resides on the outside of the glass.

Explore All Products | K&J Magnetics

www.kjmagnetics.com

Idech · Jan 4, 2022

In such a small tank, pointing the power head at the surface will provide needed oxygenation while giving sufficient movement at the bottom of the tank.

Karen00 · Jan 4, 2022

jassermd said:
It's meant to be open with a deflector. I have numerous fish and inverts in the tank, including a small 6 line wrasse, and haven't had any issues. The opening is more or less covered by the deflector. I don't have any nems in the tank, but can see your concern.

Thanks for confirming this.

Karen00 · Jan 4, 2022

Idech said:
In such a small tank, pointing the power head at the surface will provide needed oxygenation while giving sufficient movement at the bottom of the tank.

Great, thank you so much! I'm going to adjust it now.

Dad2Wyatt · Jan 4, 2022

Idech said:
In such a small tank, pointing the power head at the surface will provide needed oxygenation while giving sufficient movement at the bottom of the tank.

What about in a 55? I have mine on the sides pointed to the front glass, angled toward the surface. I seem to have pretty decent flow but I feel like it may create “hotspots” in certain areas but it’s hard to tell!

Karen00 · Jan 4, 2022

Little c big D said:
that's a great idea! I have the Nero 5 and run it pretty low and it's been running 6 months without a cleaning yet lol. I can only speak to my time with it. I do like the controlability of it though. And it's very compact

Nice!! I'm definitely going to contact them for more details. I hate thinking I have to use some inferior pump instead of a proper powerhead simply because I have a 5g. I will... not... compromise!! LOL

Idech · Jan 4, 2022

Karen00 said:
Nice!! I'm definitely going to contact them for more details. I hate thinking I have to use some inferior pump instead of a proper powerhead simply because I have a 5g. I will... not... compromise!! LOL

A Nero 3 is 2000 GPH. You don’t need that in a 5 gallons, it’s way too much and you’ll have to turn it down pretty much all the way. A good quality nano pump would be enough IMO.

Idech · Jan 4, 2022

Dad2Wyatt said:
What about in a 55? I have mine on the sides pointed to the front glass, angled toward the surface. I seem to have pretty decent flow but I feel like it may create “hotspots” in certain areas but it’s hard to tell!

In a 55 I would certainly have more than 1 powerhead aimed at the surface.

Depending how large it is, I would have 1 or 2 more.

Rmckoy · Jan 4, 2022

Slightly up to break the surface .

Karen00 · Jan 4, 2022

Idech said:
A Nero 3 is 2000 GPH. You don’t need that in a 5 gallons, it’s way too much and you’ll have to turn it down pretty much all the way. A good quality nano pump would be enough IMO.

I'm still searching. Haha. I guess it's time to build my own. LOL

Idech · Jan 4, 2022

Karen00 said:
I'm still searching. Haha. I guess it's time to build my own. LOL

Look at the koralia nano. I think it’s 260 GPH or something. Still a lot but aimed at the surface it should be okay. That’s what I used fora while in my 12 gallons.

Not expensive and good quality.

CanuckReefer · Jan 4, 2022

In your particular application I would consider aimed at front or back wall but also toward surface. It won't blast corals if dialed right down this way ( although I am not familiar with your brand of pump), but will create some surface turbulence as well, and flow throughout...

CanuckReefer · Jan 4, 2022

Karen00 said:
I'm going to contact them and I want to know if constantly running it that low is OK. You'd think so if it's DC but who knows. I think the Jebao SOW3 can be dialed back to 130gph but the SOW line is fairly new so I haven't found anything on running it this low.

FWIW I have 2 SOW 4, for almost a year, and I dial them back to nothing for almost a day, when feeding phyto etc every few days, no ill effects thusfar....

Karen00 · Jan 5, 2022

CanuckReefer said:
FWIW I have 2 SOW 4, for almost a year, and I dial them back to nothing for almost a day, when feeding phyto etc every few days, no ill effects thusfar....

Nice! Thanks! I was looking at the sow-3 or sw2 both go down to about 130gph but they would have to be that way fulltime. I saw coral box has an aqualink controller that can control dc pumps in 1% increments and it works with a bunch of pumps. Not sure it would help slow it down further or whether 1% would still be 130gph and increment from there.

Karen00 · Jan 5, 2022

Idech said:
Look at the koralia nano. I think it’s 260 GPH or something. Still a lot but aimed at the surface it should be okay. That’s what I used fora while in my 12 gallons.

Not expensive and good quality.

Thanks! I'm making a note of all of these. I've looked at so many my brain has turned to mush. Between powerheads and lights I'm about to implode. Haha