What equipment do you use in your sump?

[BigUgliesNY]

Hi all, what does everyone use in their sump? I have a RS Reef Mat 500 and a RS Skimmer. My water is not as pristine as I would like and I still get some reddish brown build up on the inside glass. (coralline)?? I am researching different reactors to add to my sump. The question is, how many is too many and which ones do the same thing? I am definitely going to purchase a calcium reactor to deal with cal and alk levels. What other reactor will work on the cleanliness and visual appearance of the tank water? Carbon, algae scrubbers, biopellet, GFO, CO2 scrubbers??

 

[Wonkabar]

Uv,ozone, carbon will all help with water clarity and “cleanliness”. Do some research on each of them since they all have their own pros and cons.

 

[Freenow54]

I have a skimmer and baton filter cloth. A picture would help but if you have a light going for your mat and the light is spiling over on to the glass or acrylic then I would guess algae. I asked the same question but very little response so one thing I do use is Carbon . I don't have but intend to DIY algae Scrubber of the top of my head I don't know what you mean by a reef Mat You should ask someone that knows or research yourself if these two things rub each other the wrong way. For cleanliness I use a filter called a Marineland water clarifier . It is a stand alone filter with a5 micron filter. You can switch it up and use carbon in it with their different setup so pretty versatile and it works great . Filters last about 8 weeks depending and are available but about$8 a piece. I also like my Fluval canister filter. It has lots of bagged media you can use , And some comes in bulk ( Carbon , and Ammonia ) According to Randy Holmes Farley the resident Chemist , and water Guru stay away from bio pellets if they are White as they add aluminium to your water and I presume give your fish Dementia

 

[BigUgliesNY]

Uv,ozone, carbon will all help with water clarity and “cleanliness”. Do some research on each of them since they all have their own pros and cons.

Thank you

 

[X-37B]

Overflow 400 micron mesh socks
Chamber 1 LifeReef 28" skimmer
Chamber 2 geo 818 carx
Chamber 3 Tunze 9430dc skimmer with ozone
Kalk dosed into return
Carbon in 9430 for ozone

 

[FrugalReeferJon]

Nothing fancy, just a skimmer, heater, return pump and probe for my pH monitor. Oh, also a bag of GAC/GFO.

 

[arcwaveaquatics]

Hi all, what does everyone use in their sump? I have a RS Reef Mat 500 and a RS Skimmer. My water is not as pristine as I would like and I still get some reddish brown build up on the inside glass. (coralline)?? I am researching different reactors to add to my sump. The question is, how many is too many and which ones do the same thing? I am definitely going to purchase a calcium reactor to deal with cal and alk levels. What other reactor will work on the cleanliness and visual appearance of the tank water? Carbon, algae scrubbers, biopellet, GFO, CO2 scrubbers??

Quick question — are you running activated carbon right now? With a ReefMat and skimmer, carbon is usually the missing piece if the water isn’t looking as clear as you want.

 

[twentyleagues]

Current sump section 1 is drain to fuge, section 2 is heaters and skimmer, section 3 is return pump and ato no mechanical filtration (other than the skimmer).
180 build sump (not running yet....still) Section 1 drain lines and fuge rfug filter no mechanical places for socks should I want it, section 2 will have a cryptic fuge heaters and skimmer dosing lines right before section 3, section 3 return pump and ato.
Both sumps have room to run reactors should I want or need to, I dont run carbon if water looks off color I use coral snow have not run phosban or gfo could if I felt the need but phosphates have stayed pretty stable around .1 and that does not scare me.

 

[FMF0331]

Skimmer, return pump, heater, probes for Ph and Temp

 

[mfinn]

I try to keep my sump as simple as possible. Water flows all one way. Skimmer, refugium carbon/gfo, heater, ato.

 

[BigUgliesNY]

I have a skimmer and baton filter cloth. A picture would help but if you have a light going for your mat and the light is spiling over on to the glass or acrylic then I would guess algae. I asked the same question but very little response so one thing I do use is Carbon . I don't have but intend to DIY algae Scrubber of the top of my head I don't know what you mean by a reef Mat You should ask someone that knows or research yourself if these two things rub each other the wrong way. For cleanliness I use a filter called a Marineland water clarifier . It is a stand alone filter with a5 micron filter. You can switch it up and use carbon in it with their different setup so pretty versatile and it works great . Filters last about 8 weeks depending and are available but about$8 a piece. I also like my Fluval canister filter. It has lots of bagged media you can use , And some comes in bulk ( Carbon , and Ammonia ) According to Randy Holmes Farley the resident Chemist , and water Guru stay away from bio pellets if they are White as they add aluminium to your water and I presume give your fish Dementia

Thank you

Quick question — are you running activated carbon right now? With a ReefMat and skimmer, carbon is usually the missing piece if the water isn’t looking as clear as you want.

No, I haven't run carbon. So a carbon reactor, Reef Mat and skimmer? Will a calcium reactor and/or other reactors help or hurt?

 

[Reef Jedi]

I keep it simple with a rollermat and refuge in 1st chamber. 2nd is protein skimmer and media blocks, 3rd has carbon with the return pump and that’s where all my dosing goes in.

I also have a RedSea G2 P500 and with the layout of the sump. I decided to go refuge before skimmer. I too seem to get a brownish/red ish algae that covers the glass. It’s never been the true green algae I’ve always had in tanks past. I can’t figure out why it’s like that and it’s the only tank I’ve ever had that’s done this over the last 23 years of reef keeping.

 

[twentyleagues]

I keep it simple with a rollermat and refuge in 1st chamber. 2nd is protein skimmer and media blocks, 3rd has carbon with the return pump and that’s where all my dosing goes in.

I also have a RedSea G2 P500 and with the layout of the sump. I decided to go refuge before skimmer. I too seem to get a brownish/red ish algae that covers the glass. It’s never been the true green algae I’ve always had in tanks past. I can’t figure out why it’s like that and it’s the only tank I’ve ever had that’s done this over the last 23 years of reef keeping.

I wonder that as well about the glass algae. I cant really remember back when I had a more simple setup like I do now as the last setup ran from about 2002-2010 and consisted of multiple tanks hooked into 1 system. But in that one the algae that grew on the glass was more green than the brownish red I see now. I was thinking it was lighting. Back then I ran MH and t5, now its led. Other than lighting not much equipment wise has changed fuge, skimmer, didnt use mechanical back then either, didnt run carbon if I did it was very sparingly same for gfo.

 

[exnisstech]

Socks and skimmer along with occasional GFO in a reactor. Another has a reefmat and skimmer. I've resigned myself to the fact I have to clean the glass every other day on all of my tanks if I want the glass nice and clear. My water is never crystal clear but the only way I know it isn't is if I put some in a white bucket to see the yellow tint. I just don't do that. I can see clearly from end to end so I roll with it.
I have an AIO that will have a film on the glass within an hour of being scraped. I scraped this glass last night and this is it this morning

 

[Reef Jedi]

I wonder that as well about the glass algae. I cant really remember back when I had a more simple setup like I do now as the last setup ran from about 2002-2010 and consisted of multiple tanks hooked into 1 system. But in that one the algae that grew on the glass was more green than the brownish red I see now. I was thinking it was lighting. Back then I ran MH and t5, now its led. Other than lighting not much equipment wise has changed fuge, skimmer, didnt use mechanical back then either, didnt run carbon if I did it was very sparingly same for gfo.

Maybe it is the LED’s? I too ran MH forever and this is the first tank with LED’s.

 

[exnisstech]

Maybe it is the LED’s? I too ran MH forever and this is the first tank with LED’s.

I find the film looks red under most of my LEDs but white under a flashlight. I run heavy whites in the tank shown so it looks more green. In my other tanks with more blues it looks red.

 

[Freenow54]

I keep it simple with a rollermat and refuge in 1st chamber. 2nd is protein skimmer and media blocks, 3rd has carbon with the return pump and that’s where all my dosing goes in.

I also have a RedSea G2 P500 and with the layout of the sump. I decided to go refuge before skimmer. I too seem to get a brownish/red ish algae that covers the glass. It’s never been the true green algae I’ve always had in tanks past. I can’t figure out why it’s like that and it’s the only tank I’ve ever had that’s done this over the last 23 years of reef keeping.

First what is a roller matt , and what is it for? I also have been getting brown Algae in my main display used to be green as well. I use Fritz High Alk other than that I have no Clue. I know that my tang that used to follow me around and cobble the green up when I cleaned the glass does not like it as much. If anyone figures it out please post

 

[Reef Jedi]

First what is a roller matt , and what is it for? I also have been getting brown Algae in my main display used to be green as well. I use Fritz High Alk other than that I have no Clue. I know that my tang that used to follow me around and cobble the green up when I cleaned the glass does not like it as much. If anyone figures it out please post

A roller mat is another alternative to running filter socks. The benefit is as the fleece gets clogged. It rolls a new piece out removing the organic material before it has a chance to break down. In theory leading to a cleaner tank overall.

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/reef...=13617&indexName=brs_prod_m2_default_products

 

[arcwaveaquatics]

Yes — ReefMat, skimmer, and carbon is a very solid baseline and where I’d start. A carbon reactor (or even carbon in a high-flow bag) will noticeably improve water clarity pretty quickly.

A calcium reactor won’t help or hurt water clarity; it’s purely for maintaining alk and calcium once coral demand is high. It only becomes a “problem” if it’s added too early or tuned poorly, which can create pH or stability swings.

Other reactors won’t really help unless you’re chasing a specific issue. Adding GFO, biopellets, or a scrubber without a nutrient problem can actually cause more headaches than benefits. I’d add carbon first, let the system settle, then decide if anything else is actually needed.

Thank you

No, I haven't run carbon. So a carbon reactor, Reef Mat and skimmer? Will a calcium reactor and/or other reactors help or hurt?

Yes — ReefMat, skimmer, and carbon is a very solid baseline and where I’d start. A carbon reactor (or even carbon in a high-flow bag) will noticeably improve water clarity pretty quickly.

A calcium reactor won’t help or hurt water clarity; it’s purely for maintaining alk and calcium once coral demand is high. It only becomes a “problem” if it’s added too early or tuned poorly, which can create pH or stability swings.

Other reactors won’t really help unless you’re chasing a specific issue. Adding GFO, biopellets, or a scrubber without a nutrient problem can actually cause more headaches than benefits. I’d add carbon first, let the system settle, then decide if anything else is actually needed.

 

[BigUgliesNY]

Yes — ReefMat, skimmer, and carbon is a very solid baseline and where I’d start. A carbon reactor (or even carbon in a high-flow bag) will noticeably improve water clarity pretty quickly.

A calcium reactor won’t help or hurt water clarity; it’s purely for maintaining alk and calcium once coral demand is high. It only becomes a “problem” if it’s added too early or tuned poorly, which can create pH or stability swings.

Other reactors won’t really help unless you’re chasing a specific issue. Adding GFO, biopellets, or a scrubber without a nutrient problem can actually cause more headaches than benefits. I’d add carbon first, let the system settle, then decide if anything else is actually needed.

Yes — ReefMat, skimmer, and carbon is a very solid baseline and where I’d start. A carbon reactor (or even carbon in a high-flow bag) will noticeably improve water clarity pretty quickly.

A calcium reactor won’t help or hurt water clarity; it’s purely for maintaining alk and calcium once coral demand is high. It only becomes a “problem” if it’s added too early or tuned poorly, which can create pH or stability swings.

Other reactors won’t really help unless you’re chasing a specific issue. Adding GFO, biopellets, or a scrubber without a nutrient problem can actually cause more headaches than benefits. I’d add carbon first, let the system settle, then decide if anything else is actually needed.

Thank you

Yes — ReefMat, skimmer, and carbon is a very solid baseline and where I’d start. A carbon reactor (or even carbon in a high-flow bag) will noticeably improve water clarity pretty quickly.

A calcium reactor won’t help or hurt water clarity; it’s purely for maintaining alk and calcium once coral demand is high. It only becomes a “problem” if it’s added too early or tuned poorly, which can create pH or stability swings.

Other reactors won’t really help unless you’re chasing a specific issue. Adding GFO, biopellets, or a scrubber without a nutrient problem can actually cause more headaches than benefits. I’d add carbon first, let the system settle, then decide if anything else is actually needed.

Yes — ReefMat, skimmer, and carbon is a very solid baseline and where I’d start. A carbon reactor (or even carbon in a high-flow bag) will noticeably improve water clarity pretty quickly.

A calcium reactor won’t help or hurt water clarity; it’s purely for maintaining alk and calcium once coral demand is high. It only becomes a “problem” if it’s added too early or tuned poorly, which can create pH or stability swings.

Other reactors won’t really help unless you’re chasing a specific issue. Adding GFO, biopellets, or a scrubber without a nutrient problem can actually cause more headaches than benefits. I’d add carbon first, let the system settle, then decide if anything else is actually needed.

thanks so much. I believe that was the answer i was looking for for. And big thanks to everyone else for all the input.