Triton and DSB

roer · Oct 19, 2015

Hi
I am an advocate and long term user of both DSB's, RDSB's and mud beds, as they are prestine at removing nitrate. I would also like to switch to the Triton method, but in the FAQ it says, that sand must not be used in the sump chamber with the makro algea. Can any one elaborate on that ? Whats the problem with combining Triton with sand (and UV for that matter ) ?? Does it matter which way the nutrients are exported (Algea or/and DSB) ?

Tim@Triton · Oct 19, 2015

I'll put this on here as well

As you rightly say, a well run DSB or Mud chamber can be extremely efficient at dealing with nutrients in their own right. However, with the Triton Method we base the system around the algae refugium, with the algae itself being the catalyst for the whole system.

If you run a DSB or any other de-nitrifying method for that matter then you are directly competing with the algae bed and it will not perform as well as it can.

As for the UV they are not recommended for the method as they are indiscriminate when it comes to what they remove. The Method is all about building a complete eco system from the smallest bacteria right up to the big fish and corals. The same goes for running Ozone.

But if you want to modify the method to suit your needs you can.

However, the algae bed offers more than just a method of dealing with the system nutrients. It acts as a buffer should your system have any sudden shifts in parameters, it also provides food for your corals throughout it's life cycle releasing sugars and aminos when it dies back along with all the micro fauna living in there.

Also with the Elementz tuned towards feeding the algae if you do not have an algae bed as such you may find that pest algaes appear in the main tank as they will have nothing to compete against. You may also find accumulations of certain elements not being taken up by the macro algae.

I personally can't sing the praises enough of the algae bed but of course there are many way to skin a cat, but as you can see in my opinion there are a lot of trade offs if you don't run one.

Cheers Tim