Fuge flow question

[xmetalfan99]

I believe strongly in having live rock in your sump with a cryptic zone. Im growing sponges, tunicates, feather dusters, and an army of mysis.

I actually got rid of my fuge and filled it with rock and it is slowly turning in to a cryptic zone. Lots of sponges and dusters growing down there now. I wouldn't mind some aptasia down there but at the same time I would be worried about them spreading to the DT. Doesn't tyree use a huge cryptic zone on his tanks filled with aptasia?

 

[fsu1dolfan]

I believe strongly in having live rock in your sump with a cryptic zone. Im growing sponges, tunicates, feather dusters, and an army of mysis.

I have heard pros and con with this type of setup...some times is can just be another area for detritus to build.

 

[Akwarius]

I have heard pros and con with this type of setup...some times is can just be another area for detritus to build.

Thats why I blast it every few nights with a powerhead. That way some of those tasty critters can make it into the display.

 

[xmetalfan99]

Thats why I blast it every few nights with a powerhead. That way some of those tasty critters can make it into the display.

+1

Many people actually have powerheads in each compartment of their sump plugged in to timers. The pumps turn on once a night for 30 minutes to get any settled detritus back in to the water column.

 

[reefer123]

I believe strongly in having live rock in your sump with a cryptic zone. Im growing sponges, tunicates, feather dusters, and an army of mysis.

I agree, slow flow/live rock and sand work out well for me

 

[Akwarius]

+1

Many people actually have powerheads in each compartment of their sump plugged in to timers. The pumps turn on once a night for 30 minutes to get any settled detritus back in to the water column.

Thats a great idea. I just dont want to keep my sump too clean because I want to give the microfauna time to grow.

 

[fsu1dolfan]

+1

Many people actually have powerheads in each compartment of their sump plugged in to timers. The pumps turn on once a night for 30 minutes to get any settled detritus back in to the water column.

I wonder if just a 5 minute time span would be even better...just something quick to move it around but no really disrupt much?

 

[Akwarius]

I wonder if just a 5 minute time span would be even better...just something quick to move it around but no really disrupt much?

I think 5 minutes every few days would be sufficient. That way the nutrient buildup stays fairly low.

 

[redtop03]

i personally would try to adjust the flow compared to the amount of cheato in the fuge/refugium

redtop that vid is awesome.... but so you think it would be more effective is the water flowed trough the cheato instead of around?

I'm not sure,but I think it's important for the chaeto to get equal lighting,when it's spinning like mine is,it should be also getting plenty of water going through it too....I still have pods deep within the chaeto and they seem to be happy in there...when I trim it back,I always shake it off above my tank and watch my fish go wild for a few minutes.....I've never had any luck getting chaeto to grow without the strong flow of water,it's working for me so I'll continue to do it this way :D

I still think it's beneficial to have a slow flow place for the pods and other such creature to thrive in...a good way to keep detritus to a minimum in those areas is to feed it from the skimmer output instead of directly from the tank drain,that way,most of the detritus is already captured in the skimmate...problem with that is those areas don't get much natural food and should be fed occasionally....

I have sponges and other weird looking things start to grow on the walls of my sump and usually do really well there until someone decides it time to clean the sump....I've been just lately vacuuming the floor out with a canister filter to remove the detritus and leaving the other stuff alone,I don't have a cryptic zone or a slow flow fuge for pods but I have planned 1 for years,just hasn't happened yet,I have a pair of psychedelic mandarins in my tank and they're both fat as bears,and,to my knowledge,they haven't touched anything I put in the tank to feed the fish with....I'm convinced that my pod reproduction is fine within the tank,so I'm not to worried about a slow flow area in my filtration system

 

[redtop03]

I believe strongly in having live rock in your sump with a cryptic zone. Im growing sponges, tunicates, feather dusters, and an army of mysis.

I tried adding some rock rubble to my fuge but it kept my chaeto from spinning,it would always manage to get tangled up in it....I'm a firm believer in multiple zones for different purposes.....I've yet to add a slow flow area but it's always been in my plans,my only intent with my fuge is to grow chaeto and it's working wonderfully for me....I'm not finished with my filtration yet :D

 

[fsu1dolfan]

I'm not sure,but I think it's important for the chaeto to get equal lighting,when it's spinning like mine is,it should be also getting plenty of water going through it too....I still have pods deep within the chaeto and they seem to be happy in there...when I trim it back,I always shake it off above my tank and watch my fish go wild for a few minutes.....I've never had any luck getting chaeto to grow without the strong flow of water,it's working for me so I'll continue to do it this way :D

I still think it's beneficial to have a slow flow place for the pods and other such creature to thrive in...a good way to keep detritus to a minimum in those areas is to feed it from the skimmer output instead of directly from the tank drain,that way,most of the detritus is already captured in the skimmate...problem with that is those areas don't get much natural food and should be fed occasionally....

I have sponges and other weird looking things start to grow on the walls of my sump and usually do really well there until someone decides it time to clean the sump....I've been just lately vacuuming the floor out with a canister filter to remove the detritus and leaving the other stuff alone,I don't have a cryptic zone or a slow flow fuge for pods but I have planned 1 for years,just hasn't happened yet,I have a pair of psychedelic mandarins in my tank and they're both fat as bears,and,to my knowledge,they haven't touched anything I put in the tank to feed the fish with....I'm convinced that my pod reproduction is fine within the tank,so I'm not to worried about a slow flow area in my filtration system

Very well put Redtop...i agree with alot of what you wrote. So what size tank do you have??

 

[Akwarius]

...a good way to keep detritus to a minimum in those areas is to feed it from the skimmer output instead of directly from the tank drain,that way,most of the detritus is already captured in the skimmate...

This a very useful tip. Im going to try to accomplish this when I reorganize my sump and set up the fuge. the detritus in my sump does get a little rediculous.

 

[xmetalfan99]

This a very useful tip. Im going to try to accomplish this when I reorganize my sump and set up the fuge. the detritus in my sump does get a little rediculous.

To bad it is limiting the effectiveness of your macro algaes. You are pumping clean water in to your fuge section. You want durty water going to your fuge, not clean water.

 

[Akwarius]

To bad it is limiting the effectiveness of your macro algaes. You are pumping clean water in to your fuge section. You want durty water going to your fuge, not clean water.

So you disagree with Redtop's suggestion? I think macros are more useful filtering nitrates out of water than detritus.

 

[xmetalfan99]

So you disagree with Redtop's suggestion? I think macros are more useful filtering nitrates out of water than detritus.

Yes I do. I never said that macros filter detritus out of the water. The detritus build up in a well setup fuge will not matter. In fact, it will gaurantee that your algae does not die when your macro algaes have used up most of the nutrients in your water.

 

[Akwarius]

Yes I do. I never said that macros filter detritus out of the water. The detritus build up in a well setup fuge will not matter. In fact, it will gaurantee that your algae does not die when your macro algaes have used up most of the nutrients in your water.

I dont quite understand what you are suggesting. I should allow detritus to build up in my fuge to feed nutrients to the macros?

 

[xmetalfan99]

I dont quite understand what you are suggesting. I should allow detritus to build up in my fuge to feed nutrients to the macros?

Yes, to gaurantee that they do not die. I know of many people that actually put food in their fuges specifically to add enough nutrients to keep the algae alive when their PO4 and trates are extremely low.

 

[Akwarius]

Yes, to gaurantee that they do not die. I know of many people that actually put food in their fuges specifically to add enough nutrients to keep the algae alive when their PO4 and trates are extremely low.

Oh now I see what youre saying. The last time I went unls my chaeto shrunk to almost nothing. I dont really want to get back to that, however. I like the idea of having something that can absorb a nutrient spike if need be.

 

[Billgax]

I don't 100% agree with (ie. would put into practice) anything that I have read here... not to say that I DISagree or disbelieve anything that has been said.
I designed my fuge (my recently sold 20H sump) to have a DSB/mud substrate, lots of rubble stacks (including around the return pump intake... to lure the pods and create cryptic zones), chaeto (not tumbling), and by no means did I ever vacuum the substrate, directly feed it or stock it with any creatures (intentionally).
The whole idea was to establish a stable 'ecosystem' that derived all it's nutrients from the water coming in. The only messing with the fuge was macro harvest.
Detritus fed the benthic fauna (peanut worms, bristles, etc), dissolved nutrients fed the macro... and the fuge fed bacterioplankton and zooplankton to my reef. My DT water quality was immaculate, my mandarin lived solely on fuge food for years, my corals (mixed reef, including many sps) were rarely ever 'fed' and grew like mad. Did I mention the system was skimmerless?
Basically, I found a way that worked for me... and I wish you the same. If/when anybody ever cares for more build details, would be happy to explain in more detail.

 

[Akwarius]

I don't 100% agree with (ie. would put into practice) anything that I have read here... not to say that I DISagree or disbelieve anything that has been said.
I designed my fuge (my recently sold 20H sump) to have a DSB/mud substrate, lots of rubble stacks (including around the return pump intake... to lure the pods and create cryptic zones), chaeto (not tumbling), and by no means did I ever vacuum the substrate, directly feed it or stock it with any creatures (intentionally).
The whole idea was to establish a stable 'ecosystem' that derived all it's nutrients from the water coming in. The only messing with the fuge was macro harvest.
Detritus fed the benthic fauna (peanut worms, bristles, etc), dissolved nutrients fed the macro... and the fuge fed bacterioplankton and zooplankton to my reef. My DT water quality was immaculate, my mandarin lived solely on fuge food for years, my corals (mixed reef, including many sps) were rarely ever 'fed' and grew like mad. Did I mention the system was skimmerless?
Basically, I found a way that worked for me... and I wish you the same. If/when anybody ever cares for more build details, would be happy to explain in more detail.

That sounds like the perfect situation. Basically self-sustaining with very little human intervention.