To Fuge or not to Fuge- Hang-on Refugiums

[vetteguy53081]

There have been many new aquarists entering the reef hobby replacing their freshwater systems with conversion to saltwater. While in the good old days, we used standard tanks with hang on filters, undergravel filters and the evolution of wet/dry hang on filters, we managed but still had chemistry issues. Many have entered with the same concept but without the biological concept of undergravel units are experiencing cloudy water, higher nitrate and phosphate levels and not sure what to do. The hang on units are mechanical but there is an absence of chemical and biological means.
Because they dont have a sump, there is an absence of the advantages of a refugium such as an area for bacteria to grow and thrive (biological) and an area for copepods and other organisms to thrive and reproduce. Also added algae or Chaeto can be useful in reduction of nitrate and phosphate. A hang on version can satisfy the absence of a sump both cost effective and friendly for a beginner reefer and the ability to hang on the tank and making it easy to do maintenance.
It's in essence, diversity in a box.
Some of the popular hang on units are:
Fiji cube refugium
CPR hang on refugium
AquaMaxx HOB-R

Have you used or considered a hang-on refugium unit?
If you have, what can you tell others about the pros and cons of utilizing this device?
How did your tank and coral benefit from it?

I used what was called CPR Backpack on my larger tank displays at my store and at the time were costly but effective with more delicate fish and corals I had on display. Maintaining them were quick and simple and were a great alternative at the time to Wet/dry filter units.

CPR:

Fuji:

 

[blaxsun]

Considered it - lack of sump space is the main reason it wouldn't be feasible with my setup.

 

[FUNGI]

I have large CPR HOB. Grows cheato effectively.....
Pros: no pest algae issue in DT.....
Cons: Once accidently plugged up the out line, walked away and overflowed approx: 5 gallons onto wood floor. User error....

 

[boogiesnap]

I’m very interested in this subject, I was looking at those HOB’s; really like the tunze 3181 but 4 hundreds bucks man.
I’ve got an IM 20 peninsula on a stand not a cabinet so anything I add equipment wise has to look slick because I can’t hide it. Tank is in the LR.

 

[twentyleagues]

my first tank was a biocube, it leaked about 2 weeks after I got it. Had a 32g tank I quick set up and bought a cpr fuge with skimmer built in. Worked great for growing caulerpa and pods, skimmer was so so. I still have it I had it running on my crayfish tank because they will eat any plants in the tank. So its basically a freshwater fuge atm.

 

[FishDaddy1992]

I bought an aquamaxx HOB fuge for a 55 gallon tank I had. It did great at holding bio cubes but I could never get a pod population or chateo to grow in that thing. I don't know what the problem was. Now it sits on the back of the almost drained 55 gallon tank and trying to figure out what to do with it.

 

[Stephen8169301]

I am considering on purchasing the small aquafuge2 next month so following along

Curious to know if anyone switched out the stock light with the tunze fuge light mentioned in the brs video if it’s worth the upgrade to that light instead

 

[PhishMonger84]

my sump is baffleless, i could add baffles but i have not. Does anyone use a HOB fuge on their sump?

i previously ran my HOB skimmer on my sump for space reasons- old sump had 40lbs of live rock in it.

 

[Doctorgori]

…this is indeed a option/thought…..for some of the smaller Red Sea tanks it could be the only option….
currently battling low pH & high nitrate on a 170 and G2300 and wishing had room for a fuge…

 

[afrokobe]

I love my cpr hob refugium. I still run it even with my newest tank with a sump build. I am able to keep the macro algae contained and light spill at a minimum.

 

[afrokobe]

I am considering on purchasing the small aquafuge2 next month so following along

Curious to know if anyone switched out the stock light with the tunze fuge light mentioned in the brs video if it’s worth the upgrade to that light instead

I run the tunze light and its hands down way better than the stock light. It grows chaeto like crazy

my sump is baffleless, i could add baffles but i have not. Does anyone use a HOB fuge on their sump?

i previously ran my HOB skimmer on my sump for space reasons- old sump had 40lbs of live rock in it.

I run one on my sump build. I have a trigger crystal sump and was worried about light spill. I decided to use my hob cpr fuge

 

[Stephen8169301]

I love my cpr hob refugium. I still run it even with my newest tank with a sump build. I am able to keep the macro algae contained and light spill at a minimum.

What size cpr fuge did you go with and do you have photos?

 

[Mperry622]

I have a 210(fish) + 150(Coral) + 125(coral) all in my basement plumbed to a Rubbermaid 150gal filled halfway. I attached a 55g tank with only chaeto and another leafy macro and my nitrates have dropped from 35ish to 15 and staying solid.. My only issue is my wife yelling at me for this huge array of lights that runs 24/7 lol i wouldn't run without one now

 

[nothing_fancy]

Yes indeed, I have a sumpless system AIO. I set it up with the Fiji Cube model, I find it indispensable. I ran this same tank for years without it before I reset this tank and refreshed the components. Made a huge difference to me. I pull out 50% of the chaeto every week or so to maintain nutrients, and the IM chaeto grow light works well on the back of the fuge, very little light spill if you mount it on the back of the fuge. IMO theres just not enough space in the back of an AIO for anything except a heater and ATO(s) and of course return and skimmer pumps. Most of my dosing lines go into it and two of my probes go into it. The Fijicube model is really well made however the stock pump is a no go, that would be my only gripe and an easy fix. Maybe they corrected that with the new version.

 

[afrokobe]

What size cpr fuge did you go with and do you have photos?

CPR small, here is a picture:

excuse the mess, still trying to get things organized.

 

[vetteguy53081]

CPR small, here is a picture:

excuse the mess, still trying to get things organized.

These are great units

 

[Lebowski_]

My biggest concern with adding one to my 25 lagoon would be actually hanging it - I don’t feel like the tank is designed for that kind of weight from that direction.

Lately I’ve been considering building a support for one.

 

[paragrouper]

I have the Fijicube medium for my 32 gallon AIO. It works great.

I pull a large chunk of chaeto out every week and the fish love to hang out near the outlet and grab pods cascading into the tank

 

[Stephen8169301]

I have the Fijicube medium for my 32 gallon AIO. It works great.

I pull a large chunk of chaeto out every week and the fish love to hang out near the outlet and grab pods cascading into the tank

Do you have photos of this set up?

 

[Stephen8169301]

My biggest concern with adding one to my 25 lagoon would be actually hanging it - I don’t feel like the tank is designed for that kind of weight from that direction.

Lately I’ve been considering building a support for one.

That’s a good point to think about