best filtering coral

[rick12]

whats the best coral for filtering water through a fuge or sump?

 

[despot101]

I've seen people use xenia in their fuge. I'd imagine there's a few different soft corals that would work.

 

[thegrun]

Cheato (algae) is far better. You need something that grows rapidly to absorb nitrates and phosphates, then remove a large amount from the tank as a nutrient export. Xenia would be my first choice if forced to pick a coral, but the results would not be nearly as good as using an algae.

 

[Scott-CapeCoral]

I did the Xenia, culpera combo for my solana..

Was giving Xenia away just as fast as Culpera..

 

[Masterofnonsense]

If you are after filtering ability, perhaps you might want to look into sponges instead of coral.

 

[rick12]

I did the Xenia, culpera combo for my solana..

Was giving Xenia away just as fast as Culpera..

what kind of lighting are you using?

also sponges would be great as well. thanks for the tip; not sure how to get hold of sponges?

 

[Scott-CapeCoral]

That light is a 20k 150w coralife hqi. In a sunpod fixture.

 

[IslandCrow]

Someone like Greenbean is far better suited to answer a question like this, but I'll give it a shot. Many sponges tend to have a fairly narrow spectrum of nutrients they consume. Corals, in general, are far more reliant on zooplankton and glucose from their zooxanthallae than they are on direct absorption from the water. And as far as the latter goes, there seems to be very little research in the area. In other words, I really wouldn't rely on any coral (including xenia) to "filter" your water. As stated, just about any macro algae is going to be far more efficient in that area.

 

[RobbyVonAwesome]

Sorry to hijack the thread, but there's a reason caulerpa is banned in California, and should be banned in every single state.

Click here for information on why caulerpa should be illegal in all 50 US states (especially Florida):http://www.sccat.net/#the-caulerpa-information-center-1e86c5

Ok, getting off my soapbox now.

If I HAD to choose a coral for a refugium, I also would go with xenia. However, cheatomorpha algae does a better job at nutrient export.

 

[jacklink]

I harvested myself some nice caulerpa off Key Largo a few months back on a road trip through Florida. Someone must have dumped their trimmings out in the area I was hunting in.... Thanks Trim Dumper!!!:dance:

 

[RR37]

I have tried xenia in the past, however it did make its way into the display which is not something I wanted to see happen...

 

[rick12]

thanks for the replies. i am aware of the value of macro algae in the sump. looking for corals that others may use/recommend. what about GSP? will mushrooms filter water much?

 

[aleonn]

Wow, I never considered Xenia as filtering coral, that's pretty cool. Chaeto is still best, though. I'd avoid sponges in the refugium in case there's microbubbles, which would kill the sponges.

 

[jeff@zina.com]

whats the best coral for filtering water through a fuge or sump?

Corals aren't filters and are useless in that regard.

Jeff

 

[jeff@zina.com]

I harvested myself some nice caulerpa off Key Largo ...

Depending on the specific variety (Taxifolia), it's illegal to collect and transport out of Florida.

Unfortunately, most of it is still legal. And fools are still dumping it. Please don't continue the pattern, although congrats on your score. Not sure how bad it's gotten in the keys, but there are some areas over run by the stuff, solely the responsibility of saltwater aquariums.

Jeff

[EDIT] I should add that there are native species of Caulerpa in Florida and that most Caulerpa species aren't the toxic Taxifolia [/EDIT]

 

[rick12]

Corals aren't filters and are useless in that regard.

Jeff

wow! absolutly no corals that filter water?

 

[despot101]

Corals aren't filters and are useless in that regard.

Jeff

What? What do you base this on?

 

[greenbean36191]

Sorry to hijack the thread, but there's a reason caulerpa is banned in California, and should be banned in every single state.

Click here for information on why caulerpa should be illegal in all 50 US states (especially Florida):http://www.sccat.net/#the-caulerpa-i...-center-1e86c5

The three most common species, Caulerpa taxifolia, C. racemosa, and C. serrulata are all native to Florida. If they were to make it back into the ocean, the only concern would be any pests or diseases that might hitchhike back with them- a concern that applies to ANY species being re-released into the wild. It's hard to justify singling out Caulerpa for a ban in that regard as it's no worse than any other species in captivity. I also fail to see the justification for a ban in land-locked states where there is no risk of the algae making it to the ocean.

 

[greenbean36191]

Corals aren't filters and are useless in that regard.

Any animal with zoox is a nutrient filter. However, some are terrible filters in that they don't even break even because the N and P excreted by the animal exceeds what is taken up by the zoox. In most corals, that's the case since they cannot balance their nutrient budget without feeding. The N from their food gets excreted and some is taken up by the zoox and some simply adds to the DIN.

Aside from being one of the fastest growing corals, Xenia is often recommended as a form of nutrient export because it does not have a functional gut and therefore cannot feed. It has to get its nutrients from the water.

Its also worth noting that most sponges, including all cryptic species are net sources of DIN and P, not consumers. They can filter out particulate food, (mostly bacteria, which makes up the bulk of most coral diets as well) and then excrete the waste as dissolved nutrients. They're no more useful as nutrient filters than a fish.

 

[reefWW96]

sponges are excellent filters, along with tunicates (sea squirts)..... also, sponges take
co2 out of the water and exchange it for oxygen.