Maxi-Jet PH Power Head or a Hydor Koralia 400?

[ReefGirlSara]

I need a powerhead for my 54G Reef tank. Which one should i get and what size?

I found the maxi-jet 1200 at petco.com for $22

And the Hydor Koralia 400 is at my LFS for $40, they are telling me that is the best one to have.

[TheBChamp]

Yeah I saw that Hydor Koralia 400 as well.. I was just about to ask something like that.. but I'm also wondering for circulation, how much gph is good to have per gallon in an aquarium.. approx..?

[ReefGirlSara]

I would also like to know that. I have just heard, "the more the better," basically. But I would like to know what to shoot for, and what would be 'too much.'

The LFS told me that 400 gph for a 54G would normally be too much but because of the way the koralia is designed it moves more volume at once, instead of one powerful straight stream. Or something like that.

[TheBChamp]

hehehe yeah he just wants to make a sale.. but seriously i doubt that it would be too much, I mean unless you have some kind of system that Tsunamis' all the water out of your tank, then it should be fine. But it's always nice to be sure :)

[jski711]

do they hydor. they stream is bigger and more dispersed. the mj are good for some things but i would go hydor. i have two of them.

[booker]

IMHO it's really no comparison. The Hydors use less electricity, quieter and move more water. As others have mentioned they do it in a much broader action than the stream out of maxijets and less electricity means less heat in you tank. I now use maxijets for mixing salt and such. My 2 cents

[rbursek]

I have 5 Hydors in my tank, 3 400gal blowing from the back of the tank, and 2 600gal blowing offthe sides, love em, the 400 are rated at 3.5 watts, broad flow. The 400 are $37.00 at DFS but then there is shipping cost.
Bob

[down and outman]

Just upgraded to two Koralia 4's. No comparison to MJ's. Awesome flow! Yes, more flow is better. They cleared my sand and rock in a day.

[flyguy7150]

koralia 400?? as in koralia 1 that does 400gph?? If so i have both the koralia 400gph and the mj 1200, the mj is a lot stronger than the koralia 1 even though its only 295gph, its just in a constant jet stream. If you can go for a higher koralia, the 2 or 3. I got the 1 cause my lfs had it for $28 with tax. they didnt have the 2 or 3, and the 4 for my 46g would be a lot. But yea go for the koralia 2 or 3

[northbay-reefer]

Hydor 4 is great for that size tank

[backej1]

I've replaced almost all my MJ with Hydro's. They might be slightly more expensive but they also have a magnet to hold them. To buy a magnet for the MJ, it costs almost twice as much as the powerhead.

[rbursek]

Northbayreefer,
a Hydro 4 moves 1200gph, you said it would be good for that tank size? Your nuts, I have a 4x2x2 and a Hydro 3 blows my LPS all over the tank, and they do 800gph, I run 2 #2 left to right, 600gph. and 3 #1's back to front on a wave maker. I swear, have of you people are whanabees, and do not even have atank.
Bob

[rbursek]

Spelling was bad, I had a Hydor 3, 800gph blew the LPS all over the tank, the 2 #2's left and right side on a oppisite floe move all 4ft, the best check is turn off the return pump and add some Mysid Shrimp, and see the flow pattern!!!
Bob

[rickkott13]

a moded maxijet1200 is more powerful than hydor 4 and is way cheaper and maybe produce couple hundred more gph than Hydor4. i can tell this because i have both but then hydor's wattage and noise is but better. if i choose i go for hydor4. Is really a nice pump.

[nothan]

I have a Hydor4 on my 90Gal. Almost too much. Wish I would have gone w/ 2 smaller Hydor's. With that said - I love it, but IMO would be way too much for anything smaller than a 90. The single Hydor4 has allowed me to remove 3 PH from my tank. Great non-linear flow. Quite. Easy to adjust.

[bergzy]

okay...

comparison of a mj 1200 unmodded is not the same as comparing it to a koralia 4 (which i am 'thinking' you are talking about).

IF the mj 1200 is your source for in tank flow...then no, it is not a satisfactory choice as it gives off a concentrated jet of water that will create a laminar flow thus damaging coral tissue. 295 gph is just not enough flow for a 54g reef tank. been there done that.

IF you mod a mj 1200 to get about 2400 gph or so, then youre talking flow! :) but the flow is widened and dispersed...not ripping coral tissue off as much if properly placed. unmodded mj 1200's are hard to place (been there done that) to get good flow and 'not' damage coral tissue. BUT mj mods are the most ugly in tank pump one could possibly ask for in my opinion. though i do not mind in tank ph's at all...the mj mod is soooo ugly that even i have to object to it.

IF you get a koralia 4, you get 1200gph in a very wide dispersed flow. not bad for $60 with its own magnet.

IF you mod a koralia 4 with a octura prop on a mj 1200 magnet...i am going to estimate that you get 2000gph (havent found someone do a flow test on it yet). IF you slip on a half inch section of 2" abs on the front and zip tie it firmly with a 'little' slack...you can direct the flow a little more! ;)

btw...1200gph on a 54g is about 20x turnover...nice for lps...just experiment with ph placement where you wont get a sandstorm and blow your corals off!

my 110g non-sps tank has about 18x turnover and is absolutely loving it. compare this to my sps tank...seeing a 66x turnover greatly improved coral health.