What is a good Powerhead for a standard 55 gallon tank?

[olsenshouse]

Thanks for the feedback.

 

[NC2WA]

Koralia are good, but the new wave is Vortech..but they are $$$$$$ and you will need to determine what you want the pump to do....

 

[Bosco83]

We use two Koralia Evo 3's in my wife's 55 gallon tank.

Brian

 

[Slate]

Koralia powerheads are the way to go if you don't have the big bucks for the vortec style pumps. They aren't too expensive, don't heat up, use low wattage, and are well priced.

 

[cobyb]

i also like the koralias my self, they are cheeper but you do need a couple

 

[edwing206]

IMO Koralias are crap. I had two K4s stop working. They also both leaked electricity into my tank and I got shocked when I tested them. I'd look at Tunzes or Vortechs. Expensive but they last years and are very reliable. No sense in buying something you know you will have to replace later on.

 

[broskie]

Vortech MP20 here and more then satisfied with a 57G and more then enough power out of one at $250

 

[Skimmy]

imo, tunze are more stable and have better longevity than both koralia and vortec powerheads, and are priced less than vortec but more than koralia's.

i like the controlability and the back up battery for the vortec, but the parts in the tank are prone to failing and needing replacing every year or 2, and for ther cost this seems excessive.
and koralia just dont have the build quality or customer service that roger at tunze usa provides for his customers, plus, i think the tunze powerheads look a little nicer in the tank if you cant hide them behind your rockwerk, and are quieter than koralia powerheads. plus koralias have been known to put voltage in the tank if they fail/malfunction.

also, tunze offers the same controlability with their med. and large powerheads, and you could easily run them on a computer battery back up for a long period of time if the power went out.

for a 55g, i would get 2 tunze 6045's for a total of about 2,400gph it would run you about $200. then set them up in a gyre configuration for more laminar flow, which has been proven to be more benificial than randomizing your flow patterns. i do like setting up 2gyres for a tidal reverse of the flow every 12 hours, but that means double the cost and double the powerheads.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mz15R0gVMPA

 

[roscoe]

IMHO Vortechs than Tunze. The VT are actually cheaper then the Tunze as you don't have to buy a controller to control them it already comes built in. I use to have alot of wet side failures on the VT but thier new generation WS they sent me free of charge plus an extra for back up also free are doing great with no signs of wear. The one thing I don't like about the VT is the noise it produces at full speed. now some might say that the noise isn't much but I guess I am sensitive to noise as I wake up from my sleep to the slightest odd noise.. The tunze are pretty much dead quiet. I utilize both in my 270g.

IMHO both of these are well worth the money if you plan on being in the hobby for a long time. I wouldn't use any other brand even if it is cheaper it will actually will cost more long term.

 

[thatguy559]

+1 for vortech. awesome company. i bought a used one from reefcentral and it worked for about 10 mins i called ecotech and they were very helpful and eventually replaced the whole unit free of charge and next day shipped it. been working like a champ ever since

 

[slim_jim989]

I have a VT and I do here a slight hum when it goes to full speed but I have mine set at only about 80%, I also have a Koralia evo and I dont like it too much.
I would go with a VT or do a maxi jet with the sureflow mod lol, I have a bunch of maxi just havent modded them yet they put out some serious flow to but do break down/