Refugium Vs. Turf Scrubber??? Let's Vote and Discuss...

[Ytang]

I’ve used both. I prefer a refugium. In my opinion, Algae scrubbers worked too well for my reef tank. My LPS corals were struggling. Also, the scrubber seemed to work better as the week goes on with algae buildup since last scrape. This causes some fluctuations in nutrients, and you’re always shooting towards stability even if that means Nitrates stay at 5 or 10. After switching to a larger refugium with chaeto, along with a $70 adjustible intensity black box grow light, I have been able to keep nutrients in check and more importantly Stable. This has made my corals look better and I spend less time to manage the tank since I only have to grab a handfull of chaeto every few weeks to throw away.
Now, if I had a fish only tank, I would strongly consider a algae scrubber again because I could keep the nutrients at zero with less light energy.

 

[Urbanknight]

I have a similar issue to @Tom Blevins. With my Red Sea 525 XL, I have no room for a fuge. I have seen someone with the same system use the small top off tank that sits on the sump for a fuge. I don't have the room to do it. Therefore, I built my own ATS. It produces approximately 2 lbs of algae every 10 days. Though I believe there is a definite advantage in having a fuge (pod growth) I am very pleased with my ATS. I have no visible signs of any algae growth in my DT nor have I had an issue with high nutrients. So, in my case, if it ain't broke...

 

[Johnny M]

I use a "drop box" from Santa-Monica filtration. Drop in back of my rear sump. Uses upflow so can't cause any floods. Better than a 'turf scrubber' or refugium.

 

[Nep2nzReef]

Picked up a Turbo Aquatics L4 scrubber for Christmas this year, sits over a 100 gallon Rubbermaid horse trough that serves as my sump. My tank is a 240g mixed reef. Mostly stonys, heavy towards sps, a few zoas/shrooms, no leathers. I was experiencing some minor algae growth in the tank and just wanted to get ahead of the problem. I have a moderate fish population but feed what might be considered a bit heavy (like fat happy fish). Once the screen matured, the algae in the tank started to disappear. Still not gone but definitely headed in the right direction. I haven't noticed any changes in my coral growth or coloration as of yet. Can't see over stripping the nutrients as being an issue. Growth/export can be somewhat regulated my adjusting water flow and/or photoperiod/intensity.
I used a refugiums on a previous tank and it served as a nutrient exporter ok but not great. Loved the pod production. This time around I was looking for something that required minimal space but provided maximum results. Opted for the scrubber.

 

[Surfer311]

I don’t use either as I personally haven’t had a need for one. Run bare bottom and carbon dose/skim, works great for me!

 

[Reef-junky]

I use both

 

[Rcpilot]

I guess like any piece of equipment, there are pros and cons.

If you have the room, a properly sized refugium offers a lot more visual appeal, as well as a sort of nursery (or prison, depending on the inhabitant) for a variety of critters. Properly sized in my world, means at least 20% of the tank volume with no real upper limit. Bigger is better IMO. Again.....IF you have the room.

If you're using a sump refugium or an external refugium that is less than 15--20% of the tank volume, I tend to question it's effectiveness - based on how most people set them up. I'm sure someone, somewhere has built an awesome refugium only 7% of the tank volume, and it works AMAZING. In my experience, that's not the norm. Most are set up fairly simple.... i.e. not optimized for maximum nutrient export efficiency.

I was building DIY algae scrubbers back in 2007--2008. They weren't pretty or fancy back then. You really had to like tinkering, to build one and get it dialed-in so it would function as intended.

Again, there's a minimum size (surface area of the mat) requirement. I don't know what that size is .... I've not studied commercially produced scrubbers as I tend to prefer the refugium.

As an example, my newest build is a 40g breeder with a 20g display refugium. It has an Icecap 24 sump, which is pretty oversized for this tank. But...... I have the room.

 

[Reef-junky]

An ATS can sit on top of a sump or if made out of a reactor alongside. No need to limit yourself to one or the other. Both are just one part of a system that has many.

 

[Moo76]

I like the fuge for same reasons stated.. I have a light defusier between the return pump and fuge area. It grows algae as a scrubber would. I have to clean it every so often

 

[Bossman]

I have a HOB refugium on my Red Sea Max 260 and put a refugium in the sump of my 425XL. But, I just didn't think I had room in my 170 Max. So I recently set up one of the Skimz 127 Algae Reactors in the 170. It has a small foot print and fit very well along side the skimmer.

I have to say I thought the quality of the reactor was pretty good. Easy set up with the O-ring on the top giving me just a little trouble, but not bad. I can see the Chaeto through the clear plate on the top. Very small light bleed but with the cabinet door shut, it is not an issue at all. It does not leak any water and the pump is very quiet.


So far very happy, but time will tell how the chaeto it grows in the reactor.

 

[Braves Fan]

I bought a Px Bellum ,,