Do I NEED power heads?

[castrojc]

I am starting my first tank, 46g bow front, and have decided to keep it as FOWLRLS so will be using a fluval 404 canister filter and pretty soon getting a skimmer. My LFS tells me I dont need power heads because the filter I have will provide enough flow in my tank. What do you guys think?

[KCombs]

I've never had LR w/o some additional flow...
Big Al's has a sale on Koralias..lowest I've ever seen...
my advice is at that price cop a couple of 1050's just in case you convert to a reef...if not the additional flow won't hurt, and might even keep the detritus from collecting

[castrojc]

Thanks, would I need two or is one enough? and do you think buying a power head used is a bad idea?

[thegrun]

I prefer to keep two because it makes it easier to eliminate "dead" flow zones where detritus will build up over time.

[SaltyReefDog]

Big Al's has a sale on Koralias..lowest I've ever seen...
my advice is at that price cop a couple of 1050's just in case you convert to a reef...if not the additional flow won't hurt, and might even keep the detritus from collecting

+1

Depending on what kind of corals you want to keep you could even get two 750's. Either way all the size are on sale and they are almost 50% off. I would say if the power head was a really expensive then looking for a used one would be ok. For the sale price though I would just pick up 2 new ones and not have to worry about it.

Good luck with the tank!:thumbsup:

[tanzer16]

hope you don't mind if i tag onto this thread.......this is my first post on this forum after researching and reading info on here for quite some time as i plan my first build...so thank you to everyone for all of the advice and input. planning a 55 with 20L sump and saw this sale as well on powerheads. price seems great...was going to pick up two, but what would appropriate size be for a tank that i plan? is it possible to have too much flow? thank you again

[Chris27]

Likely the fluval will be fine if you're not planning on keeping corals. Between that and the skimmer, the tank should have ample movement.

If you start venturing into corals, you'll want some more flow, but until that time, you're good.

[nasoisking]

I just picked up a few koralias from big als...with the sale you cant go wrong picking a few up. better have one at a good price than spend twice as much later when you find out you need one!

[Augy33183]

I've never had LR w/o some additional flow...
Big Al's has a sale on Koralias..lowest I've ever seen...
my advice is at that price cop a couple of 1050's just in case you convert to a reef...if not the additional flow won't hurt, and might even keep the detritus from collecting

Would someone be willing to post a link to this sale?
Thanks!!

[castrojc]

http://www.bigalspets.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=koralia

[firebirdude]

Powerheads help prevent detritus from settling and fueling algae/nitrate growth. The more you can keep the organics suspended, the greater the odds your filter is going to pick them up. A must in every tank.
http://www.bigalspets.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=koralia
The deals on the evolution pumps are very solid. The prices on the magnum line isn't anything special. Dr F&S has them for less.

[knickel]

i also have the 46gal bowfront and the LFS has given me multiple opinions. the 750 and the 1050. but i dont know if i should get two or not! an amazing sale i dont know how long itll last so mayb i should get a couple i plan going bigger one day would 2 1050gph be too much for the 46gal bowfront?

[Neptune_Fan]

i use to run a fluval 404 on a 55G tank. i think on that 46G bowfront you may have enuff general flow but you will have deadspots. the powerheads will definitely keep the detrius from settling in the corners especially with LR in the tank. Also make sure you keep a good routine of cleaning the 404 as it will get nasty and generate Nitrates quick. i loved the extra compartments which allowed to run carbon, gfo and whatever else u like.

[tanzer16]

Knickel....I didn't know what to get either.....as I'm still planning my 55 build and didn't want to pass up the great price on those power heads.......so I got two 750's and one 1050.....which I figured I could always use the extra to mix saltwater with.

[Dexters Reef]

I have a 46 Bowfront with a eheim 2215 canister. The thing with canisters is that as the media and filter bags pick up detritus, their flow decreases. This can happen in a matter of days, and I only clean my canister every month.

Powerheads are mostly full flow, all the time. If you are doing FOWLR, I would say get two of the evo 750's and direct one behind the rocks, and the other towards the surface for agitation and gas exchange. This will be a good setup.

IF you have the idea of possibly converting to a reef in the future, I would say for now, get one evo 1050 to hold you over, and down the line you can add a second 1050.