Is wavemaker a must on marine tank?

Hi,
Wish to know if a wavemaker a must have for a marine fish tank. Is it enough just to have an external canister pump for the current of a 2.5ft tank? Thanks in advance.

[KaLiB]

The canister filter alone is insufficient to generate the water flow needed in a marine tank. You would definitely need to use a wavemaker or two to supplement the waterflow.

Water flow is critical in a marine tank, its main use is to keep water flowing and oxygenated. It also serves other purposes like distributing food through the water column, keeping detritous suspended so it won't smother corals or accumulate in dead zones.

Some fish like firefish do not feed from the bottom, they would only pick food from the water column so its crucial food is kept suspended for a longer time through the help of a wavemaker.

Hi KaLiB,
Thanks for the info. Anyway, what's water column? What about internal power head(13000l/m I think) as substitute to wave maker? Will it be sufficient?
How many wavemaker do I need for a 2.5ft tank? I scared the heat generate will cause the water to be warm as I don't intend to have a chiller for my set-up.
Any ideal suggestions for my set-up?
Once again, thanks in advance.

[KaLiB]

Water column refers to the water between the bottom of the tank and the water surface, you can also refer to it as mid-water. Some marine fish by nature only feed from the water, they do not pickup food from the bottom of the tank so its important to keep food circulating.

Powerheads are possible substitutes but if your budget allows, I would advise to get a wavemaker instead. They are alot more efficient at circulating water than powerheads and consume alot less energy(thus generate less heat). Powerheads generally consume alot of energy(more heat) and are inefficient in circulating water. Example: An 11W Tunze Turbelle 6060 wavemaker has a flowrate of 6000l/hr, if a similar pump were to be used, its likely to consume 10x more energy.

For a 2.5ft tank, you would be looking at either a single wavemaker rated at around 2000-3000l/hr or two smaller wavemakers rated at 1000-2000l/hr. You can definitely add more.

I used to run a 2400l/hr wavemaker + 900l/hr wavemaker in a 2x1x1 tank. I would say I encountered no significant heat issues with such a setup but I'm using only 2x24W T5s. Generally, light contributes a fair amount to the heat absorbed by the tank.

Some tips to position wavemakers:
- Try to have one higher up so you can move the water surface to improve gaseous exchange
- If there are at least two wavemakers, aiming the two at each other helps to generate some random water movement
- If there is only one wavemaker, I generally try to put it such it helps circulate water round the tank either in clockwise or anti-clockwise manner. I also put it higher up to help improve gaseous exchange.
- If you have more than 2, you would have the luxury to be able to have them both higher up and lower down in the tank for better water flow and gaseous exchange.

You can look at the Hydor Koralia series or Rio Seio series of wavemakers for your tank. They have models suitable for your tank size.

Hi,
Thanks for the generous knowledge sharing. I've a better idea of the set-up now.
Maybe I'll have 1 wavemaker and 1 power head in my 2.5ft set-up. Once again thank so much.

[KaLiB]

Your welcome.

Using 1 wavemaker + 1 powerhead would be ok as well.

it all depends on what types of corals you are keeping. some corals love waves while others prefer calm. In general, it is good to have wavemakers coz it makes the corals swerve about to simulate ocean-like condition.

May I know what types of corals don't like to have waves?

[KaLiB]

In general, its not a good idea to aim a wavemaker/powerhead directly at any coral. Some corals like SPS corals prefer alot of water movement while some like mushroom corals don't like so much water movement.

yes i will say it is. corals need current to bring them food.