Aqueon Evolve 8 - pros/cons?

Evolves use low power 5mm through hole LED's. It's sufficient lighting to grow low light corals and low to medium light plants. But it's not going to compare to high power 1 watt chips. Which is probably why the Nuvo costs so much more.

Not sure what you mean by the Nuvo pump being 92 watts per gallon. A small water pump that uses 92 watts is horrendously inefficient. Did you mean 92 gph?
 
Yes, sorry, 92 gph… So when comparing the lights on Nuvo should be able to handle corals that require more light it seems. However, one could also upgrade the 8's lighting. I know acrylic can scratch easier than glass but I've also hears that acrylic is clearer. Thanks again.
 
Acrylic is softer and has better clarity than glass. It will scratch more easily, but the scratches can be polished out. Glass takes more effort to scratch, but once scratched it's permament.

And yes you can upgrade the lighting to get brighter light out of it. There are many small gooseneck LED fixtures available today.

Andy
 
Replacement Pump for Evolve 8?

Narwhal72 said:
If your Evolve came with the larger SP 98 pump you can request the smaller SP 55 pump from Aqueon Customer Service which would be better for bettas.

Evolves were originally designed for the pico and nano planted tank and reef market and weren't really designed for bettas. New Evolve 2's come with the smaller pump but the first two years of production had the higher flow rate SP 98.

Andy
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I don't see an "SP 98" here:
http://www.aqueonproducts.com/products/utility-pumps.htm

What is the replacement pump for the Evolve 8? All pumps die, so I want to have a backup on hand before starting a nano-reef. I ran a successful JBJ 28 from when they were first launched, but had to get rid of due to a move and am starting over.
 
Aqueon does not sell the SP-98 or SP-55 pumps separately. They are components that come in a kit (there is also an SP-30 used in the Bettafalls). The Aqueon Utility pumps come from a different vendor. You could use the Aqueon 400 as a replacement.
 
I just got an Evolve 8 on clearance from Petco. Mine appears to have been opened and then returned, and it's considerably scratched up. I'm using it for gammarus shrimp and snails, so the scratches aren't an issue and were mostly visible before I set it up. (The included coupons expired in 2012, so I know this tank has been sitting on the shelf for a while.)

However, the pump is very loud and way too strong - creating a very strong current through the entire tank on the lowest setting. I set the tank up in my bedroom, so have to unplug the pump in order to sleep. I had the pump securely placed on the bottom of the reservoir, all 4 suction cups firmly attached. I ordered a 40 gph pump from Amazon to see if it's quieter - I have 2 smaller nano tanks set up with 40 gph pumps, and they are silent.

I love the Evolve 8, and want another one. They are now kind of hard to find, tho. Are they still being made? I much prefer something like this over the cheaper plastic 1 and 2 gallon tanks. I'd also welcome a larger sized Evolve, but I understand the cost/pricing issue. Being on clearance was a small factor in my purchase, the bigger selling point was the day/night LED, hidden filtration, and tank size.
 
The SP-98 is a 98 gph pump.

When the Evolve's were first developed they were designed for people that wanted to setup small planted tanks or marine aquariums so we went with a fairly powerful pump to provide strong water movement required for these kinds of tanks. Most of the strong water flow is the result of the small outlet jet which concentrates the water flow. It's actually less flow than an Aqueon 10 power filter.

It would definitely be too strong for a tank for Gammarus shrimp. The 40 gph pump is a better choice.

Most of the noise is due to vibration of the pump causing resonance with the filter walls and aquarium. If you take a piece of filter padding and wrap the bottom and back of the pump you can stop a lot of the resonance.

Evolve's are still in production and they are still available from a number of retailers but that number is decreasing and the product is approaching the end of it's life cycle.

Andy
 
Narwhal72 said:
Evolve's are still in production and they are still available from a number of retailers but that number is decreasing and the product is approaching the end of it's life cycle.

Andy
Click to expand...

I know you're not allowed to say much but should we expect something new and improved soon, or is it a not enough sales issue?
 
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