Wave action vs surface skimming?

[virginiadiver69]

I'm toying with the idea of adding a Tunze wavebox to my 125gal mixed reef. I've seen several tanks using one or something like it and have noticed that the water level varies so much that it looks like surface skimming is all but eliminated. At the moment my tank has one corner overflow. I'll be starting a plywood build in the coming months...is there a better designed overflow that will allow for efficient surface skimming with wave action?

 

[Morpheus'Reef]

As a start you may want to see if you can place your overflow towards the center of the tank. The surface level in the center tends to be more stable. I run a wavebox with one central overflow and don't see any issue with surface skimming with that setup.

 

[aninjaatemyshoe]

If the overflow is not in the center, then you will have some degree of splashing going on in the overflow. Depending upon how your overflow is setup, the noise could be rather annoying.

In terms of surface skimming, at least in my tank, I have no problem with running a wavebox and surface skimming. My overflow is directly in the center. If it is a problem for some people, you could always run the wavebox on some sort of timer. That way you would have periods of surface skimming and periods of waves.

 

[Rouselb]

I have 2 overflows, one in each corner of my 180 SPS tank. I have a wavebox on the front pane, and if you adjust the water level with your overflows, you can run the wavebox without a lot of noise. Center overflows are preferred. I have about a 1" wave on a 72" long tank. Wavebox gives good flow on the bottom of the tank.