tunze stream kit? or wave box?

[SteelDragon]

anyone have either of these? which is better?

[gwaco]

i have both . you can't go wrong with picking either , but keep in mind that each one gives different motion . also depends on your tank size . i've had the wavebox in a 75 gallon i had and it work great but four foot is the shortest tank it will work on properally and after 6ft you may need a slave box . the nice thing about streams on a multicontroller is you have complete control over output , so if you have a smaller tank you can dial them down and if you decide to get a bigger tank you won't have to go out and purchase new equipment . its tough to help you in your decision since i favor both set-ups . BUT that being said - knowing what both products do and if your tank is large enough , go with the wavebox , especially if you already are using other power heads . the flow caused by the wavebox causes water to flow completly through the corals . keep in mind that tunze says that a wavebox will shorten tank life by something like 10% . but that should'nt discourage you if you have a new tank or one thats a year or two old . if an average tank last 20 years that means your only knocking off two years of life . other thing is the stand needs to be rock solid , since the weight of the water is constatly moving .

[Weatherman]

If you want to see what kind of flow you get with a WaveBox, just go to this web site:

http://www.coastal.udel.edu/faculty/rad/seiche.html


put in:

Length: 3
Depth: 1
Model Number: 1

And, calculate.

WaveBoxes just rock the water back and forth and up and down, but don't transport anything anywhere.

[Sprayin70]

This is a neat idea. This guy built his own wave box. Using a Moded maxijet 1200.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwIF1Mi-KyA

[SteelDragon]

its a standard drilled 180G

[gwaco]

in a standard 180 you can use one wavebox . it will get you approx. a 11/2" too 2" wave depending on your aqua scape . and even though as weatherman stated that it rocks the water back and forth , while doing this it helps keep detritus in suspension , which helps get it out of the tank .

[gwaco]

Originally Posted by Sprayin70

This is a neat idea. This guy built his own wave box. Using a Moded maxijet 1200.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwIF1Mi-KyA

that is pretty neat ! that may be the ticket for smaller tanks . i wonder how its set-up to do the forward and reverse action without frying the p.h. . with the amount of water thats entering and exiting his box section i don't think it would work very good on a larger tank . but i could be wrong !

[Weatherman]

Originally Posted by gwaco

...and even though as weatherman stated that it rocks the water back and forth , while doing this it helps keep detritus in suspension , which helps get it out of the tank .

As long as you have other powerheads or pumps to get the water moving.

I think even the Tunze USA rep, Roger Vitko, recommends against using only the WaveBox, all by itself, since there is no net transport of water; the WaveBox just rocks the water up and down and back and forth.

[kalel1976]

I had just two waveboxes along with my main circulation pump (sequence barracuda) on my tank for a few months and as Weatherman said this was not enough to circulate the water. I get a 1"-1 1/2" wave and the water motion keeps food particles and detritus from settling in the open areas of the tank but it does get caught in the rock work. I eventually added a Tunze Stream and I no longer have any issues.

[planetg]

Yup. I use a wavebox and a stream. looking to getting another stream.

However, placement of the wavebox is impt. to get maximum benefits, you have to face it across the length of the tank with minimal obstruction.

I placed mine at the back end with no obstruction. Works perfectly!