# New toy EcoTech Vortech



## jonnyjr (27 Jan 2010)

Having kept tropical and marine tanks for a few years, I always came back to a common problem, flow. I either couldn't get it all around the tank, or enough of it, when i did it involved large, obscure pumps. I have been thinking of my options for more flow in my planted tank, considering a closed loop system or bigger pump. I then looked at my marine tank. Introducing my new toy a EcoTech Vortech adjustable flow pump.






The pumps main selling point for marines is that all the electrics are outside of the tank minimising heat transfer. This is irrelevant for me. But the small footprint, and minimal equipment in the tank is a big advantage. The pump works by creating alternating electromagnetic currents through coils which transfer through the glass to the rotor on the other side of the glass.





The main advantage is being able to precisely control the flow of the pump adjusting it for any tank I decide to put it on in the future up to 8000lph. There are a few functions that although not that relevant to planted tanks are still handy like the pump stopping for 10 min in feeding mode and the adjusting of flow rate over a set time.





I will let you all know how it goes after testing it for a while. But first impressions are good, has a very wide gentle flow pattern, turning the water over as opposed to pummelling the plants even when turned up.


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## Nick16 (27 Jan 2010)

how does it work through the glass?


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## jonnyjr (27 Jan 2010)

As above "The pump works by creating alternating electromagnetic currents through coils which transfer through the glass to the rotor on the other side of the glass."


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## AdAndrews (27 Jan 2010)

If electomagnetic movements travel through the glass, how come the water doesnt conduct the electricity? nice bit of kit


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## jonesy (27 Jan 2010)

doesnt look like you can adjust where the flow is directed as it sits flat on the glass or does it adjust from the front


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## jonnyjr (27 Jan 2010)

No, no adjustment, it has such a wide flow it doesn't need to be directed, it seems a very "gentle" flow even at full whack in terms of it turns the water volume over but not pounding everything.


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## NeilW (27 Jan 2010)

They got a review of this in last months PFK, seems pricey!


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## Nick16 (27 Jan 2010)

yeah what a waste of money for a glorified koralia! 

they are going for over 200 a pop. il stick to my Â£20 koralia 2 thats. The vortech may be better but over Â£180 better? hmm i dont think so.


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## Themuleous (27 Jan 2010)

I loved this when I saw the review, quite honestly I'm amazed the didn't thin of it sooner!!  I even thought of it when I was looking at the korila's, which are just so bulky in the tank IMHO.  Just a shame I didn't patent the idea!!!

Sam


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## a1Matt (27 Jan 2010)

jonnyjr said:
			
		

> No, no adjustment, it has such a wide flow it doesn't need to be directed, it seems a very "gentle" flow even at full whack in terms of it turns the water volume over but not pounding everything.



The lack of direction seems like a great idea to me. I am just thinking what would happen if you hid it behind some hardscape.  Do you need to leave a certain amount of space around it for the flow to permeate out into the tank? :scratch head smiley:

EDIT - also do you think it is shrimp safe? I have heard it said that a Koralia could suck a shrimp in and spit it out and it would likely be unharmed. Do you reckon this would hold true for the vortech?


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## sanj (21 Feb 2010)

I have an MP40 on my reef, excellent powerheads. I will be using it on my new freshwater project to up turnover to x15 in daytime.


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## Tony Swinney (23 Feb 2010)

Hi Johnny

I'd be interested to hear how you get on with the MP40, I've been thinking about trying one for a while, as I'd rather not have koralias in the tank.  The MP40 may be somewhat pricey, but if it works very well and means less gear in the tank I'm up for it !

Tony


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## jonnyjr (23 Feb 2010)

I've got the MP10 which is the smaller version but more than ample flow for my tank with 200 to 1575 gph. I liked the fact it was ever variable instead of having to stick with a fixed flow set by manufacturers like koralia. 
But unlike koralia, with flow increase there is no size increase of pump. The other advantage as you can probably see is the majority of the pump is on the outside of the tank, creating a very minimalistic look. 
I have found it to be very good, creates flow in even the most densely planted corners. In terms of price, there is a very strong following for these pumps in the marine market, with the second hand resale price remaining comparatively high. 
I see it as an investment as you also dont need a larger pump when you inveriable upgrade to a bigger tank   

http://ecotechmarine.com/products/vortech-mp10/


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## LondonDragon (23 Feb 2010)

What would be nice is a video of it in action, any chance of providing that? cheers


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## jonnyjr (23 Feb 2010)

Will try and get one for you all tomorrow or the following day, need to get hold of a point and shoot digital camera, only got my SLR atm.


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## sanj (26 Feb 2010)

I have koralias too and they dont compare with the vortechs, different league. If this is a longterm hobby then investing in this powerhead is not a waste of money imo. However if you are on a tight budget then yes ofcourse a koralia will do the job, they arent bad powerheads. The other nice thing about the vortech is it can power down overnight to 50% power consumption for 10 hrs then powers up to what it was set at for day time.


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## dougstar (16 Apr 2015)

Any news on this? been looking at these pumps What a brilliant piece of tech


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## Katch (16 Apr 2015)

Used one on my last marine tank - loud but great ability to control flow and create waves.


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## dougstar (16 Apr 2015)

the new range of ecotech eg. mp40qd "quiet drive"  said to be very quiet. drool drool!


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