refugium set up

F

fishyfish22

Member
is a 5 gallon takn a good setup for a refugium for a 120 gallon? where can i find a 5 gallon tank near palatine? what else do i need for a refugium? i have chaeto. do i need lr in there?
 
Honestly IMHO ANY fuge is better than no fuge at all. I only have a 29 gallon with limited room and I am using an old skimmer with a powerhead throttled back that I stuffed with sand and different macros and it grows pods like crazy with a submersible halogen light. Since I installed it my PO4 has lowered a little but even a little is still a lot IMO.

Do you have a Meijer out by you? They have an attractive rimless 5 gallon. Liverock is good but you really only need a thick layer of substrate.
 
does a refugium really need a skimmer? it needs to be in the stand. i don't really want something too expensive, just a 5-7.5 gallon tank is all i need.
 
I think you misunderstood me. I USED an old skimmer to make a mini hang on the back fuge. No a skimmer is not necessary nor do I believe recommended for a fuge.

The 5.5 gallons cost more than the 10 gallons for some reason but you can get one at Walmart for $15
 
No on play sand.
Just get cheap aquarium salt-water sand substrate from Petco if you are on a low budget. As long as you have a established bacteria base already in your tank the sand will become "livesand"..otherwise there may be some guys on this site who have extra substrate lying around.
 
Do you have a sump? If not you can always DIY a refugium inside of a 5.5 gallon sump...it will be small but you say your stand is small. There are very simple instructions all over the interwebz on how to do it with some acrylic and some aquarium silicone.
 
I'd recommend on using the 5 gallon, better yet 10(cheaper), sitting under the tank. With a skimmer in there. This means that if you have Nitrate problems, you could always start some simple, and also very cheap, carbon dosing. As opposed to Macroalgae which will need light. Last time somebody asked, people offered up skimmers to borrow until funds came up.
 
Got me thinking and I forgot I actually have a 5.5 gallon that I used to use as a fuge...silly me. I had a divider in it and there is some silicone on walls you just need to scrape off but you can have it for free if you can make it to Aurora.
 
wow. i really wish i was closer to chicago. sorry, i can't make the drive. i really wish i could though. i have a 10 gallon but that's my qt tank, and i don't think it will fit in there. i could try to see if that fits and if it does get another one. how do i find the diy thing for the sump?
 
you can look around on the pay it forward thread for live sand donations... I have a 6" layer of fine sand in my fuge, couple pieces of rubble, and my tank is rockin'... Like someone said, ANY fuge is better than no fuge. I wish mine was 10x larger, but it is what it is!
 
fishyfish22 said:
wow. i really wish i was closer to chicago. sorry, i can't make the drive. i really wish i could though. i have a 10 gallon but that's my qt tank, and i don't think it will fit in there. i could try to see if that fits and if it does get another one. how do i find the diy thing for the sump?
Click to expand...

You can do something sumilar to this http://www.remsreef.com/2009/12/diy-sump.html ...just copy the design and make your own using acrylic sheets.
 
don't really have access to many materials. so i can't really make my own refu. like that. if it was attaching a tank on to it MAYBE my dad might help me, but i can't really get more sheets like that. mostly because i don't know where to get them from.
the link below isn't my forum but the picture on one of the first few posts in what my sump looks like. bioballs and under is carbon. i have 2 of the big square pump one rio and one viaaqua, they are pretty big and take up most of the area in there.
http://www.tonmo.com/forums/showthr...p-to-buy-And-where-to-have-the-PS-return-flow...

i have a tube on the right hand side built into the sump that leads to the skimmer. it is an external skimmer with the bottom being a box. i was thinking the water going from there into the 5 gallon and a pump going from the five gallon into my dp. or if there is another type of tank that has the size of it but maybe taller would be better.
 
Doesnt necessarily have to have sand in it... just cheato would be fine. What kind of lighting are you going to use?
 
I would suggest a fuge light with a temperature of 4500K myself for chaeto. I tried a 6500K and it kept killing chaeto. I tried a 3000K and it grew to slowly...finally I found a CFL with 4500K and it was like the hotspot. The porridge was just right and I grow an inch a day in my sump section.
The halogen I have submerged in my HOB fuge actually grows it pretty fast also but I wouldn't suggest it as you have to replace the bulbs too often.
 
jkf1983 said:
THanks for the link! I'll have to try this.
Click to expand...

Personally I have a pair of those at 6500K running on 23Watts, and Chaeto growth is very good. I'm looking to switch to LEDs, I need to get a smaller light spread, too much Coraline Algae growth on my Skimmer.
 
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