DSB in a bucket for nitrate control

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fab to see the updates and critiques/discussions overall :)
Kudos to all for sharing the information and contributions.

It is a bummer when a good thread gets so long that some folks get put off enough to not read enough of it and be helped/served.

I don't see myself having the time in the near future to consolidate the info or scribe an article... but if some Good Samaritan feels inclined to start a new thread with summary ;) ;) ;) I'm sure lots of folks would be much obliged :P

It would be a great service to the hobby/board.

(was that shameless enough?)

PS- a thought/consideration for the folks seeing no reduction but a status quo on nitrate levels: your nitrates rose to X level prior to the addition of a RDSB, but have levelled off perhaps in part due to the assistence of your RDSB faculties. That statement makes a lot of presumptions of course. But for folks with moderate to weak water change schedules, steady to increasing feeding regimes for steady to growing bioloads of fishes, corals, etc., and no other change in filtration dynamics from before.... it may well be true (the RDSB is at least preventing the nitrates from climbing higher). In such cases I suggest you consider how it is that you can fine tune your system with tighter control of nutrients making it into the tank, improving nutrient export by more aggressive skimming and/or water changes, more frequent harvest of banked nutrients (vis a vis vegetable filters/refugia or even more systematic harvest of coral growth/frags and/or macroalgae). Of course... a larger RDSB may help too. FWIW

kindly, Anth-
 
Condensing the information might be a good idea. I am currently working on my website and once I get it up and running I will be more than willing to re-read the thread and try to pull out all the relevant information. I won't promise this will be tomorrow and I will probably need reminding in the coming weeks but never-the-less I will do it.

Thanks for the post Anthony and that useful advice on the nitrates. Do you want to try testing a RDSB as well and test some results for us? I assume you have a tank, a bucket, and a pump laying around (or a couple dozen ;o) I'm just kidding, but thanks again on the post.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6653889#post6653889 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Anthony Calfo
PS- a thought/consideration for the folks seeing no reduction but a status quo on nitrate levels: your nitrates rose to X level prior to the addition of a RDSB, but have levelled off perhaps in part due to the assistence of your RDSB faculties. That statement makes a lot of presumptions of course. But for folks with moderate to weak water change schedules, steady to increasing feeding regimes for steady to growing bioloads of fishes, corals, etc., and no other change in filtration dynamics from before.... it may well be true (the RDSB is at least preventing the nitrates from climbing higher). In such cases I suggest you consider how it is that you can fine tune your system with tighter control of nutrients making it into the tank, improving nutrient export by more aggressive skimming and/or water changes, more frequent harvest of banked nutrients (vis a vis vegetable filters/refugia or even more systematic harvest of coral growth/frags and/or macroalgae). Of course... a larger RDSB may help too. FWIW

kindly, Anth-
Click to expand...

Thanks Anthony, This was missing in the conversation and is particularly thoughtful, as we all need to be with our experiments and our tanks.

> Barry :)
 
I'm on day 30 of two RDSBs on 2 separate tanks. While there is no measurable effect yet, I am patient and didn't expect to see anything just yet.

Tank1:
100 gal, 20 gal sump, 100lb live rock, 1.5 in crushed coral substrate
1Hippo, 2 huge clowns, 2 damsels, 1 blenny, 1 fat mandrin, critters, softies, anenomes
All fish are big eaters and generous contributors to the waste load
Some slight hair algae on one rock, but its been around for 2 years and stable, not spreading.
Nitrates 50-60

Long term, I'll be removing the crushed coral from here and replacing with proper sand. The coral was a novice mistake when I inherite the tank.

This RDSM is built with a 5gal glass carboy and a drilled rubber stopper for in/out hoses. Its powered by a Maxijet 900. There's a little air trapped in the bottle, as well as some sand foam. The bottle is in a dark cabinet. Water from the display entering the sump goes through a 100 micron filter sock before the RSDB, so there is no visable detrius entering the RSDB carboy.

Tank2
60 gal, 40 gal sump [Trash can], 40 lbs live rock, 2 inch sand
2 small clowns, 1 jawfish, cleaner shrimp, clam, softies, anemome
Persistant bubble algea, tank was negleted for months before I adopted it.
Nitrates 30-40

This RSDB is a 5 gal salt bucket in the trash can sump. The bucket is on a pvc frame to keep its top level with teh top of the trash can, and the skimmer [sitting on the lid of the can] discharges with a elbow into the RDSB bucket. The rim of the bucket is drilled with 3 rows of holes to drain water as it circulates. The lid of the trash can keeps the RSDB and sump dark. Water from the display entering the can goes through a 100 micron filter sock, then through the skimmer before the RSDB, so there is no visable detrius entering the RSDB bucket.

I'll report back each month on the nitrate changes.

Thanks for all the great ideas, everyone!
 
I posted a long time ago about building a bucket system with silica sand. I said I would report back on how it works. Well, I never built the bucket. I did something a little different. I kept the silica in the sump, but about 6 inches of it and after about 4 months I am almost GHA free. My Cheato is almost 2' x 2'. After testing last night I am perfect with water quality.
- Nitrates 0
- Nitrites 0
- Phos 0
- Amonia 0
- Calcium 420
- DKH 11

The silica works fine and as for the bucket deal. It's not needed, but a good thing to do if you have algae problems. I believe it works 10-times better than any DSB. I believe the bucket is the best thing for those who have a need for EXTREME filtration.

I encourage people to use the bucket full of sand. It sounds very logical. Not only that, just think about all the crap we try, and our GHA still stays in our tanks. We end up cooking our rocks, or we fight the crap for months and months. We might as well stick with the bucket. It seems to work for everyone who has tried it so far.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6653889#post6653889 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Anthony Calfo
fab to see the updates and critiques/discussions overall :)
Kudos to all for sharing the information and contributions.

It is a bummer when a good thread gets so long that some folks get put off enough to not read enough of it and be helped/served.

I don't see myself having the time in the near future to consolidate the info or scribe an article... but if some Good Samaritan feels inclined to start a new thread with summary ;) ;) ;) I'm sure lots of folks would be much obliged :P

It would be a great service to the hobby/board.

(was that shameless enough?)

PS- a thought/consideration for the folks seeing no reduction but a status quo on nitrate levels: your nitrates rose to X level prior to the addition of a RDSB, but have levelled off perhaps in part due to the assistence of your RDSB faculties. That statement makes a lot of presumptions of course. But for folks with moderate to weak water change schedules, steady to increasing feeding regimes for steady to growing bioloads of fishes, corals, etc., and no other change in filtration dynamics from before.... it may well be true (the RDSB is at least preventing the nitrates from climbing higher). In such cases I suggest you consider how it is that you can fine tune your system with tighter control of nutrients making it into the tank, improving nutrient export by more aggressive skimming and/or water changes, more frequent harvest of banked nutrients (vis a vis vegetable filters/refugia or even more systematic harvest of coral growth/frags and/or macroalgae). Of course... a larger RDSB may help too. FWIW

kindly, Anth-
Click to expand...

Nice to have you back. you were missed.
 
Update...week 6

added a yellow tang

HA has really subsided...now there are some patches here and there. I think the yellow tang is finishing it off.
 
I plumbed in my 5 gallon bucket last night so I'm ready to go.
I haven't added the sand yet, 'cause I wanted to make sure the plumbing was fine first.
I connected it to the outflow from my ASM skimmer and it seems to flow nicely.
I'll post updates periodically.
 
Would it be ok or beneficial to plant mangroves in the RDSB?

I was thinking about running lines to an end table in my sunroom, placing tank (painted) on the table and doing RDSB and planting Mangroves letting the RDSB double as decoration.

Anybody got ideas on this?
 
Do mangroves disturb the sand enough to cause problems? I have no experience with mangroves but assumes that it would be ok, but probably not beneficial for the RDSB. Am I wrong?
 
ok point made. But, I already have 0 nitrates b/c of my DSB in my tank and refugium. I guess what I am asking is will it hurt anything to have a 'Mangrove Refugium' tied into my system? I want deeper sand and a larger surface area so I can plant several trees and have them grow to a larger size and grow prop roots. Essentially making a 'keys' type mangrove ecosystem tank in my sunroom w/ maybee a fish or two and hermit crabs/ snails.

I don't see the roots disturbing the anerobic zone too much but maybee I'm wrong. I would like to get others opinions/ ideas on this if you have any.
 
Hoping to do the same thing, tank and plumbing ready, just need to make the committment to get the refugium up and going - lots of wishes, so little time. This hobby would be great if you didn't have to work to support it
 
no kidding ewest99 if only i could spend a whole week on my tank......

anyways back to reality. The mangroves: I think they will grow prop roots even if you submerge the bottom of the seed in the sand. I am not 100% about this but that is what I understand. Anybody else care to chime in?
 
even if suspension is key it wouldn't be that hard to suspend the seeds above the sand but still in the water in the setup I am talking about.
 
Go Rustybucket !

Still, some studies have pointed out that mangroves generally supply more nutrients to the reef water, than they take up.

Search E. borneman - mangroves.

> Barry :)
 
It's killin' me - that 5 gallon bucket all plumbed and ready to go, already checked for leaks in the tub, filled with sand and sitting by the cabinet begging to be put to use.
Wasn't so bad until I got to come home from work last night for an hour and had to see it.

Anxious to see any possible effects on the small area of red slime in one corner.
 
It's killin' me - that 5 gallon bucket all plumbed and ready to go, already checked for leaks in the tub, filled with sand and sitting by the cabinet begging to be put to use.
Wasn't so bad until I got to come home from work last night for an hour and had to see it.

Anxious to see any possible effects on the small area of red slime in one corner. Hoping bringing down the nitrates will prevent some of the time involved in trying to clean the rock/gravel.
 
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