closed loop system

[PSCAPE]

Can I get the same or better flow by using powerheads,That's my main concern.Thanks Bill

 

[The Saltman]

You can get the same flow from powerheads as a closed loop. With a closed loop you will have more freedom of where you want the flow to go. You can design a closed loop in many different ways to randomize flow. This is ideal so you won't have dead spots in your tank. With powerheads, you pretty much have a one directional flow such as the tunze or vortech. But the trade-off is lower power consumption and no plumbing. Some people also do not like the look of powerheads in their tank. You have to decided what is important to you and what is best for your tank and its inhabitants.

 

[atoa]

I have both a closed loop (Dart and 4 way OM) and 2 vortechs in my 120G. IMHO, the vortechs are way more efficient at circulation.

It's good to have both. But if I had to make a choice between the two, I'd go with the vortechs. The setup of the CL was a nightmare with the glass drilling and all the plumbing. It adds a lot of heat to the system and it is noisy as hell. On the other hand, the vortechs are quiet, very efficient and move much more water.

 

[PSCAPE]

Thats what everybody says, That the vortechs are awesome.But with the dart and the om alot of mixed opinions,somr say they are so quiet and others say they are loud very weird.The problem is my tank is 72x24x30 and I was told to use the dart with 4 way om.1.5 in going to the pump and 4 1in. returns 2 in back 6 inch from the bottom 18 inches from center of tank,and 2 on bottom close to the front of tank 18 inches from center.Just seems I will have dead spots the yhat setup the tank is long.The plombem is once tank is drilled it to late

 

[xenon]

The OM-4WAY is quiet but the sequence barracuda pump I was using was ridiculous loud. I even thought it might be defective so I got it replaced under warrantee and it made no difference.

The sequence pumps use 10X more hydro than powerheads that compare in GPH. Also the vortech will not heat your water like CL pumps do. I would see a 3 degree drop just by turning off my CL pump and 4way.

Even if your tank is pre-drilled, you can just cap the holes.

 

[atoa]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11801982#post11801982 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by PSCAPE
Thats what everybody says, That the vortechs are awesome.But with the dart and the om alot of mixed opinions,somr say they are so quiet and others say they are loud very weird.

The Dart is quiet when you compare it to other pumps. But it is louder than the powerheads - although the vortech tends to be a little noisier than normal powerheads because they rattle a little bit.

The combination of a closed loop and powerheads is really good. Just make sure that you're aware of the challenges involved with a closed loop. In my case, I have both a CL and vortechs but if I had to choose between the two I'd choose the vortechs.

 

[Medicine Man]

I just set up my 360 gallon with 2 closed loops (2 OM 4 ways and 2 Darts). This is a strict SPS system as well. I do have 2 returns with peductors on them from an Iwaki md70 as well. I have more than enough flow. The darts paired with the OM 4 ways is a great combination. I also like the Tunze streams but feel powerheads of any kind are eyesores. Just a simple comparison, I just upgraded from a 144 gallon half cylinder with 2 Tunze 6100's on a 7095 controller. I had a good amount of flow with the Tunze system but nothing compaired to what I have now. Just something to think about. A friend of mine has 2 closed loops on a 240 gal cube (one 8 way and one 4 way each with a dart). He has great flow in his tank! My darts make a slight hum but definitely are not loud. Hammerheads are fairly quiet as well for the amount of flow you are getting but the noise goes up dramatically from there the more flow per pump. Hope this helps. I personally would not go back to powerheads but only for looks not function. Either can be made very functional.