Few Questions on Tunze Products

[HowieUMD]

Roger, I need your help on setup, for my 240 gallon reef, in terms of PH placement with Tunze units. It's 72X24X31. It's actually not set up yet, I currently have a 72 gallon bow, but have pretty much bought all of the products I need for the upgrade to the 240, just waiting for the tank to arrive. I get the tank on June 12. Anyways, I've heard so much good stuff about Tunze that I decided to I buy a 7095 controller, 2 Stream 6100's, and am waiting to receive 2 7400/2's. I plan on setting them all up to run off the controller. I was going to use the 7400/2's on each end toward the top of the tank, facing toward the top of the water, and the 2 6100's toward the lower middle of the tank on each end, maybe about 10" off the sand bed, facing across toward eachother. I know it's a lot of flow, but the 6100's sound likes it's a gentle spread, so I should be ok, right? What is your best recommendation on positioning with all of these? I do plan on having all types of corals, but obviously nothing yet. I am going to have a 120 gallon sump/fuge, and return from that is only going to be about 1600 gph, which is why all the supplemental flow in the main tank. I want to be around 35-40X turnover.

Next, with all that flow, what do you think about also getting the WaveBox? I understand it makes waves, but don't understand the actual product. Does it have a turnover rate? I can't find one. Can I use that as well, to add another dimension to the tnak, or is that overkill?

Lastly, I was also trying to decide between the Tunze Osmolator or the LiterMeter3. I'm just looking to have the product for top off's. The one thing I'm not too familiar with is Kalkwasser dosing, which I know the LiterMeter3 also does, but I don't think I'll have a need for that since I'm getting a Calcium Reactor. Can you confirm this? From my understanding, dosing Kalkwasser is a supplemental to having a Calcium reactor. If this is the case, I don't need the LiterMeter3 since I don't need to drip Kalkwasser and would prefer to go with the Tunze Osmolator. With that said, do I put the sensor in my main tank, or the sump? The main tank is on the 1st floor and the sump/fuge will be in the basement, so it's about 13 feet head, straight up, from one to the other. Putting the sensor in the sump would make the most sense to me, just not exactly sure how that works.

Anyways, that's about it. Thanks for any help you can provide!

 

[rvitko]

The 6100 is "gentle" but that is a relative term when you are talking about 3000+ gph. It still will make a sandstorm especially only 10" above the sand- keep in mind the flow pattern is 24" wide. I would place the streams 6" from the top and centered on the ends aimed straight acroos and use the 7400/2 high in the back corners aimed diagonally or to spotlight high flow needs of specific corals. I would use an interval mode such that one 7400/2 on one side is working with a 6100 on the other and then they switch off.

The wavebox works on the principle of resonance frquency. When one pulse of water bounces off the opposite wall and hits the next pulse at a coinciding frquency the wave energy builds. It is the same as if you are in a swimming pool you probably found that if you jump up and down at just the right interval you can make a huge wave in the pool which is quite large proportionally to the amount of energy you can produce. The flow rate is equal to the volume of the wave times the frequency, if you want I can look up the formula but on a 180 it is about 40,000 gph as I recall. Howvere the flow is just a gentle rocking and the water just slowly moves side to side, it looks just like when you are in a large lake or on the beach and kick up some sand and the sand slowly rocks back and forth but has no linear direction to it- that is how the flow looks. It is a difficult concept to understand without seeing it but resonance frequency can generate tremendous force from very little power- it what has caused many a bridge and balcony to collapse just from the energy of wind or dancing. All the same the energy you actually see is not so violent.

Your understanding of kalkwasser use is correct but it is so helpful in combination with a calcium reactor that I would use it. It binds free CO2 and phosphate and helps with alkalinity. It takes away some of the short comings of reactors like CO2. Those are both the two best top off systems. Both can work with a kalkwasser dispenser, we ake a very simplified version called the Calcium Dispenser 5074. Our pump however cannot handle kalk going through it, the Litermeter uses a peristaltic pump which is superior in this way. I think the main advantage of the Osmolator is it is very prcise and needs no adjusting the sensor is accurate to within a mm. The sensor goes in the sump, the pump maxes out at 9ft of head, it has to pump up hill to avoid siphoning the reservoir. If you elevate the sump above the reservoir you can pump up to the sump.

 

[HowieUMD]

Roger, I don't think my 7095 is working right. I have it set to interval 2 mode and I want the interval time set to 30 seconds. I have the red dot set to 1-60 seconds. When I put it on 30 seconds, which should be in the middle, it never switches to the other side. The only way I can get it to change to the other side and go back and forth is if I set the timer dial on the first notch, which is only like 10 seconds. Is it deffective or am I doing something wrong? Thanks.

 

[rvitko]

Are you refering to the interval or the pulse? What sockets are you using? What are the pulses set at?

 

[HowieUMD]

Starting from the left of the 7095, in the 1st socket I have a 6100 which is placed on the left side of the tank pointing straight across to the right side, in the 2nd socket I have a 7400/2 placed on the back right side of the tank pointing diagonally from back right to front center, on the 3rd socket I have a 6100 placed on the right side of the tank pointing straigt across to the left side, and in the 4th socket I have a 7400/2 on the back left side of the tank pointing diagonally back left toward front center. The pulses are set at 1.5s and all 4 pump power dials are turned to 70% and I am using interval 2. What do you recommend? Thanks.

 

[HowieUMD]

With the interval button it's set to 1-60 seconds, and I want to have the dial in the middle to change at 30 seconds, but if I put it there it doesn't change, the only way to get it to change back and forth is to set the dial on the first notch, which seems like about 10 seconds.

 

[rvitko]

In this setting the first 2 pumps in channel 1 should be on for 30 seconds at 70%power, then the second two in channel 2 should come on at 70% power for 30 seconds. Is night mode on? Try it with night mode off as at night the second 2 would never come on.

 

[HowieUMD]

I'm not using night mode at all as it is. That's exactly how I want it set, but if I put the dial in the middle for 30 seconds, it never switches over to the other 2 pumps, they just stay on at 30% forever.

 

[HowieUMD]

Also, quick question on the 6100. I am using the magnet to hold it. Is there a way to keep it so that it just faces straight? I set it straight, than it always tends to swing toward the right, so it's not pointing straight across, but at an angle.

 

[rvitko]

Try firmly pressing the pieces together on the holder, yoou could use a zip tie to hold them snugly. Try unplugging the pumps (from the wall, not the controller), check all your connections are good(on the controller) and reconnect the power.