Power Head - Managing Flow

[rguy23]

I just bought the Aquarium Co-op Power Head and it is quiet and works really well.  But in my 20 gallon, it is pretty much a whirlpool... ...It really filtered things out though!  

Has anyone put a sponge on the output?  Would that increase in load be detrimental to the motor?  I think this would be a better way to filter, but I need lower flow... 

Thanks!

[Theplatymaster]

@rguy23 ive seen this in a reveiw, i think it might work.

i talked some on this topic on this thread, scaping can matter when it comes to flow:

 

[Guppysnail]

I put a fine prefilter spong cut to fit secured with a zip tie. It works great. I didn’t feel like the coarse slowed the flow much at all 

[nabokovfan87]

Input I highly recommend some method to stop fish and shrimp and plants from getting into the Input. In terms of output I think you want to either use duckbills, lockline, PVC, or some sort of a spraybar to manage flow.

I messed around with a lot of trying to dial in flow and I eventually ended up going from a 168 GPH pump down to a 119GPH pump to resolve the situation.  The size was smaller as well which changes what can fit on the input and outputs.

All things to consider in your use case and application.

I'll try to locate a photo for you of mine.

On 3/9/2023 at 1:54 PM, rguy23 said:

Would that increase in load be detrimental to the motor? 

Some are designed for it. Some are not. Back pressure that is.

Just keep an eye on things and track if you see something like pump whine or air causing flow to stop and no longer function properly.

[rguy23]

That is my thinking as well.  I just don't know what I don't know about this equipment.  Thank you for your response!

[nabokovfan87]

On 3/9/2023 at 4:36 PM, rguy23 said:

That is my thinking as well.  I just don't know what I don't know about this equipment.  Thank you for your response!

The fluval one pepere is showing off looks great. There is also sicce ones as well as the pump head I use (sicce syncra nano).

They come in a variety of designs, but in terms of a small pump, that's the one that works really well if you can manage a setup that works for the tank.