55 Reef GPH

Helo 3reef community.

I am making a list of what i need for my 55 reef tank. I am currently stumped on what the gph should be for the tank. I plan on putting different kinds of fish and coral but i dont know what kind yet. What would be a safe gph for now? I currently have a 550 koralia but i wasnt sure if i could put two different power heads in their please help im new to this. All the information i can get i will take thanks!! ;D

 

Hi MiamiReef Tank

a 55 is a 4ft tank I believe

the K 550 does 550 gallons per hour (I Googled it)

if your going to keep mostly soft corals - the approx 20 x tank volume in flow would be a good starting place

thus 55 x 20 = 1100 gph

So 2 x Korallia 550s might be a good starting place IMO

you may have to experiment with positioning etc
but
located on either side of tank, directed so that the flows dissect each other around middle of the set up

just keep an eye on what is happening to the sand bed in particular, and if it is moving / blowing about, adjust the power heads to prevent it

Steve

 

Awsome thanks a million! Im so glad to be a part of this community and have people like you that knpw your stuff god bless.

 

For reference, I also have a 55 gal. For my flow I have about 525 GPH from the sump return pump, (2) 750 Koralias and (1) 1050 Koralia. The power heads are on a wavemaker, so the 750's both come on the same time, and the 1050 separately. I get a nice flow throughout the tank, and haven't found any dead spots. I only have a couple corals (kenya tree & some zoas), but they are doing very well so far!