Wavemakers ?
- Thread starter Rich-n-poor
- Start date
That depends on a myriad of things. More than anything, it varies from reef to reef, tide to tide, swell to swell. If the reef is shallow enough in any area so that at any/one given situation the depth is half the wavelength of an incoming swell, a wave is going to break there.
rich- i think its important to understand how water movement works in the ocean to better able us to replicate it in our tanks so thanx galleon. im also debating whether to buy a seaswirl as the benefit needs to justify the cost. im currently using a wavemaster pro to simulate chaotic movement and will be setting up a surge device this weekend but wonder if the back and forth motion of the seaswirl would be better than the wavemaster. the jury is still out....
Relax Rich
, people will continue to answer your question. This is good info to understand for those of us that are interested. I personally don't have any type of wave maker on my 55g but I have a empty 125g sitting in my living room waiting for the $$$ to set up properly and I intend to get 1 or 2 sea swirls when the time comes.
Rich-n-poor,
I have a Tsunami wavemaker for a long time and find it works well. There was one problem with its design (at least the model I got). The fuse is not replacable; it's soldered directly onto the pc board! Mine blew out when the RIO pump broke!
Luckily, I was able to open the box and solder another fuse holder to the pc board; drilled a hole on the plastic case and install the fuse holder so that it can be replaced from the outside. I haven't had any problem with it since, and the fuse never blew again after I replace the RIO pumps with Maxi-Jets (they are real quiet).
I recently bought several timers for my christmas lights and it just occurs to me that these can be used for turning the pumps on and off. The resolution of these cheap ($4 a piece) is at least 15 minutes (I will check again when I got home and report later) so I think it will work fine for the purpose. Two or threes of these timers can allow one to set different combinations and generate good water movement. The only problem is that one won't be able to have "random" actions as these wavemakers can produce. At $150 difference, I question whether these expensive gadgets are really worth it.
I still use my Tsunami wavemaker but if I didn't have it, I would try to to set-up one using these simple timers. You can find these timers in any hardware store like Home-Depot or Lowes.
Liem.
I have a Tsunami wavemaker for a long time and find it works well. There was one problem with its design (at least the model I got). The fuse is not replacable; it's soldered directly onto the pc board! Mine blew out when the RIO pump broke!
Luckily, I was able to open the box and solder another fuse holder to the pc board; drilled a hole on the plastic case and install the fuse holder so that it can be replaced from the outside. I haven't had any problem with it since, and the fuse never blew again after I replace the RIO pumps with Maxi-Jets (they are real quiet).
I recently bought several timers for my christmas lights and it just occurs to me that these can be used for turning the pumps on and off. The resolution of these cheap ($4 a piece) is at least 15 minutes (I will check again when I got home and report later) so I think it will work fine for the purpose. Two or threes of these timers can allow one to set different combinations and generate good water movement. The only problem is that one won't be able to have "random" actions as these wavemakers can produce. At $150 difference, I question whether these expensive gadgets are really worth it.
I still use my Tsunami wavemaker but if I didn't have it, I would try to to set-up one using these simple timers. You can find these timers in any hardware store like Home-Depot or Lowes.
Liem.
Are there any timers out there that go by longer periods of time, such as hours? I am planning a tank around a school of anthias, and since they prefer strong currents, Scott Michael suggests having a battery of pumps or powerheads at one end of the tank, producing a strong flow across the tank for a few hours, then shutting off for the same amount of time, then coming back on. How would this be possible?
I am thinking of doing something like this, with an addition of a Sea Swirl to provide movement while the other PH's "rest".
I am thinking of doing something like this, with an addition of a Sea Swirl to provide movement while the other PH's "rest".
HomeDepot and Lowe sell timers that can control electrical devices in 15 minutes increments. These are set but little pegs on a round dial, each peg is 15 minutes; out for on and in for off. One can set multiple pegs next to one another for longer periods. These are fairly cheap, under $10. I bought mine at $4 a piece but that was two years ago.
I am currently experimenting with the "battery of Power Heads" idea. I use a total of 8 maxijet 1200 on a 150 galons tank, 63" x 23" x 24"). Water movement is very good (ie the corals like it). I found that putting the powerheads closer to the water surface will help push water further toward the other end of the tank. Another thing I found is that putting some PHs on the other end of the tank, near the tank bottom, pointing in the opposite direction produces stronger flow than putting all the PHs together on one end of the tank. It's better to use a weaker PH in location near the tank bottom to avoid stiring up the sand bed. One also need to take care positioning the PH so that its output is not block by the rocks. The other problem is that optimal water movement often requires PH be placed where they are visible and become eye sores.
I will try to set up for entirely different water flow: front to back or some slant angle instead of the current side to side direction. May be I can place the pumps on the back side of the tank where they can be hidden behind the rocks. I didn't set it up this way because I want to minimize the chance of having animals (like anenome or sea cucumers) sucked into the PH's inlet.
Another idea that I haven't tried is using PVC pipes to precisely control water flow. I'll try the PVC pipe approach last because it requires a partial tear down of my tank.
Liem.
I am currently experimenting with the "battery of Power Heads" idea. I use a total of 8 maxijet 1200 on a 150 galons tank, 63" x 23" x 24"). Water movement is very good (ie the corals like it). I found that putting the powerheads closer to the water surface will help push water further toward the other end of the tank. Another thing I found is that putting some PHs on the other end of the tank, near the tank bottom, pointing in the opposite direction produces stronger flow than putting all the PHs together on one end of the tank. It's better to use a weaker PH in location near the tank bottom to avoid stiring up the sand bed. One also need to take care positioning the PH so that its output is not block by the rocks. The other problem is that optimal water movement often requires PH be placed where they are visible and become eye sores.
I will try to set up for entirely different water flow: front to back or some slant angle instead of the current side to side direction. May be I can place the pumps on the back side of the tank where they can be hidden behind the rocks. I didn't set it up this way because I want to minimize the chance of having animals (like anenome or sea cucumers) sucked into the PH's inlet.
Another idea that I haven't tried is using PVC pipes to precisely control water flow. I'll try the PVC pipe approach last because it requires a partial tear down of my tank.
Liem.
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