Ecotech Marine Vortech propeller pump

[Anonymous]

>....Ahh well.. - Hope they keep it reasonably priced.. - Amazing how so many want to get rich off of just one sale these days.

Consider the amount of time and money to get these on the market, it is not that expensive. I will probably need to charge you twice as much if I need to quit my job and work on these kind of reef equipment.

 

[Anonymous]

I want one asap. Anyone know anywhere that is taking pre orders?

 

[Anonymous]

Consider the amount of time and money to get these on the market, it is not that expensive. I will probably need to charge you twice as much if I need to quit my job and work on these kind of reef equipment.

If you're only expecting to make your living off of just my buy, you'd better think twice before you quit your day job then!

All I'm saying is that you'll make more $$ selling everyone a widget at $20 each versus a small handful of people at $200 a whack..

 

[AF Founder]

Advanced Aquarist will have a thorough review from Greg Schiemer very soon.

 

[ChrisRD]

As sophisticated as these things are I wouldn't expect them to be cheap. I'm guessing they'll be $300 a pop.

I hope they come out with a more basic version down the road that will be more affordable. Sorta like what Tunze did with the Stream 6060 and 6080.

 

[Entacmaea]

Yeah, you are probably right, but I hope they realize at the $150 price point so many more people would buy them, they would still make money even with smaller margins. I really can't imagine these things going for $150 unfortunately

I'll wait for the knock-off :wink:

 

[reefreef]

i have read that the pumps will cost about $350, pretty expensive since they are made in the states.
All tunze product include shipping, taxes and the tunze stream will still be cheaper.

 

[Len]

:welcome:

Unsubstantiated rumors do not serve anyone's interest. I can say, though, that at $350, these pumps are clearly worth that price for me. The comparable Tunze is the 6100 at about that price, and IMHO, the Vortech is far more sophisticated. I'd prefer them to be cheaper though (more in line with Tunze prices). A scaled down version would be nice.

 

[Len]

One thing I think needs mentioning is Ecotech's incredible service and affordable upgrade paths. I had immediate turnaround time to upgrade my kalkreactor motor (which now can stir 2 pounds of kalkwasser!). The upgrade only cost me $25 including shipping. I place a good deal of value on this kind of service.

 

[reefreef]

IMHO, the Vortech is far more sophisticated

i think each has its own merits. The humming noise the vortech makes
could be a problem for some hobbyist.
The tunze also makes a noise but it is not so bad as it is in the water.

 

[Len]

Have you owned the Vortech? The noise problem is not an issue unless your tank is dead quiet and you need dead silence. If you have a fan, a skimmer, an inline pump, or even a Ocean Motions or 1" Sea Swirl in the same room as the Vortech, you will have no problem with the Vortech. Tunze Streams is a nice product for sure, but honestly, I think Tunze's only advantage is that it is a bit more quiet. I can't think of any other advantage at all.

I've recommended to Ecotech to make a foam sleeve for the outer half. This would make the pump extremely quiet, and the motor never gets hot so overheating is unlikely an issue. I see a lot of potential "accessories" to fit various people's needs, but of course, they need to do a cost/benefit analysis to see if their production is warranted.

 

[Entacmaea]

Playing devil's advocate here- I have no doubt that these things are fantastic, but $350 is a little ridiculous if you ask me. I'm not substantiating the $350 rumor, just saying hypothetically if that were the price, that would be silly IMO. I checked their site, and saw the kalkreactor too- $350! Len, nothing personal obviously- But if MRC can sell a kalkreactor for $200 that looks almost identical, and give great service as well, I have the feeling that ecotech might be into the "luxury" realm of reef items, with mark-ups that aren't really realistic. Something like buying a Bently or Rolls when a Mercedes will do.

I hope it is different with these pumps, they do look amazing. It would be nice if more people could afford the benefits of their apparent advantages...

 

[Len]

The comparable MRC kalkreactor is $275, and it is smaller and can only stir 4 cups of kalkwasser. The Ecotech is $350, larger, modular (base stirrer is entirely seperate from the reaction chamber), and can stir a whooping 2 pounds of kalkwasser. The Ecotech uses more acylic materia (obviously since it is larger). The stirrer is also on a pot and "infinitely" adjustable. I don't think Ecotech's pricing is out of line IMHO.

Here's the advantages you get with the Vortech over the Tunze:
- Zero risk of electrical shock.
- Modular, easily servicable parts by users. If one thing breaks, you can replace that part and not have to ditch the whole unit.
- uses less electricity (plugged into my wall "wattmeter", it registers 27 watts)
- No heat transfer to tank (for all intents and purposes)
- Battery backup that lasts 12-24+ hours (i appreciate this a lot).
- wireless controller
- much much smaller then the Tunze
- no mounting brackets to deal with. I've heard many people tell stories of Tunzes falling over and blasting sand (and anything else). Can't happen with Ecotech.

If this isn't worth $15* more then the Tunze 6100, then get the Tunze 6100 That is assuming the Ecotechs will be $350 Hopefully it's closer to $300, but I wouldn't fault them for starting the price a bit higher then coming down (supply and demand + economies of scale issues).

*edit: It's been brought to my attention that if you buy the magnetic bracket for the Tunze, the 6100 ends up costing more.

 

[MartinE]

So how do they attach to the tank? Brackets and in particular suction cups are a pita IMO. Magnets would be nice if they were strong enough and did not vibrate the pump to a different position.

 

[Len]

The Vortechs are coupled together by magnets. There is no vibration at all.

An advantage of the Tunze is it can accomodate any reasonable tank size. The Vortech currently can only go up to 3/4" walls, though they are working on 1".

 

[MartinE]

The Icecap videos Gratefuldiver linked to, show the flow great! It has a big area of stream and the "flow" video shows that almost the entire length of the tank. Kinda looks like the same flow people get with surge devices. How about the bubbles in the "flow" video, do they irritate any corals?

 

[reefreef]

The vortech look like quality pumps, however the Tunze also has many advantages over the vortech.

No cables outside as children could pull on them if you install them on the sides of the tank
Not as loud as the vortech
can be hidden inbetween rocks
far better rotation on the streams
whilst the pump could heat the water up a little this could be a advantage in winter.
Quality german engineering
Sometimes better to have the motor in the tank if you dont have room on the sides of a tank to install a vortech.

Zero risk of electrical shock

Thats a bit of a throw away line as i have never heard of anyone getting a shock form the tunze which is 24v

No doubt the vortech will be a great pump. i will be the first to get one , however as i pointed out each pump has advantages and i doubt the Vortech is far more sophisticated. It just depends on your needs.


i note the pumps come with a wireless controller and a new controller will be out sometime to run more than one vortech pump. if you buy the new controller what happens to the old controllers that come with the pumps when you buy them.?? will the controllers that come with the pumps be obsolete.

 

[reefreef]

How about the bubbles in the "flow" video, do they irritate any corals?

Its only a demo to show the flow. if you lower then slightly you wont get any bubbles.

 

[GSchiemer]

The vortech look like quality pumps, however the Tunze also has many advantages over the vortech.

No cables outside as children could pull on them if you install them on the sides of the tank.

In case you didn't notice, the Tunze comes with a power cord running over the outside of the aquarium. The difference is if children pull on it, the pump can fall into the tank and cause considerable damage, as opposed to turning off. Also, the Vortech comes with cable mounts and ties so that the power cord can be secured.

Greg

 

[GSchiemer]

The vortech look like quality pumps, however the Tunze also has many advantages over the vortech.

Not as loud as the vortech
can be hidden inbetween rocks
far better rotation on the streams
whilst the pump could heat the water up a little this could be a advantage in winter.
Quality german engineering
Sometimes better to have the motor in the tank if you dont have room on the sides of a tank to install a vortech.

I'm not sure that I'd describe any of these as "advantages."

Based upon user reports to date, noise is not an issue with the Vortech pump, and making it submersible to mute any potential noise would not be advantageous.

IMO, hiding any submersible pump between "rocks" is a bad idea. It's more prone to clogging and sucking up something desirable. It makes cleaning a major chore, and that fake Tunze rock is huge and just plain ugly.

Com'on, "heating in the winter" and "German engineering." Do you think anyone would consider these in making a decision to buy a Tunze over the Vortech? Most reef aquarists are concerned about heat and would consider the external design vastly superior.

I will concede that anyone with "zero" clearance on the three non-viewable sides of their aquarium might not be able to use the Vortech, but how many aquarists does this effect? Two?

Greg