what Powerheads do you use?

Hands down you'll want DC power heads. So from least quality and lowest price to highest quality to highest price, the list goes as follows.

1) Jebao
2) Tunze
3) Vortech

These will be the most popular you will find.
 
I have all 3 of those and the truth is they all have there places and for anyone to say one is better then another needs to have there head checked. So before any suggestions are made please tell everyone what you want it to do because your question is way to vague. Tell us about the system. what your planing on keeping? All of this means a lot. Plus what is your budget?
 
I have all 3 of those and the truth is they all have there places and for anyone to say one is better then another needs to have there head checked. So before any suggestions are made please tell everyone what you want it to do because your question is way to vague. Tell us about the system. what your planing on keeping? All of this means a lot. Plus what is your budget?

Well said. I have 5 mp40s, 1 wp40, 1 mp10, and 1nano tunze wavebox. Everything has its own job for its own specific reason
 
I have 5 mp40, a few extra koralia I'm not using anymore if u r looking to by some cheep powerheads. I also have 2 rw15 and a tunze or 2 hanging around the garage somewhere. They r all good for there prices.

If u want a super clean look with a small foot print in the tank then vortex mp line hands down, no heat transfer to the water because the pump motor is not in the water. Not as important if u use led lighting. If u use t5 or halides the heat becomes more of a concern. You will pay for these pumps though.

If u want just good water movement for the low price then tunze or jeboa. Tunze has been around a lot longer and are tested and designed to last years. The jeboa are Chinese and newer to the hobby so we r not sure how long these pumps will last. I have had some tunze last 7 plus years.

Koralia cheepest price nice in smaller systems or softy tanks
 
no set budget but I don't buy anything not used or on sale :thumbsup:

my pink fiji sand is a little heavier than fine sand. I'm hoping to have some kind of soft corals. 8 ft 300 gallon. It doesn't need to be over the top but I don't want to slack and I like the idea of these mp40s/60s keeping the electricity out of the water.
 
Well word of advice on Jebao, yes they're great for the price and lots of flow BUT I just had my wp10 die on me. Best I have been able to work out is a short in the motor of the pump. The pump has been in my tank less than 6months and I got it brand new. They are great/inexpensive for everything they do but I almost wish I had just waited a bit and bought an mp10 for some extra money. Now I gotta make a hard choice for my 75 build :p
 
I've had Tunze power heads last 15 years. I have mp40s that I bought in 2010 still running strong in constant use. I only strayed from tunze because the design of the vor techs appealed to me and they seemed to have a reputation of quality. I still run a tunze in my sump
 
I also had 4 korallias I bought in 2009, only one left (qt use). The other three died or started rattling to the point of being unusable long ago--- knew better when I bought them but money was an issue at that point
 
I have 4 wp40s that have been running for almost 2 years and expect much more out of them. I have fixed 2 so called dead ones and am using them now 2. Seems when you give the a vinegar bath you then have to pull them apart and clean the shafts and bearings. I have yet to see one dead that I could not fix. But not saying it doesnt happen but I have not seen it. The mp40s I have make more noise then my skimmer and yes I have set them up properly. Its not much but if you listen you can hear them. Not that its a big deal but it does bother some people. My tunze I use for water mixing got so caked up with precipatation that I thought it was done. could not even get it apart. soaked it in vinegar for a week cleaned it and it mixing water again right now.
8' tank I dont think your going to like the MP40s or 60s. Hate to say it but I would suggest wp60s just because there flow is more linear flow. unless you want like 6 MPs.
 
I have all 3 of those and the truth is they all have there places and for anyone to say one is better then another needs to have there head checked. So before any suggestions are made please tell everyone what you want it to do because your question is way to vague. Tell us about the system. what your planing on keeping? All of this means a lot. Plus what is your budget?


Not sure if this was directed at me as I was simply listing the 3 most common power heads out there listed in order based upon price and quality.

I agree with the fact that your inhabitants will dictate the pump you want, to an extent. No matter what, you have to introduce flow to any system or you're going to have issues, especially 300 gallons.

As far as stating one is better quality than the other. I think my post was spot on. I own 2 Jebao WP-25's and can say the quality is not all that great. I had to take a razor and clean up the grills of leaked plastic from the molds. I've never seen such poor molds on Tunze or Vortech. Which leads to my next point that the Jebao and Tunze don't operate well between 1 and 29% power. While the Vortech does. This is a design flaw.

Furthermore, Tunze and Vortech have a good track record of being reliable. The jury is still out on the Jebao. But I've found that diligent maintenance seems to keep them running without issue. (Every 3 months) We shall see.

Now when you look at price that's a whole other story. I'm happy to say that I bought the lesser quality Jebaos at 1/8 the price of a Vortech. Some argue the Jebao flow is superior. The stolen Tunze design, in my opinion is great as you can direct flow down the length of the tank without having to place the pump on the side glass which stands out like a sore thumb. And even if I get a couple years from one, to me there's more value as I could buy 8 for the price of a Vortech and still run the risk that the Vortech breaks after the warranty period. Which happens all the time as with anything. This is just my opinion, but I believe the Vortech pumps are outrageously over priced. Sorry, but I'm not spending nearly $400 -$500 to move some water. To each his own. But the quality is there.

So this is the logic I applied to my decision. Again, not sure if this was directed at me, but if it was I'm pretty confident I don't need to get my head checked. If not, then this post can serve as why I went with Jebaos. ;-)
 
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