Mud or Sand in the refugium

[Freind]

Hello All
I am setting up a refugium in my sump.
I planned to add a 3-4 in bed, some rocks, algae and some pods.

I have two questions.

When I started to shop every one suggested mud is wayyyyyyy better than sand. Is it true.

2nd my baffle is 1-1/2 high from the floor and it is not adjustable. If I add a three inch bed the baffle will be clogged, so I thought to add a plastic container which will hold the sand and baffle will not be clogged. Will my idea work or I have to come up with different solution.

Thank you

 

[Small Heavens]

Hi there

It depends!

The deep sandbed can contain anaerobic bacteria.
These live deep in your liverock and you'll need to seed the sandbed or mud with liverock to get the anaerobic bacteria in there.

BUT!

They already live in your liverock.

You'll need a source of carbon (I prefer the products made for use in the aquarium but some use Vodka and vinegar as cheaper alternatives), to activate the bacteria regardless if you use the deep sand, the mud or the pellets.

I would probably use pellets for medium and small setups and only use mud if I was building a huge monster tank.

The pellets and mud keep the aeration from the bacteria, the sand bed can be stirred and that would kill the bacteria since it cannot stand aeration.

I would suggest that you get pellets, sand and liverock in there and give it carbon dosing.

Should clean your water perfectly.
Have fun

 

[Small Heavens]

Using plastic cups and liverock to contain sand seems to work fine. I have a LTA on display like that and even with sand pouring decoratively out from one side of the podium, it works perfectly and I do believe you could do it like that.

 

[Freind]

The pellets and mud keep the aeration from the bacteria, the sand bed can be stirred and that would kill the bacteria since it cannot stand aeration.

I would suggest that you get pellets, sand and liverock in there and give it carbon dosing
Have fun

Thank you very much for the detail reply
Pellets, I never saw any pallets for the refugium. Can you please advise what are those or if possible a picture will be great.

 

[Small Heavens]

(You're welcome!)
I am not sure if "pellets" is the actual proper name for it anyway, but like these here:

(Link to picture)
http://reinbiotech.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Biohome-Series-all-products-600x600.jpg

(YouTube review guy)
https://youtu.be/JFXJaRDfR1w

I have seen that brand on eBay and I got some from my local store so it is available but other brands are out there as well. Bio-pellets is kinda how I remember them.

Essentially it provides something like tightly packed clay with huge surfaces, to house extra bacterial activity in ponds or tanks, just the same as live rock or deep sand bed housing.

It is very easy to deal with, comes in many sizes usable in both bigger tanks and nanos and is helpful in building modern & optimalised marine systems. With your baffle you can use the bio-pellets to avoid sand completely but with a little extra work to contain the sand where you want it, you'll get the aesthetic refugium you wanted easily.

 

[shaginwagon13]

I'm in the process of setting up a refiugium as well.... tagging along.


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[phreeflow]

i'm in the process of setting up a refiugium as well.... Tagging along.


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+1

 

[mcgyvr]

In general the smaller the particle size the more surface area potential you have..
"mud" in this hobby is just very fine sand..
So if you want to be very um.. a nal about it then yes mud is better as more surface area = more surface for bacteria to live/grow..

 

[shaginwagon13]

In general the smaller the particle size the more surface area potential you have..
"mud" in this hobby is just very fine sand..
So if you want to be very um.. a nal about it then yes mud is better as more surface area = more surface for bacteria to live/grow..

That makes sense. What sort of mud are we talking about/where do you buy it and does t also need to be seeded or is the "˜live mud' worth the Mo eh or just hype?


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[Bulldog39]

I was just gonna use sand, some live rock and chaeto. Guess maybe I need to rethink my idea of a sump

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[ca1ore]

Depends on the goal for your refugium. I personally do not put sand or mud in mine, preferring to have a separate RDSB. That way, if something goes amiss it can easily be isolated and fixed. Sand will do nothing for chaeto or pod growth, and unless you are woefully low on rock, unlikely that you will need the bio surface area. My preferred approach for a standard refugium is a few rocks, and a ball of chaeto. If you can light it from more than just above, all the better.

My chaeto grows gangbusters and is full of pods, mini brittle stars and bristleworms. When I harvest it, I take the time to save as many of the larger critters as possible.

 

[Freind]

(You're welcome!)
I am not sure if "pellets" is the actual proper name for it anyway, but like these

Thanks again
I found it on eBay
So how should I use it
Mix it with sand
Put a small layer of sand at the top
Or just use the pallets.

While searching the pallets I found a diy video about using the Lava Rocks. Any idea?

 

[Small Heavens]

When it comes to pure trace materials I always go for EcoSystems, so I would pick their mud product, definitely.

(Link to ... mud)
http://www.ecosystemaquarium.com/products/marine/miraclemud/miracle-mud/

Mud is harder to replace/remove/work with and I guess that is the main reason to get mud compacted into less muddy substances.

In this case, a container with sand could be placed away from the baffle and you can either place pellets in a pile underneath sand and liverock so that you cannot see it, or even just place them around & under the baffle, but then they are visible and some might like that more natural look (I know I do) of piling sand on top?

Both the mud and the pellets should last super long without any need for replacement, but when using mud, I would personally use something like plastic trays to place into the sump so it can be taken out of the tank in case I want to moderate something.

Hmm, lava rocks people online said was two things, real lava rocks from lava and rocks created from smelting processes that humans make.

So, lava rocks can actually have all kinds of things in them and as long as you think about what you get and run tests to monitor leaks of phosphates, it should be a so-so safe thing to use in aquariums. They would theoretically have a ton of minerals in them and such things as iron can be neutralised by common water conditioners such as Happy Life.

I...found a place that sells the most beautiful liverock that comes from the exact same place as my favorite livestock and have been sticking with that as a maniac, so no lava rocks for me...

Have fun building sumps y'all, I am pretty sure that if every human being had one, the world would be a better place

 

[Freind]

Hello again
Just went to Petco and found two options. They are Granular. Any suggestions please.

 

[Freind]

One more question please. Actually I am trying to save money and I am keep thinking.
It just came into my mind to use the crush unpolished organic clay pottery. My wife is abroad and she can get these in cents. Please advise.

 

[Dmorty217]

I have a 10g tank with sand, a few mangroves and some macro in my sump along with 50L of Sera Siporax for my "refugium"

 

[michaum]

Hello All
I am setting up a refugium in my sump.
I planned to add a 3-4 in bed, some rocks, algae and some pods.

I have two questions.

When I started to shop every one suggested mud is wayyyyyyy better than sand. Is it true.

2nd my baffle is 1-1/2 high from the floor and it is not adjustable. If I add a three inch bed the baffle will be clogged, so I thought to add a plastic container which will hold the sand and baffle will not be clogged. Will my idea work or I have to come up with different solution.

Thank you

I set mine up with a 2 1/2 inch sand bed i added some live rocks, chaeto and some red gracilaria algae and it's doing well i have 0 algae in my MT here is a pic of my refugium: http://ibb.co/m4u3T6

 

[spdjnky]

How old is it and how much flow thru it?

 

[Small Heavens]

It is possible to add any kind of surface area to increase the beneficiary colonies of bacteria. The high-surface products that we use, have the most "possible" surfaces that can be produced is all.

In theory, if everybody had an endless supply of testkits, you should just take it slow and add to the content of our filtration and sumps, whenever we saw our liverock-surfaces not be enough to clean out all nutrients.

But since testkits are not that free, you should simply try to "overdose" how much surface your tank needs, so taking cheaper options is a good way to make sure you have everything you need and can get more if needed.

And I hope you have great fun with it

 

[PsychoticBeauty]

FWIW I would just opt for an efficient skimmer and call it a day. KISS.

Everybody wants another tank, but keep the focus on the one up top.