Which to get Vortech pump MP20 or Tunze ?

[robert J]

Is anyone here using a Marine Vortech pump MP20 ? Is it a good pump or is it not worth to buy ? I am thinking to get this pump instead of getting Tunze, but when I watch on Youtube video, the waves in the tank look similar to the wavebox. But the wavebox is much more expensive than this pump. I don't know should I get Tunze, or Vortech pump, or nano wavebox ? My wife loves to keep sps corals only, any suggestions which one I should get for her to make her corals happy.

[Trigger Man]

just tagging along to see what others reccomend, as I'm also trying to decide on new pumps.

[purplepolypeater]

i love my vortech mp40w with battery backup it saved my whole tank today as my landlord didn't pay hydro and i woke up to the power being out for like 8 hrs didn't lose a thing although keep it covered as i shredded an hellfire anemone and 2 legs off a starfish as it is really powerful didn't slow down a bit and sounded like a powersaw the starfish is ok tho.

[robert J]

Wow ... I am very impressed to know that

[Delphinus]

In my opinion, there's no comparison to a Wavebox and a Vortech - they are filling different non-overlapping functions. You could make do with one or the other depending on what you are looking for, or even both.

An SPS tank needs massive volume turnover - we're talking upwards of 40 times tank volume per hour - and up. A Wavebox simply isn't going to give you that. A Wavebox will just give you a back and forth effect that will remind you of what it looks like underwater but for SPS it will not be nearly enough on its own.

The more fair comparison is a Tunze stream to a Vortech. To me it comes down to a couple different things: The Tunzes seem to be more expensive, and are directional (ie., you can aim them or attach to a sweeper motor like a Wavysea). The Vortech sits half in the tank, half out. If your tank is inwall then no biggie. If not, then it depends on you whether that's acceptable or not (most people don't seem to mind it though). Also it is non-aimable, however this doesn't appear to be a detriment because the controller is more versatile. The Vortech has a battery backup option, however it looks like Tunze has this option as well (but you need your own battery - it's just a switchable power supply or something). To be honest I don't think you can go wrong with either Tunze or Vortech, they are both top-shelf products.

But if it came down to "Wavebox or Vortech" I'd say go for the Vortech first.

[andestang]

Yes both high end products. I'm in the middle of trying to decide myself. The main reasons for vortech is the motor and power cord out side and to have set-up in pairs or more is communication is wireless making for a very neat/cleaner look inside and outside the tank. For the tunze, I'm thinking Turbelle stream 2's, is they are able to make directional, which I think is the down side to the vortechs, which with coral growth can be very nice to have as your system matures.Tunze does carry with it a very good reputation for durability(I can say this myself as my pumps are about 5 yrs old and counting) Pricing for either is pretty close, but when the tunze is available I think they will work out to be slightly more. And as for the money spent to have a wavebox mixed with either of this power heads, I think the full effectiveness of the wavebox or power heads(2 or more) is lost. The different simmultations your able to do with these is great, not just off/on. JMO

[Stones]

I'm running both vortechs and a Tunze wavebox in my reef. I'd have to agee with Delphinus on this as the two devices serve completely different purposes. That said, you can use a vortech to generate a "similar" wave effect to that generated by a tunze wavebox.

However, I believe that vortechs are more beneficial if used in some type of pulse or random wave mode as this more closely simulates the high velocity turbulent currents found at SPS dominated reefs in the ocean.

There were alot of problems in the past with the vortech line of pumps but most if not all issues have been addressed with the release of the Gen 2 version.

Personally, I would have to go with the vortech MP20 over a tunze wavebox or tunze stream, so long as you don't mind having the motor on the outside of your tank. If this is going to be an issue, I'd take the tunze stream over the wavebox.

[parkinsn]

I would have to agree with Delphinus and Stones. The wavebox to my knowledge does not add "flow" to your tank just "water movement" giving you the wave effect. You can get the same effect with 2 vortech's while still adding "flow" (3000 gph with the MP40W). So if its flow your looking for i would have to say vortech. JMO as I am still a "noob" in the hobby after only 1 year into the saltwater world.

P.S I love my vortech :biggrin:

[robert J]

I appreciate for all of this useful information. At least now I know I don't want to have a wavebox anymore. Just one more question, my tank is only 70gallons with 36" long. If I only use 1x Vortech MP20 in my tank alone may not be enough because according to Delphinus, sps corals need water to turn over at least 40 times. With Vortech MP40, do you think I will get overflow from that much strong flow with a short tank like mine. And if I get Tunze, what model do you think is the right one for my tank. I only can afford to buy just 1 for now with the one controllable with a single controller.

[andestang]

If you are just getting started and need to spread your money around for other equipment, I would for the money get a Hydor Korlia Wavemaker Controller and a couple of their power heads, that would be just over $500 But you would at least have two pumps, versus one pump for about the same in the Vortech or Tunze (controlled units) Or cheaper yet get the Red Sea WaveMaster Pro / Maxijet Powerhead Package (4 power heads) for $300 and put a couple of upgrade kits on 2 of the powerheads ($50 for 2) Then down the road upgrade to what you really want.

[robert J]

I am using wavemaster with 4 powerheads right now. I am also trying to sell them and upgrade to get something better for my tank ( I mean for my wife). I was thinking about Hydor wavemaker too but it looks like nobody uses them they seem to prefer Tunze. I want to buy a good quality one without the need to upgrade in the future. I also have to spread my money around for a good skimmer too. Hopefully I will be done before new years. No more headache with wife's nagging (hahaha).

[Oscar]

I added a Vortech20 about 6 weeks ago and removed my Koralia 1. It is only set at 50% power and I seem to be getting much better flow which is really noticable whne I stir up the detritis. The Vortech20 has only 50% of the power of the Vortech40 and is not wireless. But you could add the battery back up and flash upgrade to the 40 if you need more power or want to add a 2nd head that is synched.

The power cord and attachment on the outside of the glass are noticeable for the 1st week, now I pay them little attention.

[Skimmerking]

Well if you really want some bang for your buck get the maxi jet package. MOD all 3or 4 of them to the Maxi flow and then you will have some crazy current on your tank.. and put them on the Red SEA Wave maker....

If there is a way to run that powerbar on a faster timer then like every 10 sec's that it could switch then you have it made.

[Delphinus]

I ran the Maxijet upgrades on a wavemaker and the flow and wave effects were great, but the problem I found was that everytime the powerhead would start up, it would have a tiny little shake to it. This eventually distressed the little holder arm thingy that attaches to the part that sits on the magnet and it breaks in two. I tried epoxy resin, superglue, acrylic, a little titanium shim on the inside of the arm to try to repair but nothing held longer than a day. You basically have to get a whole new kit. It's not like they're expensive but it's annoying to replace the WHOLE thing every couple of months. I went though 3 of them before giving up on the idea.

[robert J]

My neighbor has a wavemaker pro just like mine. She spent quite a bit of money to modify all of her 4x 1200MJ with Maxi Flow or something similar to that ... and they were making a terrible noise everytime the powerheads started up. I may go with Vortech MP20 or Tunze 6105 because my fish tank is right inside our bedroom, even we did not do anything like my neighbor did whenever our powerheads start up,we can hear them clicking at night. I prefer something like Tunze that can control the powerhead without stoping completely. Actually my wife likes the way a Vortech pump attaches to the outside of the tank, she thinks it looks cool.

[xtreme]

My MP40W's are great, but they are not perfectly silent. I'm not familiar with the MP20's but I would think they are similar. Just be aware of that if you plan to have one in your bedroom.

[robert J]

Thank you very much Extreme. With your information I will be giving my wife an "unforgettable" Christmas gift. I don't mind the humming sound like the air conditioner we use in the summer time, but I will check with J&L about Vortech MP20, if it is not quiet enough it will be off of my list. If only Tunze is left on my choice, what models do you guys think is good for my tank size, I only can afford to buy one.

[DanG]

if the dry side and wet side are properly aligned, they're near silent.

[parkinsn]

if the dry side and wet side are properly aligned, they're near silent.

near silent, however on pulse mode you can still hear it pulsing, not that its loud by any means

[fkshiu]

Thank you very much Extreme. With your information I will be giving my wife an "unforgettable" Christmas gift. I don't mind the humming sound like the air conditioner we use in the summer time, but I will check with J&L about Vortech MP20, if it is not quiet enough it will be off of my list. If only Tunze is left on my choice, what models do you guys think is good for my tank size, I only can afford to buy one.

What size is your tank?

[parkinsn]

I appreciate for all of this useful information. At least now I know I don't want to have a wavebox anymore. Just one more question, my tank is only 70gallons with 36" long. If I only use 1x Vortech MP20 in my tank alone may not be enough because according to Delphinus, sps corals need water to turn over at least 40 times. With Vortech MP40, do you think I will get overflow from that much strong flow with a short tank like mine. And if I get Tunze, what model do you think is the right one for my tank. I only can afford to buy just 1 for now with the one controllable with a single controller.

Fkshiu here you are :biggrin:

[fkshiu]

Oops, thanks for pointing that out.

Anyway, on a 70 gallon 3'-long tank the most economical Tunze option would be one 6055 Nanostream with a single controller. The price would be almost identical to a Vortech MP20 and once you do a 2-minute mod to the shroud, output will almost be identical as well.

Smart placement of the 6055 and your live rock would be key. Having a Gyre setup (think a whirlpool) leaving some open space around all sides of the live rock would be perfect.

I ran a 6-foot long (~120 gallon) mixed reef with nothing but an old Tunze 6000 Stream (which doesn't have much more output than a 6055) and about 400 gph from my return pump in a Gyre setup.

[robert J]

I went to J&L today to look at their display tank, I didn't hear the noise from the Vortech pump may be the store was so noisy from the background, but the waves go back and forth in the tank and makes big sloshing sounds when the water goes down to the overflow box. I have an overflow box too but it is extremely quiet because water is going down constantly. Thanks Fkshiu, I am going to get Tunze 6055 with a single controller even though my wife likes Vortech more the way it looks ... Ha ... what a big relief for me to finish the wife's demanding Christmas gift ... Oh wait ... looking for a skimmer is the next one, I may have to open a new thread for that. Thanks all of you who took your time to help me out with all my questions. I greatly appreciate it because I know nothing about the fish tank. My wife owns the tank and that is her hobbies, not mine, but if anything goes wrong it will be my fault as usual:wink: Hope this time I get the right one for her.