Wavemaker pump for a hillstream setup

I was thinking of getting a 5000lph wavemaker powerhead for a hillstream set up but I was wondering, in a 160L tank will it be too much for the White Cloud Mountain Minnows? will it just leave them fighting the current all the time? or is it not enough? the flow will be aimed mainly across the bottom

I think that would be too much in a 160 litre. i had them in my tank with just the flow from the filter and they were happy

I recon it'll be too much.....
Be fine with a 3000 I recon!

The reason I'm using a powerhead at all is because I'll have Hillstream loaches and gobies as well, in other words, fish that benefit from higher flow. Any pump will be aimed across the rocks at the bottom

Ive a 5000lph power head in a 9ft tank and it moves water up to 5ft in the tank. The first 3ft from the power head is very strong. Hope this helps you decide.

paulv wrote:

Ive a 5000lph power head in a 9ft tank and it moves water up to 5ft in the tank. The first 3ft from the power head is very strong. Hope this helps you decide.

I does help. Given that the powerhead will be placed v low in the tank and aimed across some fairly large rocks, I'm hoping they'll create enough turbulence in the flow that the minnows, being nearer the surface, will have less current to deal with

Any decent 5000lph pump will cost you 100yoyos just another concideration. You will need heavy substrate to avoid the pump moving it all to one side of the tank.

I was thinking of putting a 5000 or 6000 lph in my trigon 350
I recon it would disturb the substrate too much tho, so I think I'll just put a second 3000 lph all ponds solutions power head in pointing forward towards my current one to make a better circulation of the entire tank!
At less than £40 Stg. It would be a better option as well I think!

I'd suggest looking at prices outside ROI as we get seriously screwed on the price of these things!
A 5000lph power head in the uk can cost as little as 35£ stg.

paulv wrote:

Any decent 5000lph pump will cost you 100yoyos just another concideration. You will need heavy substrate to avoid the pump moving it all to one side of the tank.

How heavy is heavy? At least pea gravel size? Or could I go smaller?

hammie wrote:

I was thinking of putting a 5000 or 6000 lph in my trigon 350
I recon it would disturb the substrate too much tho, so I think I'll just put a second 3000 lph all ponds solutions power head in pointing forward towards my current one to make a better circulation of the entire tank!
At less than £40 Stg. It would be a better option as well I think!

I'd suggest looking at prices outside ROI as we get seriously screwed on the price of these things!
A 5000lph power head in the uk can cost as little as 35£ stg.

There's a company in Galway selling them for €15+shipping. Maybe you get what you pay for but if it lasted a year or so I could accept that

If you intend keeping a few cory cats then sand and fine gravel they like. If I was doing this tank id run 2 2000lph powerheads facing eachother.
other guys have come up with great value online pumps,

I used an all ponds solutions one for over a year with no issues at all.....
It was only a 2000lph but still at £20 or so, it kept me happy, think one of the mates is still running it in his tank too
Nearly 2 years later

paulv wrote:

If you intend keeping a few cory cats then sand and fine gravel they like. If I was doing this tank id run 2 2000lph powerheads facing eachother.
other guys have come up with great value online pumps,

No cories or tropicals of any kind. It'll be a cold water riverine setup. Minnows, a few reticulated Hillstream loaches and some gobies. I'm planning on using river gravel from a stream.

Heres a thought, if you go2 a stream in wicklow the minnows there are mostly in the calmer pools not in the white water. im using 10mm river gravel and it looks good as a river bed scape. Is it possible to use a powerhead to drive water out of the tank and direct the flow back in like a water fall over large rocks. Adding lots of o2 and flow but also quiter region for the small fish to relax. It would look very natural.

paulv wrote:

Heres a thought, if you go2 a stream in wicklow the minnows there are mostly in the calmer pools not in the white water. im using 10mm river gravel and it looks good as a river bed scape. Is it possible to use a powerhead to drive water out of the tank and direct the flow back in like a water fall over large rocks. Adding lots of o2 and flow but also quiter region for the small fish to relax. It would look very natural.

definitely a thought. I think, given the price, i'm going to get the wavemaker and experiment before I put in any fish. I might try and break up the flow with the rocks and aim it in such a way that the mid/top parts of the aquarium aren't, as you say, whitewater. if it doesn't work, I can just shelve the powerhead until I have a tank big enough to put it in

Whatever you decide dont forget a few pics in your profile page.

paulv wrote:

Whatever you decide dont forget a few pics in your profile page.

i'll be building a wet/dry trickle filter for it so i'll be posting a whooole lot about this tank