Ideal Flow for Angelfish Tank

[TheG2What]

I have a planted 75 gallon that I am stocking as primarily an angelfish tank. There are also some corydoras at the bottom. I have a powerhead in the tank. I had it off for awhile, but I recently turned it on to get some more circulation in the tank. Now I can't tell if the angelfish like it or hate it. They mostly keep out of the flow, but at times they are swimming against it (mainly when I walk in or while feeding). They are still small, so there is plenty of room for them to get out of the flow and chill. I'm just curious if they will still be happy as they get bigger and need to utilize more space in the tank. Thoughts?

Thanks!

[HH Morant]

I have angelfish and I find they will simply avoid areas of the tank where there is a strong current. Their body shape means they are not strong swimmers.

The only flow in my tanks is from the filter returns or from small powerheads on under-gravel filters. I limit the amount of flow by directing the powerheads upward towards the surface. They aerate better that way anyway. I also direct the filter returns toward the surface where possible. Pushing the water upward absorbs some of the energy and disperses the flow.

In one tank, the canister filter returns have spray-bars, but I used a knife to enlarge the holes in the spray-bars (and create some new holes in different directions) so they create less current. In my other tank, the return from the sump has loc-line returns, so I found loc-line links with small outlets on the side of each link to release some of the pressure and disperse the flow, sometimes towards the glass.

Obstacles like wood, rock, and tall plants can also make the current less bothersome to angels.

Probably too much information. I have thought about this a lot.

[TheG2What]

I appreciate the info! I think I'm going to turn the powerhead back off. There are a lot of plants, and some driftwood, but there is definitely still a lot of flow. I had a large school of rummynose tetras in this tank previously and they loved swimming against and with the flow but, like you said, angels aren't as good of swimmers.

 

Thanks!