Vortech vs Closed Loop?

[TulsaReefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13193721#post13193721 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by chaderic26
It would definitely be fun to play with. I bet you could do some pretty cool stuff with two static koralias and vortech pulsing back at them interrupting the flow and pushing it around.

That's actually exactly what I have in my tank right now, the Vortech on one end, and pair of Koralia 4s on the other, with the Vortech ramping up and down in "Reef Crest" mode which means it goes pretty random and quickly from a pretty low amount to as high as I set it. The corals in the tank are constantly getting a different amount of water flow, as the pumps battle to push the water toward the middle of the tank. My gorgonian in the middle of the tank is blowing back and forth and hasn't ever been happier!

 

[chaderic26]

Do you find any dead spots forming or does it do a good job of keeping detritus from collecting on the substrate?

 

[TulsaReefer]

It's a little hard to tell, for the areas I can see they stay pretty clean. But I have a large number of caves and overhangs that I really can't see as much underneath. I will say this weekend I turned up the Vortech to full blast and pulled quite a bit of junk up off the bottom and into a net I held in the current.

 

[jpitts101]

I have no dead spots in my tank that i can see. I have several large caves in my tank for the fish to swim through and hide and they are even getting flow being the feather dusters are swaying back and fourth. The undertow from the vortech is awesome. That may be one of the reasons you cant adjust the angle..........you dont need to. I also like that if my Vortech goes out i can just take it out and send it off rather than messing with all the plumbing. whatever method you choose I think will b great.

 

[GregC]

I thought this would be easier, both have great benefits at this point I just need to weigh the pro's and con's and see what I come up with. JD I am sending a PM.

 

[TulsaReefer]

That's why it's such a hard decision, there are good and bad points with each of the options, and a lot of it just depends on the setup and your preferences. Some people hate to see anything like a pump or powerhead in the tank, others don't care as much. I also think that any of the options will work, and if your like me, no matter what you finally decide you may have those days you regret the decision and wish you had gone the other direction .

For me, the biggest final deciding factor was I just bought a new tank that has a 20 year warrantee. If I drill the tank it's considered "modified" and the warrantee is void. If it was a used or an older tank, or was one I had built custom and could have it drilled at the factory for a closed loop, that may have made me go a different direction. So for my own situation, based on what I am concerned about, I hope I made the right decision. Every situation is different, which is why it's really a very individual choice in the end.

 

[GregC]

No doubt, I am leaning towards the Vortech's honestly at the moment with all the comments that have been made they just seem to be the better option. My only real concern at the moment is the longevity of them I just want to avoid, what everyone else does, failure of expensive equipment, lol. I hope to save quite a few watts, and get an improvement on my flow with the new setup.

 

[eddybabyhd]

friggin traitor!

Put 15,000 rio hyperflows in there

 

[mskohl]

I have 3 tunzes 6101s on a controller and I love it. I still have a K4 at the surface that is plugged into the UPS (our power goes out all the friggin time!), but I don't think I *need* it for current.

I drilled the tank for the sump return. If I hadn't been so freaked out about those two holes and known a lot more about large tanks, I probably would have done a CL too.

 

[pwhitby]

Greg,

want to borrow a few of my tunzes and see how they do for you?

Paul.

 

[GregC]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13196397#post13196397 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by eddybabyhd
friggin traitor!

Put 15,000 rio hyperflows in there

How's that? lol. I have to look at all the options, lol.

 

[eddybabyhd]

maxi jets are an option too, lol

 

[GregC]

Hagen,aquaclear powerheads, will probably getter done as well.

 

[Reef Happy]

Greg, I think what I gathered from talking to you a few days ago was that you wanted to go with the CL because you didn't want the see the pumps on the glass. I like my controllable Tunzes, but don't really like them on the glass either and they are not as quiet as I had hoped they would be. I have 2 of the 6100 tunzes in the front and also 1 modded 6025 and 1 K3. So I can see why anyone would consider the CL. Having 1 Vortech would be a good solution oposed to having multi pumps all over the tank.
But like Paul said "Bear in mind a vortech can only force water at 90 degrees to the surface it is mounted to. To me that is the main disadvantage, I prefer to have flow I can adjust, and at various angles....hence the CL".
Greg, I know you will choose the best option after you have researched all the pro's and con's.

 

[mskohl]

I have a tunze deco rock that will hide a pump that I'm not using if you choose to go that route.

 

[GregC]

See how bad this has been for me? I have waffled around more on this than a fish out of water, lol. I appreciate all the input, even sarcastic one's, Keep’em coming! After sleeping on it again and carefully weighing the pro's and con’s for MY goals, I am going with the CL. One of the MANY final factors for me was a clean tank. I want to design this so there are no more power heads, and other items in the display if possible. Another was the adjustability of the flow that I desire, in the tank. With the extensive amount of SPS I have obtained the adjustability of the flow with the CL, I believe will work best for me. I have no doubt that the Vortech's are excellent units, that will do a great job, and be fun to play with, as well, but as with anything else there are mitigating factors that in addition, helped with the this decision. I have a 2 yr old who believes he is a super hero, Spider-man and Superman. I know for a fact he will see the control unit and magnet, no matter where I put them, and decide to see if he can throw in a little bit of Tarzan / mad genius characteristics in his extensive resume, it will break and with Murphy’s Law firmly entrenched in my life, I will be traveling when it happens. With what I am looking for flow wise, aesthetics’, and somewhat superhero resistant, the CL is what will work best for my situation. I must say thou, the benefits of the Vortech’s are extremely difficult to turn away from, I can certainly see why a lot of people are going that direction, when I finally get around to setting up a frag tank, I will probably get one for myself as well.

 

[TulsaReefer]

Glad you came to a conclusion. I know I had the same difficulty myself, and if it hadn't been for the ability to get the Vortech at a substantial discount I was planning to put the whole thing off as long as I could. In the end I felt like I was voting in an election where your looking for the lesser of the evils and not really liking any of the options that much.

Are you planning to put a ocean motions 4 or 8 way in the closed loop, or just split the return from the pump with regular plumbing? They look like very interesting pieces of equipment to help break the flow up.

 

[mskohl]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13198160#post13198160 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by GregC
I have a 2 yr old who believes he is a super hero, Spider-man and Superman. I know for a fact he will see the control unit and magnet, no matter where I put them, and decide to see if he can throw in a little bit of Tarzan / mad genius characteristics in his extensive resume

I hear you there! I really liked the Vortechs too, but I have kids that would like them for different reasons.

Good for you on the CL.

 

[GregC]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13198533#post13198533 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by TulsaReefer
Glad you came to a conclusion. I know I had the same difficulty myself, and if it hadn't been for the ability to get the Vortech at a substantial discount I was planning to put the whole thing off as long as I could. In the end I felt like I was voting in an election where your looking for the lesser of the evils and not really liking any of the options that much.

Are you planning to put a ocean motions 4 or 8 way in the closed loop, or just split the return from the pump with regular plumbing? They look like very interesting pieces of equipment to help break the flow up.

Right now I am just going to split the return from the pump, probably build a manifold and put in some ball valves where hopefully I can control the flow to each return. Right now I need to decide where I want the returns and the intakes for the Barricuda. Taking a Page from Ed and Paul, I would like to create a rolling effect in the tank where it would help keep the junk suspended until it can can go to the overflows. I'm going to ask Ed and Paul to take a look and throw out some suggestions on that, there is no subsititue for experience. At the moment, looking at what I have now with the 140, I am not going to hopefully have to do much plumbing in the fish room, replacing the Iwaki with the dart for the return from the sump will be the most difficult and that should not be too bad. I already know I am going to have to put more holes thru the wall (hope my wife doesn't read this lol) just due to the different placements of the overflow's and overall height of the tank. I will start a build thread with lots of Pic's once my stand is ready to go. After the stand is done, it should go hopefully pretty fast.

 

[jpitts101]

Greg, I too have a 2 year old son and he wont get near the vortech. All the heat is on the outside so he cant touch it for long, plus the magnet on these things are great! They arent extremely hot but hot enough that a kid wont keep there hand on it too long. If you really want to go with a CL then thats great but dont let a 2 year old messing with it be a factor at all. I dont know much about a closed loop but know a vortech can be very comparable. The things I love about my vortech is that there is a awsome undertow, you can make it to what you want rather it be waves, reef crest or just a constant push. Another great thing is the battery back up. I Ordered my second one yesterday! If you want I will send it to you to play with then you can go see Eddy and Pauls tanks for referance. But I really do urge you to check them out and play with one before makeing a final decision. Ohh also I seen it somewhere that the bad point about the vortech is that they are one directional??? This is far from true, yes they do point in one direction but they have a awesome undertow! the undertow from them is just about as good as the initial stream itself. Seriously I have one on my 180 and my corals are loving it so you are more than welcome to try my second one out for a few weeks before you start on your new tank. Also i think there was someone that needed to have there's flashed?? I really think the CL will be awesome but think the vortech's are comparable, good luck with your decision.


P.S. Try my vortech.......please!!!!!!!