Refugium Sump Stocking

[Clawfish]

I am setting up a 65-gallon reef tank with a

24-10-14 Rimless Bio Refugium Sump, I have experience with a 220 and a 90 before (no refugium), I have done smaller refugium on a 29 BioCube and a Fluval Evo 13.5, but that was basically just Cheato due to space requirements. I wanted to do more of a "live" refugium rather than full of manufactured bio. The refugium area is 7.5" x 9.5" x 14" tall. I was thinking of going with some mud, a small bit of sand on top, a few leftover pieces of live rock, and the BRS refugium set-up kit which includes Cheato, Phyto Feast, Tigger Pods. Am I set with that? I have seen refugium with starfish, snails, hermits, etc. I wanted thoughts and ideas for this smaller-sized refugium to get it working at max capacity. ​

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Also, this tank is just being set up, I had experience adding a refugium right from the start with my BioCube 29 and saw a super-fast cycle but wide parameter changes after a month or so. I know setting sumping all those filter feeders in at once can halt a tank's natural cycle and believe that is what occurred in my BioCube with the drastic changes in parameters, or maybe due to the small volume, only about 20 gallons of actual water. However, I would like to build it once and just let it cycle for about 90 days without having to re-do it to make the refugium.​

So my 2 questions are:
1) Can I add the refugium right away and get it rolling? (I also plan to seed Coraline Algae to get it growing sooner)
2) What are the best and most efficient performers for the refugium?

 

[TexanCanuck]

Hey there.

My perspectives:
1) Yes, but you may actually need to dose additional nitrogen and phosphorous for the first few weeks until you get enough livestock in the display tank ... if you don't, your Chaeto will not do very well ... it needs food too! Most people have better luck when they add the Chaeto to the refugium only once they get enough biomass in the main display to generate sufficient nutrients for it

2) When setting up a new tank/refugium pair, I have only ever focused on adding Chaeto and Pods. The snails and other critters always find their way there on their own after a few months. Again, I think you'd do better adding residents to your refugium only as fast as you have livestock in the display that will generate enough nutrients to keep them going ... unless, of course, you plan to supplement feed them in the interim (with, for example, phytoplankton).

In my personal experience, I had best results when I kept my refugium completely bare and only added Chaeto. It's probably because I did something wrong, but every time I tried to use mud/substrate in my refugium I always ended up struggling with nuisance algae in the refugium itself ... which kinda defeated the purpose. However, when I kept the refugium clean and only added Chaeto (and plumbed the return from the chiller such that it gave the Chaeto a gentle tumble) I had more success. Even without any substrate, the 'pods will happily take up residence in your Chaeto.

One last note - the only thing I didn't see you mention in your post was lighting for the refugium. You won't get very far without it!

 

[Clawfish]

Hey there.

My perspectives:
1) Yes, but you may actually need to dose additional nitrogen and phosphorous for the first few weeks until you get enough livestock in the display tank ... if you don't, your Chaeto will not do very well ... it needs food too! Most people have better luck when they add the Chaeto to the refugium only once they get enough biomass in the main display to generate sufficient nutrients for it

2) When setting up a new tank/refugium pair, I have only ever focused on adding Chaeto and Pods. The snails and other critters always find their way there on their own after a few months. Again, I think you'd do better adding residents to your refugium only as fast as you have livestock in the display that will generate enough nutrients to keep them going ... unless, of course, you plan to supplement feed them in the interim (with, for example, phytoplankton).

In my personal experience, I had best results when I kept my refugium completely bare and only added Chaeto. It's probably because I did something wrong, but every time I tried to use mud/substrate in my refugium I always ended up struggling with nuisance algae in the refugium itself ... which kinda defeated the purpose. However, when I kept the refugium clean and only added Chaeto (and plumbed the return from the chiller such that it gave the Chaeto a gentle tumble) I had more success. Even without any substrate, the 'pods will happily take up residence in your Chaeto.

One last note - the only thing I didn't see you mention in your post was lighting for the refugium. You won't get very far without it!

Thanks for sharing! I am leaning towards a clean refugium, maybe just a piece of left over live rock and Cheato, once it has some bioload to help feed it. For lighting I was looking into the Reef Pico Refugium Light, link here https://www.saltwateraquarium.com/reef-pico-refugium-led-reef-breeders/

 

[TexanCanuck]

In my view, keep your life simple ... don't add anything you have to maintain unnecessarily.

So a "clean" 'huge worked best for my lifestyle.

As for adding live rock, that's just fine ... but if that means you don't get a nice smooth flow that helps to "tumble" your Cheato then I'd skip it ... Chaeto really does do much better if it gets light from all sides on a routine basis. I'd recommend you play with the flow pattern in your sump to see what you can achieve. I know lots of folks that have added a small powerhead to the refugium to get the tumble, but again, I don't like adding equipment unless I absolutely have to.

As for the light itself, that looks like a fine choice ... you will just have to experiment with the photoperiod and mounting height to get the growth you are looking for. Think of it this way, you want the Chaeto in your refugium to "out compete" nuisance algae in the display tank at absorbing excess nutrients from the water ... so if your photoperiod in your display is long, or if the light output in your display is very high, then you need to help out your refugium by increasing its photoperiod and light intensity. Otherwise, you may still get nuisance algae in the display.

Conversely, however, if you are monitoring your water parameters and you find you are consistently getting very low levels of nitrates and phosphates, then you will need to decrease your photoperiod and/or intensity in the refugium ... otherwise, the Chaeto won't have enough nutrients to keep up with the demands induced by the light and it will struggle.

Isn't this fun?

 

[Mikedawg]

Might also want to research "cryptic zone" in setting up your refugium, and even tho your space is limited you can probably arrange rocks to provide for slower flow, not as much light.

 

[Clawfish]

In my view, keep your life simple ... don't add anything you have to maintain unnecessarily.

So a "clean" 'huge worked best for my lifestyle.

As for adding live rock, that's just fine ... but if that means you don't get a nice smooth flow that helps to "tumble" your Cheato then I'd skip it ... Chaeto really does do much better if it gets light from all sides on a routine basis. I'd recommend you play with the flow pattern in your sump to see what you can achieve. I know lots of folks that have added a small powerhead to the refugium to get the tumble, but again, I don't like adding equipment unless I absolutely have to.

As for the light itself, that looks like a fine choice ... you will just have to experiment with the photoperiod and mounting height to get the growth you are looking for. Think of it this way, you want the Chaeto in your refugium to "out compete" nuisance algae in the display tank at absorbing excess nutrients from the water ... so if your photoperiod in your display is long, or if the light output in your display is very high, then you need to help out your refugium by increasing its photoperiod and light intensity. Otherwise, you may still get nuisance algae in the display.

Conversely, however, if you are monitoring your water parameters and you find you are consistently getting very low levels of nitrates and phosphates, then you will need to decrease your photoperiod and/or intensity in the refugium ... otherwise, the Chaeto won't have enough nutrients to keep up with the demands induced by the light and it will struggle.

Isn't this fun?

You know, I thought I "Mastered" keeping a saltwater reef tank. But in reality, no one ever "Master's" the hobby! The refugium is a whole other I am entering. I hope they are as beneficial as the 1,000+ Hours I have read on them! lol

 

[Clawfish]

In my view, keep your life simple ... don't add anything you have to maintain unnecessarily.

So a "clean" 'huge worked best for my lifestyle.

As for adding live rock, that's just fine ... but if that means you don't get a nice smooth flow that helps to "tumble" your Cheato then I'd skip it ... Chaeto really does do much better if it gets light from all sides on a routine basis. I'd recommend you play with the flow pattern in your sump to see what you can achieve. I know lots of folks that have added a small powerhead to the refugium to get the tumble, but again, I don't like adding equipment unless I absolutely have to.

As for the light itself, that looks like a fine choice ... you will just have to experiment with the photoperiod and mounting height to get the growth you are looking for. Think of it this way, you want the Chaeto in your refugium to "out compete" nuisance algae in the display tank at absorbing excess nutrients from the water ... so if your photoperiod in your display is long, or if the light output in your display is very high, then you need to help out your refugium by increasing its photoperiod and light intensity. Otherwise, you may still get nuisance algae in the display.

Conversely, however, if you are monitoring your water parameters and you find you are consistently getting very low levels of nitrates and phosphates, then you will need to decrease your photoperiod and/or intensity in the refugium ... otherwise, the Chaeto won't have enough nutrients to keep up with the demands induced by the light and it will struggle.

Isn't this fun?

Curious for a photo of your refugium, also what tank do you keep and what main display lights are you using?