Filtration questions

[TangorRay]

I have a 75gal. with about 100 lbs. of live rock. 70 came with the tank when I got it, and I've since added another 30 to seed what was there.

The tank came with an Emporer 400, and a Marineland 350 can as well. I have both filters running with carbon and floss.

My question is, am I limiting the filtration of the rock by running the mechanical filters, and should I disconnect them? My tank has been up for three months. No fish, only a CUC.

 

[Ron Reefman]

You need to do some reading. There are stickys at the top of this forum you should read and understand. And my compliments that you have been taking your time getting your tank started. Too many people rush into this hobby and end up frustrated and quit.

Based on your question, I'd assume you don't understand how LR acts as a filter compared to canister filters, or most other kind of filters. Do you understand how the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate cycle works?

Are you testing your water for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate? If so, what are your results?

As a side note, not very many people with saltwater tanks use canister filters anymore. That's not to say they are bad or that you are wrong to use them. It's just that there are better and easier ways to do that filtration. And you really don't need to be running carbon in your system yet... if ever. Many people use it for several reasons, making water a bit more clear and taking out toxins from coral battles are the primary ones IMHO. You don't need to worry about either of those issues yet. And many of us don't run carbon at all, or only when we have more serious issues with mature tanks. I have a 200+ gallon system full of coral, fish and other animals and I never run carbon filtration. I have a 200+ gallon system full of coral, fish and other animals I never run carbon filtration.

 

[chrisfont23]

I used a canister filter for a bit on my 29 gallon. It was a Fluval 305 and did the trick. The problem though is it required religious, diligent upkeep to ensure it was working efficiently. This slowly drained on my time and wallet so I took the advise of a fellow reefer and invested in a hang on protein skimmer and some more live rock. The way I saw it, this was a big turning point for me.

Live rock acts as a porous surface to promote aerobic bacteria while your sand bed (if deep enough) can create an anoxic medium for the breakdown of nitrates. Having both together acts as that canister filter and does what it would. Your using both is kind of productive, but if you aren't religious enough in cleaning the foam pads and such within the filter itself, can get counterproductive as you simply create another area for detritus and gunk to build up and potentially drive your NO3 up.

It's really a delicate medium that can be achieved with some effort and upkeep, but is not worth it in the long run as protein skimmers, rock etc. do all of this.

 

[TangorRay]

Thanks for your response. I got it all together, and it came with about 3" of live sand. I assumed whoever had it before me had it running with the filters. I have kept freshwater tanks most of my life and didn't think anything of it, so I cleaned everything up and plugged it in.

I've done a lot of reading these last few months trying to get up to speed. I'm sure I have a lot more to do. I do understand the nitrogen cycle, and yes, I test my water weekly.

Current levels are Ammonia:0, Nitrites:0, Nitrates: 0~5ppm, Phosphates:0, Calcium:480, Ph:8.0

I'm really trying to figure out if I unplug these filters, will the LR be able to keep up with my system? Or will I get a mini cycle while the LR struggles to keep up due to it now having to shoulder the load? I have a good size CUC.

And btw, I'm not able to accept your compliments at this time. I rushed in like most newbies do. The only reason my tank has no fish is because I had an outbreak of Ich and now it is going to be fallow for 3 months. I have two fish that made it, one in Qt, the other still undergoing TTM.

 

[chrisfont23]

I'm really trying to figure out if I unplug these filters, will the LR be able to keep up with my system? Or will I get a mini cycle while the LR struggles to keep up due to it now having to shoulder the load? I have a good size CUC.

I forget the "rule" but i believe it is something like 1.5 lbs of rock per gallon - something like that. Look on these boards. It's more of a suggested metric, but will get you close. So if you have enough live rock and no bioload - and plan on doing water changes, you should be fine.

 

[anthonys51]

i would not keep a saltwater tank with fish with just live rock. imo in my cases live rock without mechanical filtration or a protein skimmer will not be good long term solution

the different between mechanical filtration (canister fliters, HOB) and protein skimmer

protein skimmer take the waste out of the water to be collected in a cup while mechanical fliter just catches the waste and hold it until you take it out later

 

[TangorRay]

I do have a hob protein skimmer. It really just sucks in water and spits it back out. My worry was that unplugging the filters would set off another cycle and kill off my cleaners.

I unplugged the canister today, Im going to give it another week or so before removing the bio-wheel. Should I move half of my LR into a refugium or sump before doing that? I have a few tanks laying around.

 

[anthonys51]

You don't have to do anything if all you have in your tank is cuc. Just don't feed them and you will be fine. Take off the bio wheel. It's not doing anything but wasting your electric bill.


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[TangorRay]

You don't have to do anything if all you have in your tank is cuc. Just don't feed them and you will be fine. Take off the bio wheel. It's not doing anything but wasting your electric bill.

Seriously?? So there's no benificial bacteria in the filter media? Also, at some point I plan to add fish to my tank again. Should I be ghost feeding?

 

[anthonys51]

There is but not enough to have it. Your live rock has a ton of porous holes with lots of surface area. Don't feed your tank it should have enough in it to feed your bacteria until you put fish in again.


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[Ron Reefman]

And when you start to add fish, do it slowly! The bacteria level needs to improve with each fish until your tank is mature enough to deal with bigger changes (like 6 to 12 months with livestock).