Powerheads: is an upgrade worth it?

bmackcw

bmackcw

New member
I'm moving into my new house in two weeks. I've been running a 55g mixed reef with two Jebao RW-8 powerheads connected to an apex.

I'm having a Red Sea Reefer 425 XL delivered. Main tank is about 90 gallons.

I was thinking of getting two Voetech MP40s, or possibly the Neptune WAV starter kit.

While at the LFS yesterday, the guy asked "what's wrong with your Jebaos?" I told him I just assumed I should get better ones. He replied, "All you're doing is moving water. You're fine with the RW-8s. Just don't skimp on your heater, lights and skimmer. Don't drop $500-700 on moving water."

Thoughts?

Thanks in advance...
 
I agree 100% with your LFS..
Its just moving water..
RW-8 (pp8) are great powerheads IMO and move a ton of water around
 
mcgyvr said:
I agree 100% with your LFS..
Its just moving water..
RW-8 (pp8) are great powerheads IMO and move a ton of water around
Click to expand...

I really think I want the Vortechs simply so I have no wires coming out of a rimless tank. This might be the single worst reason for spending $700.

But I run a reef tank, so financially smart decisions are obviously not my strong point.
 
Meh, I might use them until they break, but I would upgrade when they do. Vortechs are nice in that they have a bunch of different programs, the new ones are pretty quiet, and they last a really long time which is not something you can typically say of cheaper powerheads. Taking up less room in the tank is nice too.
 
Pumps like vortechs are a very nice luxury and definitely not a necessity. That being said it's something to me that I won't set up a display tank without. To others obviously it's not even on their radar which is fine also.


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You need good pumps and good flow to have a very successful tank. I'm not familiar with the RW8s, but it sounds like they're plenty good.

I'm just taken aback a little by "Don't drop $500-700 on moving water." When my old MP10 bearing seized and I was without strong flow (had to rely on stock pump and a korallia nano), my nutrients climbed, and corals started browning out, within 3 days of the breakdown.

Flow isn't the most important thing, but for many corals (particularly SPS coral) flow is very important, since it's how they eat and breathe. But again, if RW8s are good pumps, then you may not need to spend for fancier pumps.

Since I started this tank with an MP10, I've been hooked on the quality (the first MP10 was used and came with bad bearings for lack of care by prior owner) and the volume of flow, and the service I have received from Ecotech around an issue I had with a battery backup for the 2 MP10wQDs I have now.
 
ReefWreak said:
You need good pumps and good flow to have a very successful tank. I'm not familiar with the RW8s, but it sounds like they're plenty good.

I'm just taken aback a little by "Don't drop $500-700 on moving water." When my old MP10 bearing seized and I was without strong flow (had to rely on stock pump and a korallia nano), my nutrients climbed, and corals started browning out, within 3 days of the breakdown.

Flow isn't the most important thing, but for many corals (particularly SPS coral) flow is very important, since it's how they eat and breathe. But again, if RW8s are good pumps, then you may not need to spend for fancier pumps.

Since I started this tank with an MP10, I've been hooked on the quality (the first MP10 was used and came with bad bearings for lack of care by prior owner) and the volume of flow, and the service I have received from Ecotech around an issue I had with a battery backup for the 2 MP10wQDs I have now.
Click to expand...

Some people like to drive Chevys, and some like to drive Mercedes. Pumps are no different I guess.
 
bmackcw said:
I really think I want the Vortechs simply so I have no wires coming out of a rimless tank. This might be the single worst reason for spending $700.
.
Click to expand...

You still have a wire on the dry side of the head.
The wire is either right inside the glass or right outside it.. still a visual wire there either way..
so yeah.. silly IMO :)
 
If you dont want wires in your tank then go for the vortech's, if you dont mind the wires either keep the jebao or get tunze. All move good amounts of water. The vortech/tunze are better made but up to you if its worth the money.

I hvae run Jebao RW-15's for the last 2 years, and will likely swap to Tunze when they die. The whole grass is always greener thing.

For my money i would keep the Jebao's and save your money for something else. When they die, go for the upgrade then
 
I think the Vortechs are better pumps and will hold up better long term and move more water. I think the jebaos shoot water more in a straight stream while the Vortechs have a wider flow.

I would upgrade until the Jebaos break and you need new pumps. No need to spend the money now.

I've used vortech and tunze pumps where I've gone a year without cleaning, are fully covered in all kinds of algae and they still work.
 
I have owned them all and I came back to vortech. The Jebao RW series are nice pumps and i had them programmed using the apex, but they still were missing features the vortech has with ecosmart live. I love the ease of programming with ecosmart live. The nutrient transport mode really stirs up the detritus.
 
I had the jebaos and for the price they are good pumps but after I had a couple start failing, I decided to try ecotech and I'm much happier.

The main things I've noticed are better flow patterns and not having to clean them as often. With the jebaos, I had to clean them about every two weeks or the flow would really start to be reduced. Also, the better flow has made an obvious difference with polyp extension on my acros.

They also look much nicer. Not only do they not have a wire in the tank but the pump itself is less bulky.

I think both will get the job done but the ecotechs have a lot of reasons to justify the higher cost.
 
So no one would go with the new Maxspect Gyre's? I've been considering them myself, but haven't done much research so far.
 
mcgyvr said:
Which series of Jebao? WP or RW/PP series?
From what I've seen there is a big difference as far as flow/quality,etc...
Click to expand...

I had a couple of WP's and replaced them with RW's when they failed and after one of the RW's failed I switched over to MP10 and MP40. I will say that the RW's were better than the WP's for flow but IME, no better for durability.
 
I have had 4 RW4s and all have worked for a good 6 months but they also developed starting issues. Where they won't start after stopping for cleaning or feed mode e.g. I've tried all the various mods to help but I picked up a couple of used MP10s and I've not regretted it


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