Red Sea Wavemaster + Hydor Koralia PHs

Hello all,

I am thinking of purchasing a Red Sea Wavemaster Pro and four Hydor Koralia 4s for my 75 gallon tank. I've read some reviews that people were using the Hydor's just fine on the wavemaker by putting some airline over the prop shaft to rid the startup chatter. Anyone running this setup out there?

 

I have a friend that had a K4 on a timer set at 3 hour intervals . . . the motor died in 4 months. I dont know if this is the norm or if he just got a defective one, but I personally wouldn't risk it.

~Will.

 

one of mine siezed up on a wave timer they replaced it my LFS that is but I learned a lesson.

 

4 Koralia 4's is alot of flow for a 75 gallon.... thats 4 x 1200gph = 4800gph = 64 x turnover rate/hour. Which many would consider to be insane. lol. May want to go with 4 koralia 3's instead- even with a wave maker.

 

Just to add that regular Koralias are definitely not designed for use with a wavemaker, they do make a controllable Koralia, though it's much more expensive, closer in cost to Tunze's or Vortechs even. Like was said before it's not just the chatter but the constant stopping/starting that the motors were not designed for.

 

The Koralias that take the wavemaker are pricey, and alot of "equipment to view. I Have a 75 gallon myself and bought 2 MP20 Ecotechs;
Ecotech Marine VorTech Propeller MP20 Pump

I got in on a group buy and got them at 245.00 shipped a piece not the 299 plus shipping.
Im very happy with them and only have 2 units to look at. Search around if you dont have to have them right away, I have seen them online as low as 225-245, but that not often.

 

Ok, I hope this reaches you before you spend the $. I have a 75g established reef with a koralia 4 & koralia nano! This is more than enough, I had 2 K 4's and it was like a category 5 tornado landed in my tank. That is just too much flow for fish and coral, trust me it will be a waste of $. I would go with a 4 pointed upward for oxygen flow and waves. Use the nano for getting to the dead spot if you even have one? Two nano's at the most, as for the wavemakers all have failed at keeping them running very long most just burnout. I assume koralia made these purposely that way to make more money. Do you have a CC or LS substrate? What are you going to put in your tank because I had a nem get sucked into the koralia. Koralias are nice but dangerous too!

 

Well, I have a Mag 9.5 for my return pump and its split into 2 LOC-LINE nozzles. I also have one Hydor K Nano (taken from the 22 gallon I upgraded from).

I reason I was going with Hydor 4s is because i can get them for $30 new. The Hydor 3s are $32. Doesnt really make sense that the 3s are more but those are the prices. I was going to go with MJ1200s with the Hydor FLO rotating deflectors but that would cost me more than the Hydor Ks plus I've read the Hydro FLOs dont work that well.

I am using a live sand bed and don't have much in the tank as of yet. The tank is still running thru its re-cycle after the move from the 22 gallon tank.

 

Koralias, either the controllable ones or not, are AC motors and cannot handle starts and stops. if they were dc motors they could handle that use.

Even the controllable Korallias are not ac, and use more closely a VFD, or variable frequency drive that ramps them up and down in power from like 20% -1005, but never stops the pumps.

Trying to use ac motors on an on off switch like the red sea wavemaker will burn them out, and merely putting a piece of airline tubing on the shaft by the prop will only quiet it down, but not make them last any longer than those have said before.

Bottom line is that at the moment, there is no cheap way to control them.

4 K4s on a 75 g is way too much. IMHO

 

Ok. So i guess I'm canning the Red Sea Wavemaker idea.

How does one K4 and two K3s sound?