Vortech Questions

Yet again I've been doing a lot of reading, and tripping over prices for things I really want, but I do understand that you get what you pay for and Vortech is just one of those "suck it up and buy it, close you eyes if you have too. You'll regret spending the money elsewhere later."
So I doubt I'll ever regret buying one of these. However I'm a little hesitant to spend that kind of money without a little input from the experienced first.

I see that the MP-40 was used on a 39 gallon SPS tank (if I'm allowed to say whoes and where I'll edit this post).
It must not be too strong for that setup, but is it a waste to buy that size for only a 29gal? Would the MP-20 be enough, or for budgets sake the Mp-10?
The only SPS I truly desire in my tank at this very point in time is Montipora Cap. Honestly I would be happy if that was the only coral in my tank at all, and I know that SPS requires higher flow than others.
So if I may ask your thoughts...


Overview of products from the EchotechMarine site.
MP-10 (200 to 1575 GPH) 2.5-50 Gallon Tank
MP-20 (500 to 2000 GPH) 30-70 Gallon Tank << That one is $340 CAD for me T_T
Mp-40 (1000 to 3,200 GPH) 50-500 Gallon Tank

Maybe I should have posted this in the Filters area....

 

I have the MP40 in a 93 gallon tank, and can't imagine having that power (although it can be dialed down) in a 29 gallon tank. I would think the MP20 would be more than enough, the new MP10 sounds like a really good unit as well.

 

Monti's require good flow but they don't require that much flow in a 29. I guess the main question would be, are you going to go bigger later? If so, then spend the extra money now. If not, then save some bucks.

 

I used my MP-40 in my 55 briefly before I went to a 90. As mentioned, it can be dialed down. In my opinion, since we typically spend many, many years in this hobby anyways, you'll most likely find an application for it in the future, even though you'll not be utilizing its maximum power in a 29G.

As is often said, it's better to have something and not need it, than to need it and not have it.

 

I have an MP40 on my 30 gallon tank, with a koralia 1 too actually on the other side. I just have the MP40 dialed all the way down. I'll be moving the MP40 to my 75 with a second one when I get it setup but it's fine for me right now, although I do have a lot of SPS. I think it's a worthwhile investment if you think you ever might upgrade your tank in the future.

Personally I would think once you get a monti cap in your tank there is a good chance in a couple months you'll want to try more SPS.
In that case that's why I think it's a great investment since you can scale it up pretty much as much as you want, although of course once you get a larger tank like 100+ gal. you probably need to add another one but you won't need to sell it to upgrade etc. Re-buying cheap equipment and upgrading underpowered equipment is a huge expense for a lot of people.

But it's not necessary and a bit of a luxury item honestly since you can get good flow from koralia's for a fraction of the price but it's not as chaotic/broad. I think it's also harder to squeeze a lot of flow into a small tank if the powerhead isn't controllable because you might end up with areas of really high flow where even SPS might get shredded.

My 2c anyways, good luck!

 

lol well... I shouldn't even think of upgrading until I do right in 29... even though my 75 isn't doing anything important at the moment *cough*.
But in reality I should limit myself to the 29 for now. I would rather crash a bicycle into a wall than an 18 wheeler semi.
So, that being said I am looking at the mp-10 and 20. as it stands right now I have a major issue with water circulation, and I do have huge dead spots (I can see them quite plainly with the ammount of open sand I have).
I've been weighing out which I need more right this moment:
The Octopus BH-1000 HOB Skimmer
or
Vortech Powerhead

As I expressed in another thread I am having an issue with cyano on my sand bed and it refuses to be sucked up as it is heavier than the sand :/

Its a hard call T_T
Both are mean to my pocket book, and if I get one now, It'll be a month before the second one.

I do worry that the MP-10 might not be enough for an sps tank in the future, something like this I doubt I'm going to want to upgrade.

 

personally if your staying with that tank or even moving up to something below 75 gallons, i would skip the vortechs. its better to have alot of little ones like koralias then just one big one.

i havent owned a vortech before so i cant say if you would like it, all i know is that a couple hundred dollars for one powerhead on a 30 gallon is probably a waste of money. not to say vortech pumps are extremely nice it just doesnt make sense to me, like putting a 800 dollar kit on a honda hatchback with the same horse power as my lawnmower.

sorry hatchback owners especiallly those with special mufflers, if you half as fast as you are loud youd be going somewhere

 

I would think getting a good skimmer would be a better use of money if you don't have one, you can get good flow out of much cheaper powerheads. Depends on your budget though. An MP10 with another powerhead to oppose it could be really nice. What I've found with my 30 gallon is that having another powerhead on the opposite side, even though only my vortech modulates, I still get back and forth flow in the tank which I think the coral love. My koralia dominates sometimes when the vortech scales back but then the vortech takes over when it ramps up.

 

Alright so here's what Ive done:
I purchased 2 Koralia 1's. When the skimmer is back in stock I'll grab that, and when I have enough set aside with no rush I'll consider the MP-20 or 40 as one day I do hope to upgrade, but like I said before, I'll upgrade when my ability to both stock and maintain a nice tank does.
Thank you for all your advice everyone!