Garf.org bullet proof reef plenum or not to plenum??????

[ati70cutlass]

so ive been scratching my head at building my wifes 40b so that she will have no problems keeping lps/softies with minimal effort. i went back to the garf.org website and checked out the bullet proof reef. the only thing im curious about is the use of a plenumn style system under the sand bed. ive never really built this system before and am wondering does it have more benifits rather than cons. any ideas?

http://www.garf.org/bulletproofreef/BulletProof.asp

please list the pros/cons to this type of system. they say thier oldest bulletproof reef is over 12 years old with no crashes ever.

 

[syrinx]

many sysems can be bulletproof. I think the simple solution for what you want to keep is the 40 breeder with a 20 high sump- a big clump of chaeto and nice bright light over it. With good qualirty live rock and lighting your good to go. The oldests tanks are generally going to have the oldest tech- it poves that old tech works- but not that it is optimal. Sand beds of any configuration can cause added work down the line. A balanced reef does not crash- no matter what the tech used. I might use a skimmer until tank balanced- but I seldom use them anymore except for fish only and sps tanks.

 

[syrinx]

I would read up here- I did read the article and about the only thing I would agree with today is the size of the tank. I have had plenums and they were set up similar- although I ran them externally. Algae does a better job with no work. But seriously- normal output flo bulbs, cpr backpac and plenum? yes can be done and but thats far from ideal- and modern is much easier.

 

[ati70cutlass]

then you would suggest staying away from the plenum and do what ive had success with for the last 10 years

 

[syrinx]

If what you have been doing works- do it. I set up or take over tanks for people all the time. Some people are not into the hobby- and the tank is a decoration mainly- although they become attached to the fish of course. That being said- I might have to deal with a undergravel filter- a plenum- a rainbow lifeguard o ocean clear showroom or any other tech of the last 20 years. People don`t want to upgrade just because- if there is not a problem. It is only the hobbiest that will fix something that osn`t broken. Simple is as simple does- the garf system is workable- if it needs to be, but not something to set out to set up!

 

[mussel and hate]

then you would suggest staying away from the plenum and do what ive had success with for the last 10 years

For sure, unless your techniques require too much effort.

 

[zakstrong]

go simple no plenum. just keep a 2 inch sand bed. sump, simmer, heater, 150 watt halide 50 pounds of live rock.. bullet proof reef. I plugged my tank into the calculator. it seems outdated, it told me i need four ice capp ballasts and 1 or more bakpak skimmers... icecapp is out of business for one, and vho are exactly the cats meow IMO

 

[KafudaFish]

You do realize this thread is over a year old right?

 

[Alex T.]

You do realize this thread is over a year old right?

:rollface:

 

[zakstrong]

haha thank you. i guess in my search for dsb info i tapped into the archives

 

[Ciscokid]

haha thank you. i guess in my search for dsb info i tapped into the archives

Nothing wrong with information that is old. Doesn't mean it is bad information.

I have never setup a tank that is not a plenum. When i first got into the hobby in 94, I had a 55G and 75G seperate reef tanks that ran flawlessly for 5+ years.

 

[Ciscokid]

Here ya go Alex

 

[KafudaFish]

Glad you took it in a joking manner.

Old threads have valuable information and the only reason I paid attention to the date was the subject since this style has gone the way of UG filters.

As they say there is no school like old school.

UG filter + vho + 6500K MH = classic

 

[Ciscokid]

No worries mate. I just try to stick with what i know works.

I had one older friend that would only top off water and never had any issues. He had a plenum setup for 7 years at the time. I had 3 friends that had wet/dry systems that were always complaining about their fish dying and doing multiple water changes etc..

The reason I went with the plenum was that I wanted something with the least amount of maintenance and tweaking.

I have a third tank that I experiment with different things with.

 

[Crystal Sea TX]

Plenums are not old tech ...

Plenums are not old tech ...

I have been running a plenum for 2 years now in my 15 gallon SPS tank and have had several in the past. I normally use them on my SPS because of the calcium and alkalinity addition from the acid that is the by product of the anaerobic decomposition. Great coral growth no fiddling with reactors and no massive water changes to offset Na+ Cl- imbalances from dosing. Not to mention the constant testing and tweeking to ensure proper levels.

I normally would not have thought to use them on fish only or soft invertebrate systems but surprisingly I have low calcium (from snails) and low alkalinity (nitrogen cycle) in my anemone/fish system and I was getting bacterial blooms and the creatures weren't happy with the low alkalinity. I was dosing Kalkwasser and this was helping but I was doing it manually (what a pain). I made a small plenum out fo 4" PVC and hid it in my tank ... POW problem solved.

Plenums can and do solve several problems and calling them old tech is like calling the nitrogen cycle old tech ... it just doesn't make sense.