Gyre Nano

[andresont]

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2007/1/aafeature
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2007...um/figure2.jpg


Figure 2 is an example of a horizontal gyre tank which I built for stony coral culture. The aquarium is 33 gallons, 4 feet long, 14 inches wide and 12 inches tall. The divider was made out of two pieces of dark plexiglass which were overlapped in the center. Both pieces of the divider were unattached and I found that I could vary the speed of the water flow by adjusting the distance of the gap between the divider and end faces of the aquarium glass. The water movement was provided by one Seio 820 pump on one side and two Maxi-jet 1200’s on the other side. A Chauvet light timer was used to alternate power between the pumps for 5 to 15 minutes to each side. Since the water flow was so unidirectional in this long aquarium, it was very simple to measure flow speed. Water velocity was calculated by adding neutrally buoyant particles to the water and timing how long it took for them to travel across a distance of the aquarium. Using this technique I was able to measure water flow speeds between 15-22cm/s throughout the entire aquarium. These velocities are within the range of ideal flow speeds for optimum particle capture, respiration and photosynthesis of many corals. Figure 3 is an image of a vertical gyre tank built and designed my Michael Janes of Aquatouch. Mr Janes is an octocoral specialist and he refers to his design as a laminar flow tank. He designed the aquarium to produce ideal flow conditions while still maintaining enough vertical space to accommodate tall soft coral species such as gorgonians. Although this aquarium was designed primarily as a proof of concept, Mr. Janes continues to work with this type of gyre tank for studying octocoral species.