birth of 2 builds totaling 30k gallons
- Thread starter hedgedrew
- Start date
I think they would help it look good until the tank grows in, but here's the real thing for me: If you don't do it now, you can't change your mind. Here's a question: If you have them ever remove them, can you have them reinstalled?
o2manyfish
o2manyfish
I think starting with the fakes to give the tank an appearance to your novice guest that comes into your home is a fine idea. That way the tank doesn't spend the next 12-18 months looking like a dark pile of colorless rocks. With the size of this tank and the distance most corals are going to be from the viewing panel some of the fakes won't be noticed. I do think that the fake corals are going to quickly overgrow in algae and if not regularly removed or cleaned going to look like a dirty pile of rocks and corals.
But I see huge benefit in drilling the rock now for the placement of these corals. And then in the furture you can remove the fake stuff piece by piece and quickly replace with either corals that you have added peg bases to. Or the big flat slabs of Marco rock, so in each location you could add a natural rock shelf that then an assortment of corals have been mounted to.
This would save a lot of frustration down the line in mounting corals in the behemoth.
And would also give you the option of being able to remove portions of your coral population from the tank easily to frag, treat, replace.
Dave B
But I see huge benefit in drilling the rock now for the placement of these corals. And then in the furture you can remove the fake stuff piece by piece and quickly replace with either corals that you have added peg bases to. Or the big flat slabs of Marco rock, so in each location you could add a natural rock shelf that then an assortment of corals have been mounted to.
This would save a lot of frustration down the line in mounting corals in the behemoth.
And would also give you the option of being able to remove portions of your coral population from the tank easily to frag, treat, replace.
Dave B
My system is comprised of a 215 gal DT w/120gal sump, 40 gal refugium and 20gal frag tank. After dealing with a major phosphate issue, attributed to overfeeding on my part, I built and added an algae turf scrubber to my system. The scrubber in combination with decreasing feeding helped a great deal in lowering phosphates and eliminating the issues I was having with my tank, (Diatoms, algae etc). My turf scrubber has a screen that is approximately 12" wide by 10" long.
Editour. So I think algae scrubber for tank this size is just too big of piece of equipment. I would be pulling alge from a refrigerator size thing and light inside nuts. Too mich work pulling all huge screens. I'll have a fuge with cheto but and of day I'm going to try a sulfur denitrator.
SantaMonica
Well-known member
You might be thinking of waterfall scrubbers. Yes those would be huge screens but I was instead referring to upflow versions which have no screens. You reach in a grab the algae as if pulling clothes out of the washer. When you shut the lid no light would escape.
I agree but disagree......algae scrubbers are utilized on systems even larger than yours....(albeit commercial purposes) ......however that being said if the sulfur denitrator acchieves the same outcome and requires less space and maintenance then perhaps that's the way to go. Prior to installing my scrubber I gave a diy denitrator some consideration.....I think the scrubber has added benefits.....once setup it really is pretty easy to service....just periodically removing the built up algae & rinsing the screen. My scrubber is incorporated into my fuge and the LED grow lights are used for both the screen and the macro algae in the fuge.
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Those internal chaeto filters are an idea that's been around in phycohology for a while with phytoplankton cultures, just applied to a larger, macroalgae. It's a neat idea similar to using a quartz sleeve in a UV sterilizer. But having the bulb inside the water tight sleeve/tube and the macroalgae in a reactor around the bulb.
Any of the turf algae scrubber methods have many benefits other than NO3 and PO4 removal. Algae is capable of bioaccumulation of many earth elements including metals, which i think have been accused of causing what is known as "old tank syndrome" along with an increase in alkalinity. IMO these are Turf and MacroAlgae benefits that may prevent events which may develop over long term, through the bioaccumulation and export/removal.
But.. reports on Sulfur based denitrators often say they can be so effective you need to take them off line when you reach the desired, lowered parameters.
Any of the turf algae scrubber methods have many benefits other than NO3 and PO4 removal. Algae is capable of bioaccumulation of many earth elements including metals, which i think have been accused of causing what is known as "old tank syndrome" along with an increase in alkalinity. IMO these are Turf and MacroAlgae benefits that may prevent events which may develop over long term, through the bioaccumulation and export/removal.
But.. reports on Sulfur based denitrators often say they can be so effective you need to take them off line when you reach the desired, lowered parameters.
Very nice.....maybe a combination of both!!!!
