This article is from the Beginning Fishkeeping FAQ, by Thomas Narten with numerous contributions by others.
A powerhead is a water pump that runs completely submerged in a tank.
They typically attach to the ``lift tubes'' associated with UGF
filters, pulling water through the lift tube. The stream of outgoing
water can usually be oriented in (almost) any direction, and it is
common to point them in such a way that water circulates throughout
the tank and stirs up or ``agitates'' the surface a bit.
 
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