New Build with Refugium (Only?)

[jhadaway]

I'm just now ordering my dream tank and have been all over the place with the setup. It will be an inwall install in my basement so I won't be seeing it as much as my current tank. Automating it to the extent that I feel comfortable having it more out-of-sight is eating my budget. I have a 13.5 at work that runs a filter pad and a cheato section with a 12.5 watt light on it. Cheato grows like crazy and the tank is growing sps like crazy too. I have watched the WWC/BRS Hybrid method videos and some other WWC vids. It will have coral rubble instead of sand that I will be vacuuming from time to time. What I'm wondering is how are they keeping their sumps from collecting detritus? I wanted to use a filter fleece roller because I hate filter socks but I'm concerned about stripping the water down to nothing. It happened in my current tank and now I have to dose phos and nitrate. Josh said he is running a filter sock and a skimmer about 30% of the time, that's it. I just can't wrap my head around that. Is anybody running a refugium and simple filtration out there?

 

[Formulator]

I only filter about 75% of my drain water. The other 25% bypasses my reef mat fleece and goes to a refugium which then drains to the sump after the roller. Detritus isn’t as evil as folks make it out to be. As long as its in the sump and not smothering my DT, I don’t care. Never had a problem and I haven’t cleaned the bottom of my sump since it moved to my new house 6 years ago. Its just a cryptic zone and there is about a half inch of detritus sediment in with the rubble in my first sump chamber (see photo below). Pods love it! My nutrients are just fine; 10 ppm NO3 and 0.05 ppm PO4. I actually still have to dose nitrate to keep up with my fuge needs.

@VintageReefer also has a beautiful tank and doesn’t run a skimmer or any mechanical filtration.

 

[jhadaway]

are you bypassing the reefmat with a "t" in your plumbing?

 

[Formulator]

are you bypassing the reefmat with a "t" in your plumbing?

Yes, here is the big picture. Red arrow goes to reef mat and green arrow goes to fuge, then to sump under the reef mat.

 

[GARRIGA]

Ran an experimental tank for two plus years without a WC or mechanical filtration. At first carbon dosing solved my nitrates and bulk of my photos. Last was testing a Fuge/ATS via diy HOB. Nitrates bottomed out. I don’t worry about detritus. Final journey for most tanks is inert mulm which I’m told can take a century to mineralize. Not worry about that either.

Test tank being revised to house a larger HOB Fuge/ATS. Prototype proof of concept for final design of my main. Goal is keep it simple. Slave to my tank not in the plans for upcoming retirement. Rather be fishing and enjoying my water loving new friends.

 

[exnisstech]

My new tank 84x30x25" was started with simple being priority. It is barebottom with mostly dry rock in the display. I run filter socks, a cryptic fuge and an ATS. Live stock are from another tank and most of the live rock from that went in this sump. It's only been up since March but so far everything is doing very well.
Like @Formulator I don't worry about detritus in the sump and welcome it. I had 8 years of life in the muck from the bottom of the tear down tanks sump that I scraped a bunch of it up and dumped it in the new sump.

Sump

Display

 

[TX_REEF]

on my frag system, I only run filter floss and a fuge. Frags grow better there than they do in my display. In my display, I use a reef mat and that's it.

 

[jhadaway]

My new tank 84x30x25" was started with simple being priority. It is barebottom with mostly dry rock in the display. I run filter socks, a cryptic fuge and an ATS. Live stock are from another tank and most of the live rock from that went in this sump. It's only been up since March but so far everything is doing very well.
Like @Formulator I don't worry about detritus in the sump and welcome it. I had 8 years of life in the muck from the bottom of the tear down tanks sump that I scraped a bunch of it up and dumped it in the new sump.

Sump

Display

Thats great. Is that a waterbox? Im ordering a 72x30x25 custom waterbox. 84 won’t fit through my basement door.

 

[exnisstech]

Thats great. Is that a waterbox? Im ordering a 72x30x25 custom waterbox. 84 won’t fit through my basement door.

It is, LX 330.7 it's my build thread.

 

[jhadaway]

on my frag system, I only run filter floss and a fuge. Frags grow better there than they do in my display. In my display, I use a reef mat and that's it.

i did a filter pad test on my 100.3 and i was only getting 3 days max. I think i would need to custom build a sump and double the space that waterbox gives for filter socks. I was hoping it would work. That stuff is cheap.

 

[jhadaway]

It is, LX 330.7 it's my build thread.

Great looking tank. My scape will be similar to yours. I picked up marco pedestals on clearance, busted the bottom off and cleaned off the putty. I have 7 natural and 7 flat pieces. Worked out to 2.25 ish per pound. Most are 11-17” pieces. I also got 12” arches on clearances I'm chomping at the bit to start gluing stuff together. Ill def go through your thread.

 

[Cichlid Dad]

I'm just now ordering my dream tank and have been all over the place with the setup. It will be an inwall install in my basement so I won't be seeing it as much as my current tank. Automating it to the extent that I feel comfortable having it more out-of-sight is eating my budget. I have a 13.5 at work that runs a filter pad and a cheato section with a 12.5 watt light on it. Cheato grows like crazy and the tank is growing sps like crazy too. I have watched the WWC/BRS Hybrid method videos and some other WWC vids. It will have coral rubble instead of sand that I will be vacuuming from time to time. What I'm wondering is how are they keeping their sumps from collecting detritus? I wanted to use a filter fleece roller because I hate filter socks but I'm concerned about stripping the water down to nothing. It happened in my current tank and now I have to dose phos and nitrate. Josh said he is running a filter sock and a skimmer about 30% of the time, that's it. I just can't wrap my head around that. Is anybody running a refugium and simple filtration out there?

I am. Refuge only with a skimmer mostly for o2.

This was when first set up

 

[Formulator]

I am. Refuge only with a skimmer mostly for o2.

This was when first set up

I like the simplicity! Looks a lot like my first sump. Why the sand though?

 

[Cichlid Dad]

I like the simplicity! Looks a lot like my first sump. Why the sand though?

Sand is part of the refuge and adds to the water cleaning. I only have an inch of Tampa Bay Salt Water live sand in the display. It is a display in it's itself. Bristol stars, feather dusters, full clean up crew, hawk fish and coral branded shrimp, non reef crab all make it home.