Question about reactor placement

[sewagner86]

Hello everyone! I have innovative Marine AIO 20 gallon tank. I am currently having problems with nitrate and phosphate control. I have a reactor I pulled due to bacteria bloom and placed a UV light in its place. The bacteria has been controlled since. I just purchased biopellets and I know it will take a while before they start working. Currently in my sump area, I have the caddy with filter floss, carbon, and gfo. Then I have my UV light next to it. On the other side, there is a filter sock and the protein skimmer. Because of the tubing for the return pump, my light mount and a gravity ATO, there isn't room for anything else. What should I remove for this to be able to add the biopellets and my water still be filtered?

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

What are the parameters? To be honest it sounds like your tank is very over-filtered for that tank size. Nitrates are easy to reduce with water changes and phosphate is simple enough to remove with gfo or liquid phosphate remover. How old is the tank?

 

[sewagner86]

What are the parameters? To be honest it sounds like your tank is very over-filtered for that tank size. Nitrates are easy to reduce with water changes and phosphate is simple enough to remove with gfo or liquid phosphate remover. How old is the tank?

All the filtration devices i have are set up for the tank size i have. It most definitely isnt over filtered for what i have stocked in it.
-2 clownfish
-1 carpenter flasher wrasse
-1 juvenile flametail blenny
-2 peppermint shrimp
-1 cleaner shrimp
-1 pistol shrimp
-3 hermit crabs
- multiple snails
-multiple LPS corals including a torch, 2 hammers, a duncan, among others (they are all doing well and growing)

Water parameters tested tonight are as follows

Salinity 1.025
pH 8.0
Alkalinity 8.9
Nitrates 50
Phosphate 0.5
Calcium 395
Magnesium 1140

I do a weekly 2 gallon water change which is about 40% per month. I have tried a 4 gallon water change which didnt do much.....and yes, i understand diluting and such. I also have GFO already running. My phosphates have not budged. I may feed a little heavy in the evenings but i want to make sure the crabs and shrimps have something to eat and my clowns are pigs so i need to make sure the wrasse and blenny eat also.

The tank has been running since the beginning of January, so 5 months, almost 6. Stock was added slowly to help the tank balance with each addition and per my very honest LFS keeper.

Is there a problem with biopellets? I have done significant research on them and they seem like the thing i could use that will work and keep me from having to constantly dose them.

 

[sewagner86]

I also wanted to add, there are 2 areas where the water flows into the sump portion of tank. There is 1 return pump. It needs the filter floss in the caddy in 1 side and the filter sock in the other or it will be a ton of garbage in the sump. I could see being over filtered if it had 1 area of flow in to the sump, but its not like that. If you look at the picture, the red arrows are where the waters go to the sump, teal arrows are where it comes out (the pipe comes off the pump and y's off in the sump to make to returns. The pump is in the middle of the sump. I also wrote on there where each piece of equipment is located.