hygger Mini Wave Maker Aquarium Magnetic DC Powerhead with LED Display Controller for Saltwater Tank, 1600 GPH Aquarium Water Circulation Pump 5 to 30 Gallon Black

2 reviews for hygger Mini Wave Maker Aquarium Magnetic DC Powerhead with LED Display Controller for Saltwater Tank, 1600 GPH Aquarium Water Circulation Pump 5 to 30 Gallon Black

1. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   Leonard Smitham – May 7, 2025

   The Hygger Mini Wave Maker powerhead is the perfect size for nano tanks where space is extremely limited. Most of the offerings available are more than twice the size of this one, as well as 2-4 times the cost. It is a surprisingly powerful little pump for its size and able to move a fairly large volume of water and you can see this across a 2 ft. tank. The output flow pattern is very broad so it won’t necessarily blast water directly at corals near it but will create good turbulent flow patterns to break up the linear flow present in most nano tanks. The mounting setup allow for this pump to be absolutely silent. Both magnets have a silicone/rubber wrap on them and the pump uses four flexible silicone rubber mounting arms to secure the pump head to the magnet mount. The impeller cage is made that it should offer some level of protection against smaller fish or wandering nems should they get too close, but like with any powerhead there’s always that chance of injury to them so always want top keep an eye if they wander too close.The controller takes a little bit to get the hang of with how the flow type, power, and cycle speed are separated out. You also have the option of setting up to 5 different flow patterns based on hard set blocks over a 24 hour period. This allows you to have a period of gentler wave flow at dawn for example, but then stronger or faster oscillation later on, then follow it up with constant or random flow later on. You can also set all 5 time blocks to the same setting if you like.So far the only complaints are that the pump mounting tabs are made from rubber so while they isolate noise and vibration very well, they pop out of the magnet fairly easily. Reinserting them isn’t a big deal as they pop right back in, but they are almost but not quite evenly spaced, so getting them all to line up takes a couple of attempts. The other downer is these are stand-alone units and cannot link two or more together like other wavemakers can. I would love the ability to wirelessly link two of these together to work in tandem so you can place them on opposite sides of the tank.Bottom line, for the price this is a very inexpensive, feature rich, and powerful little pump and perfect for a nano tank where real estate for equipment is at a premium.

2. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   Nels Becker – December 27, 2025

   This little Hygger wave pump is a very good value. Don’t let anybody tell you that it takes $300 to build a good wave pump.The Hygger pump is low on features. As you would expect at this price. But a wave pump is a wave pump. They are propellers used to move the water inside a fish tank. The level of quality and features differ greatly among the price points. But they all function the same way. This Hygger device will move water as well as any pump of the same size. What you get in the more expensive device is a better build quality and more features. This one does not have WiFi. It has no App control. All of the control are on the included console.I use this pump to add movement to a 20-gallon long. I have it on the lowest setting. This tank has three filter-feeding shrimp. They grab moving particles from the water and eat it. The particles have to be tiny. Flakes and crushed flakes are too big. I needed enough water movement to keep the food powder in circulation. This Hygger pump does just that at its lowest setting. Too bad Hygger does not make a smaller pump.Setting the power levels, wave modes, and frequencies will take a little getting used to. There are four digits on the display panel. The first digit is the code for the time of day. A day is broken into intervals. You cannot change the intervals. You can program the power level for each time interval. Level 1 has a maximum power output of 40%. In my opinion, it should be 20% to accommodate smaller tanks. It goes up to 100% as you increase the number. The third is the wave mode. The last digit is the frequency of the waves. The lower that number, the more quicker the wave pulses. A higher number will give a gentler water movement.You may need some kind of a screen if you have smaller fish in the tank. The pump is powerful and could draw in small fish. The easiest way is to use those garlic nets. Go to the produce section of your grocery store and look for the garlic. They come in a sock-like net tubing. Wash the tubing and soak it in water. You want to remove any traces of garlic. Then cut a 2″ piece and slip it over the pump head. And there you have an excellent net to prevent smaller fish from getting drawn into the pump.This is an excellent wave pump. It is nowhere near the quality, power, and features as a Vortech MP10, but then again, it’s not $300. Save the Vortechs and the Maxspect Gyres for your reef tank. Those high dollar pumps are not needed in a freshwater tank.Highly recommended for the smaller fish-only tank or invertebrate tank. Spend more money for reef tank use.