# Hydor Koralia Nano 240 vs Hydor Pico 180 for 10 gallon



## starrlamia (Jul 31, 2012)

personally I'd go with one of the picos, how much flow do you want? The 240 is a lot of flow, the picos are adjustable so you could get a higher rated one then the 180 and turn it down.


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## MEandYouPhoto (Jul 1, 2014)

I want some flow but not a lot. That's why i was considering the 180. I was just hoping to find something with the flow of the 180 but the footprint of the 240


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## York1 (Dec 18, 2014)

The Hydor is great but I think it will be way to much for that small of a tank


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## MoreyFan (Jul 3, 2014)

Any way to lower the output of the Nano 240? Circulation pumps put out a much more broad stream of water unlike narrow power heads which can really blow your fish if they get in the way.


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## MEandYouPhoto (Jul 1, 2014)

MoreyFan said:


> Any way to lower the output of the Nano 240? Circulation pumps put out a much more broad stream of water unlike narrow power heads which can really blow your fish if they get in the way.


That's exactly what I was wondering as well. I wonder if putting a nylon screen mesh out in front of the impeller or tied to the outside of the grill on the 240 would reduce the flow enough but not hurt the pump its self. 

Does anyone have any suggestions on a water circulation pump for a 10 gallon tank?


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## Freemananana (Jan 2, 2015)

*DO NOT* get the Hydor 240 for this tank! That is a crazy amount of flow! (24x the tank a hour) I have a Hydor 240 in my 75 gallon and it lays my amazon swords on their side. I don't run it anymore. I'd definitely suggest the smallest thing you can find. I had a no name eBay submersible power head that I got for $5 that I ran in my 30 gallon. It was a little 90 GPH pump that had an adjustable flow by cutting down the intake size. I'd suggest looking at one of those.


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## starrlamia (Jul 31, 2012)

the 240 is not adjustable, you could point it at the side of the tank or surface to try and break up the flow but as said before it's too strong unless you want a lot of current.


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## jrygel (Jan 29, 2014)

The pico 180 is no where near that big - certainly no bigger than the koralia 240. I've checked it out in the store for running some other stuff and I have a 240 in my tank - they are close to the same size but if anything the 180 is a bit smaller. That being said, the other comments are right on - I use the 240 full time in my 30 gallon and it is almost too much - I blow it through some mature (i.e. tough) amazon swords to diffuse the flow and it works great for my tank, but I don't think it would work well in a 10 gal


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## klibs (May 1, 2014)

+1 to the 240 is way too much for a 10g


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## Desertsp (Feb 17, 2013)

I have an unused Tunze 5024.040 that was too small for my 25 gallon cube. Ended up with a Koralia 240.

Pm me if you want it (the Tubze)


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## MoreyFan (Jul 3, 2014)

MEandYouPhoto said:


> That's exactly what I was wondering as well. I wonder if putting a nylon screen mesh out in front of the impeller or tied to the outside of the grill on the 240 would reduce the flow enough but not hurt the pump its self.


Plenty of people wrap foam around the intake side to prevent things getting suck in I don't see why you could wrap the entire thing in foam or filter floss to reduce all flow.


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## MEandYouPhoto (Jul 1, 2014)

MoreyFan said:


> Plenty of people wrap foam around the intake side to prevent things getting suck in I don't see why you could wrap the entire thing in foam or filter floss to reduce all flow.


I like this idea and it's in line with what I commented about earlier. My concern though would be the strain put on the motor and lead to it burning out.


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## Desertsp (Feb 17, 2013)

MEandYouPhoto said:


> I like this idea and it's in line with what I commented about earlier. My concern though would be the strain put on the motor and lead to it burning out.


Somewhere I read that the particular type of motor used in the Koralia 240 isn't susceptible to strain. Can't remember where I read that though...but it does make sense when you think about how the pump works. It's basically a propeller stuck on the end of a shaft, enclosed inside a spherical basket with openings all around, and larger openings in front that constitute the output. Even if all of the openings on the sides were plugged, the propeller could still pull in water in from the front openings. It's not like the more common impeller pumps where there's a discrete input and output, and blocking the input results in cavitation. 

Here's a good review of the 240 I read before buying mine (after realizing the Tunze was too small)

http://reefbuilders.com/2010/01/21/nano-koralia-evolution-water-pumps-undercarriage-peeped/


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## Freemananana (Jan 2, 2015)

Desertsp is correct. On a power head with distinct inputs and outputs, controlling the output is better. The Hydor nano can have it's flow reduced via wrapping in filter floss. I think we should all be honest though, does anyone want a chunk of filter floss pushing water in their display tank? The filter floss would get clogged with particles very quickly and be an eye sore.


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## Capecrusher (Feb 17, 2015)

Try the Hydor Pico Evo Mag. It has 0-180 gph adjustability. I have one and it's great.


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## MEandYouPhoto (Jul 1, 2014)

Capecrusher said:


> Try the Hydor Pico Evo Mag. It has 0-180 gph adjustability. I have one and it's great.


That is the one I was looking most at but I would like to know. What sized tank do you have it in? Also how much space does it take up?


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## keymastr (May 25, 2015)

just put an AquaClear 30 on it and be done. Tons of circulation for that tank, quiet and tons more bio filtration than you have now. And only one skinny tube is visible in the tank too.


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## AGUILAR3 (Jun 22, 2013)

What's your lighting and photo period? I have a 10g shrimp tank with 2 13w cfls (7hrs on) mounted horizontally with a small AC 20 and zero algae.


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## Capecrusher (Feb 17, 2015)

MEandYouPhoto said:


> That is the one I was looking most at but I would like to know. What sized tank do you have it in? Also how much space does it take up?


I first had it in a 37 gallon then a 20 gallon and also a 10 gallon. It really is small about 1x2x3 with a magnet to hold it on. The intake has a cover that turns so you can adjust the flow for exactly what you need. That is why I got it because it is so small.


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## AGUILAR3 (Jun 22, 2013)

The measurements posted are more than likely for the whole packaging and not the actual product. If you read the reviews for the 180 evo-mag, they say they use it on larger tanks at full power, a 10g at about half power, a 3g nano and even a 2g reef.


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