sammy33
Member
Prop system update
Prop system update
The new sump is working well for the prop system. I found my Mag 9.5 pump (950 GPH) and hooked it up to the system and was a bit disappointed with the performance. It was just way too much flow so I downsized it to a Mag 7 (700 GPH) which seems to be more manageable but is still on the high side. The problem is that it is difficult to balance the flow to the tanks without really cranking down on the ball valves and also the high GPH seems to generate micro bubbles. I will likely go down one more notch to a Mag 5 (500 GPH) and then have some additional flow in the tanks (airlifts?).
Refugium
I had some leftover aragonite sand that I added to the refugium. This gave me a nice deep sand bed as a refugium base. I also have some cheato macro algae and live rock rubble that I can add to the refugium. The light is an 18 watt PC with a 7100K lamp. The 13ââ"šÂ¬Ã‚ width fits the tank nicely.
It took me a couple of days to get the system filled up with saltwater. My 100GPD RO/DI seems to be running a bit slower these days and likely needs a new membrane since it is about 4 years old. I have been getting a reading of 6-7 ppm on my TDS meter even after changing out my DI resins. I am going to change the sediment filter & carbon blocks and if this does not do the trick then I am going to get a new membrane.
Skimmer?
I am still ââ"šÂ¬Ã…"œon the fenceââ"šÂ¬Ã‚ when it comes to a protein skimmer. After reading some others experiences with soft coral propagation I am considering running the system without a skimmer and using the refugium and carbon for my primary nutrient export and filtration. I expect to get slightly faster growth by keeping some of the nutrients in the system that may get depleted by a skimmer. Check out Farmertodd and his thoughts on skimmers -
http://reefs.org/library/farmertodd/
Prop system update
The new sump is working well for the prop system. I found my Mag 9.5 pump (950 GPH) and hooked it up to the system and was a bit disappointed with the performance. It was just way too much flow so I downsized it to a Mag 7 (700 GPH) which seems to be more manageable but is still on the high side. The problem is that it is difficult to balance the flow to the tanks without really cranking down on the ball valves and also the high GPH seems to generate micro bubbles. I will likely go down one more notch to a Mag 5 (500 GPH) and then have some additional flow in the tanks (airlifts?).
Refugium
I had some leftover aragonite sand that I added to the refugium. This gave me a nice deep sand bed as a refugium base. I also have some cheato macro algae and live rock rubble that I can add to the refugium. The light is an 18 watt PC with a 7100K lamp. The 13ââ"šÂ¬Ã‚ width fits the tank nicely.
It took me a couple of days to get the system filled up with saltwater. My 100GPD RO/DI seems to be running a bit slower these days and likely needs a new membrane since it is about 4 years old. I have been getting a reading of 6-7 ppm on my TDS meter even after changing out my DI resins. I am going to change the sediment filter & carbon blocks and if this does not do the trick then I am going to get a new membrane.
Skimmer?
I am still ââ"šÂ¬Ã…"œon the fenceââ"šÂ¬Ã‚ when it comes to a protein skimmer. After reading some others experiences with soft coral propagation I am considering running the system without a skimmer and using the refugium and carbon for my primary nutrient export and filtration. I expect to get slightly faster growth by keeping some of the nutrients in the system that may get depleted by a skimmer. Check out Farmertodd and his thoughts on skimmers -
http://reefs.org/library/farmertodd/
