David MC Lee
Active member
What type of wave making devices have you built or used and how well did they work?
My first tank used a dump bucket ATS from Inland Aquatics. It was behind the tank in a closet and dumped into a 5G buck and then ran to the main tank through a 2" pipe. Gave a pretty good long surge. 125G tank
Next tank I custom built and it had a false back wall with an opening on each end. In the back I had a paddle that moved back and forth with a gear motor. Worked great but it would break bolts often when a snail got between the paddle and the side of the tank. It made my corals sway back and forth and was very realistic. But it was a custom 800G tank.
I also made a prototype of a Carson Surge tank that had a dual surge with bubble remover. Never ran it on a reef but worked very well. No bubble came out and the biggest issue is I needed to find a way to synchronize the dual units so it would not drain so much water from the tank.
Last system I had was a toilet flapper controlled from DC windshield whipper motors and would pull the flapper once a 55G drum was full. Drain was 2". It needed a bigger drain. It also was not the most reliable but could be improved.
I have always wanted to build a reverse Carson surge tank but I read they tend to shake tanks apart. I think you could limit this.
Another option I have seen is a piston controlled from a DC gear motor. You can make a large piston like 12" and it will pump water out and then back in . The issues I have seen with this is it is very hard on the motor bearings. Doing a dual or quad unit might help with this.
What other ideas do you have other than pumps cycling on and or or motor rotating valves.
I would say the paddle was best overall and seemed to be extremely efficient.
My first tank used a dump bucket ATS from Inland Aquatics. It was behind the tank in a closet and dumped into a 5G buck and then ran to the main tank through a 2" pipe. Gave a pretty good long surge. 125G tank
Next tank I custom built and it had a false back wall with an opening on each end. In the back I had a paddle that moved back and forth with a gear motor. Worked great but it would break bolts often when a snail got between the paddle and the side of the tank. It made my corals sway back and forth and was very realistic. But it was a custom 800G tank.
I also made a prototype of a Carson Surge tank that had a dual surge with bubble remover. Never ran it on a reef but worked very well. No bubble came out and the biggest issue is I needed to find a way to synchronize the dual units so it would not drain so much water from the tank.
Last system I had was a toilet flapper controlled from DC windshield whipper motors and would pull the flapper once a 55G drum was full. Drain was 2". It needed a bigger drain. It also was not the most reliable but could be improved.
I have always wanted to build a reverse Carson surge tank but I read they tend to shake tanks apart. I think you could limit this.
Another option I have seen is a piston controlled from a DC gear motor. You can make a large piston like 12" and it will pump water out and then back in . The issues I have seen with this is it is very hard on the motor bearings. Doing a dual or quad unit might help with this.
What other ideas do you have other than pumps cycling on and or or motor rotating valves.
I would say the paddle was best overall and seemed to be extremely efficient.
Last edited:
