Gyre Flow Systems

[freddie40]

At the meeting on Saturday I talked with a few people about Gyre flow systems so I thought I would explain everything better. (So you know Jake Adams wrote an article on this. Here is the Link

I will explain how have it set up on my 75 gallon (48" x 18" x 20") and hopefully you can translate it to bigger tanks. I have 2 MaxiMods, one at the top center on each side. The one on the top left is 2100 gallons per hour. The one on top right is 1600 gallons per hour. The pumps rotate and stay on for 20 minutes. The idea of a Gyre system is that the pump(s) stay on for enough time the they create a circular flow in the tank, i.e. from top left to top right to bottom right, back to bottom left, ect. It truly is incredible and there are no dead spots in my tank.

Here are some hints about the system:

1) I have tried many Pumps (NanoStream, Seios, Maxijets, and MaxiMods). Out of these pumps only the Maximods have enoughh flow and are able to stand up to the on/off cycles. For bigger tanks Vortex pumps and Tunzi Streams would probably work better.

2) Before I tried this I was using 2 nanostreams and 4 MaxiJets. Not only does the Gyre system work much better, the tank looks better because I only have 2 pumps.

3) I was lucky that I had a AquaController. Otherwise you will need to find a way to have the pumps on for only 20 minutes, rotating from side to side.

Overall, the corals look better, the tank looks cleaner and I am so happy that I am only using 2 pumps. All in all I think this is the best system I have ever used. If you have any question or comments I would like to hear them. Maybe I can get things to work even better.

Since I can't show what I want to show with a photo I looked around the internet for a thread that had a great picture showing what I meant. I found one here (worth reading). I edited the picture a bit to fit what I am doing.

 

[denverhoss]

It sure sounds like a good idea, I've seen a couple threads on this and it does seem to make sense. Some designs show what I think you're doing, with a horizontal divider giving top and bottom flow areas (like a clothes dryer), and others have a vertical divider (like a false back) that creates front and back flow areas (like a bathtub drain). I think the downside is the loss of viewable area in the back or bottom, but that would depend on how serious your center "guide" is. If you just put a long pile of rocks for a vertical divider it wouldn't block too much, but if you actually build a false back you'd loose viewable real estate. I do think this would be a great idea for long tanks where one short end is against the wall, so you can view from both long sides, or I've wondered how much swirl you could get going in a big Hex tank with the rock work piled in a cone shape in the center.

Love to hear how your coral growth responds to this and see some photos.

Hoss

 

[freddie40]

In a 4 foot tank I don't you need the vertical divider. The rockwork and corals will do enough to make random flow. A 6 foot tank may even work, a Vortex probably would work better it in.

As of now the corals look so much better. I will keep you informed as to how everything goes.

Dave

 

[Mr..Tang]

Do you have before and after pics of the corals????

 

[freddie40]

I have only been using this system for a few weeks, The corals noticeably have more color though.

Dave

 

[Mr..Tang]

I wonder how flow and color interact??

 

[spstimie]

i read a few articles about aquascaping and discussed it on rmrc as no one on here responded. the discussion has the links.
http://www.rmrc.info/mambo/index.php?option=com_simpleboard&Itemid=56&func=view&id=3682&catid=17
now after reading jakes article i would think the reef type you are trying to emulate would determine the intervals of the gyre change. if you are in fact trying to emulate the tides going in and out. i now am trying to figure out if this truly is beneficial, which it seems to be,if not to color than to coral health. if it is i would love to incorporate it with my idea of a surge box on a custom tank. basically a 220 gal breeder 60"long x 36" wide 24"tall. I guess i now have more reading and research to do before my plans are complete.

 

[freddie40]

I don't think we are trying to emulate the tides going in and out. What we are trying to do if have a flow system that really works in a tank, leaving no dead spots.

Dave

 

[spstimie]

I guess my ideal goal in this hobby is to recreate what i see when i dive. The currents, the lighting, the entire environment is an impossible goal but it is fun trying. I do think the quality of life for all of our animals is greater when we can re-create their natural environment. As is the ability to fight disease and parasites. It may also increase the probability of successful captive breeding. I did google tide charts to see what kind of intervals would be applied to this idea and it would not be easy.
http://www.mobilegeographics.com:81/locations/6273.html