Algae reactor introduction to your tank

[mmorrison55]

Hoping to start a tank build. I’m on the fence re the refugium. They look a bit on the messy side for my prefernces. Although I’ve seen some in my LFS that contained red macro algae’s and was tumbled that looked less messy than dealing the with chaeto versions.but since I’ve heard about the pax bellum algae reactor, it seems like it could fit the bill in a smaller and much cleaner footprint.

If I were to go the reactor route, at what point in the aquarium setup should I introduce the algae reactor? From the jump, once water is added or much later after I’ve gone through the “ugly” phase and start adding my livestock, or even later after things have been established a while?

Thanks,

Mike

 

[Waters]

I personally would let your water chemistry dictate when it is added. Algae reactors can suck nutrients out of water quickly and efficiently.....definitely don't set it up until it is needed.

 

[Naekuh]

ATS work faster.... refugium's can take time to settle and have whatever is growing in.
ATS are much more aggressive at pulling nutrients because of the algae its growing, the cost of this is, if your not spot on with monitoring chemistry, things will look really great for a few weeks, and then you'll get a cyano / dyno bloom on biblical levels as one of the nutrients or all, bottom out.

Refugiums allow you to grow copepods, depending on how its setup, which is a excellent food source for your fish between feedings if they go after that. My fish are spoiled silly on frozen and freeze dried, that they don't even bother with copepods, as they feel its too much work.

They are all FAT as hell too.

 

[mmorrison55]

Hoping to start a tank build. I’m on the fence re the refugium. They look a bit on the messy side for my prefernces. Although I’ve seen some in my LFS that contained red macro algae’s and was tumbled that looked less messy than dealing the with chaeto versions.but since I’ve heard about the pax bellum algae reactor, it seems like it could fit the bill in a smaller and much cleaner footprint.

If I were to go the reactor route, at what point in the aquarium setup should I introduce the algae reactor? From the jump, once water is added or much later after I’ve gone through the “ugly” phase and start adding my livestock, or even later after things have been established a while?

Thanks,

Mike

I also meant to ask. How do you all plumb your algae reactor? Are you using a pump or feeding it via a manifold?