Pods/Refugium set up

[squid row]

At some point in the next 2 months I am going to start adding live stock to my brand new tank (72 gallon bow front, Eshopps R100 sump/refugium, Reef Octopus 150INT skimmer) which I just finished setting up last night.

I have never worked with a refugium before and have read that adding pods is a good idea to create a food source for coral and fish

First, is that true?

Second, I see that there are a lot of different kinds of pods sold in packages. Do you just dump the package in the refugium? How can you tell when they run out/are all eaten?

Third, should I add some kind of chaeto (sp?) first? Live rock rubble? Or just leave the refugium bare?

Many thanks

 

[hijinks]

If you have pods and want them to reproduce to make more pods.. then use put in chaeto and maybe some LR rubble to your refugium. You can find a cheap LED grow light on amazon for like $25 to grow the cheato for you.

You can either get a ball of cheato from a local reefer but you want to be sure there tanks are pest free or buy them and dump them into the refugium when it's all setup

 

[Pandagobyguy]

Dont need to buy copes they just happen

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

 

[Hal]

Pods are a good food source for fish, albeit unless you actively farm them, they will not be enough to be the main source of food. Pods also are good for biodiversity, eating things that fish don't eat.

If you buy live rock then inevitably the rock will bring in some pods. Whether the pods flourish or die depends on the number of predators, safe spots, and food for the pods. Chaeto makes a great home for pods, as does piles of rock rubble that fish can't get into.

 

[UTCReefer]

Ive never dosed pods into a tank and they always seem to flourish on their own. If you get a piece of LR from another tank and put it in your sump or display you will end up with pods all over. Unless your tank is heavy in wrasses or a mandarin you probably will never run out.

 

[squid row]

Thanks for the feedback. I would eventually like to get a mandarin which is why I was thinking about pods.

I have started my tank with Caribsea "Life Rock" and Nature's Ocean Live Sand so figured I would buy a container of pods too