stocking refugium (30g) with?

[wiszmaster]

i just got done installing & plumbing up my large sump/fuge .. now comes the time to stock the fuge.

its about 30-32gallons ... 24"x19"x16"


Live Sand
Live Rock
Macro Algae ? what kind?

snails/crabs/shrimp?


Thanks,

marco

 

[Loralie]

I have a 110 gallon fuge and here is what is in mine:

2" sand
100 lbs live rock
Cheato (excellent Macro)
I also have 3 types of caulerpa for harvesting for my tangs
Misc Mushrooms
Anthelia
Rock anemones
serpent stars
blue linka
halmedia
also about 6 other really cool macro's
feather dusters
various snails
The reason I have so much in mine is I enjoy looking at it as much as the tank. there are some pretty cool sponges and gorgonias in there that are great to look at. And really cool critters.

 

[papagimp]

I'd recommend Cheato, less drawbacks than caulerpa and some others. as for livestock, I don't put anything in my fuge that may eat the pods. I have stometella snail in there to keep the glass clean but no other snails. fwiw, when I first setup my fuge, I had the pods livin' in there by themselves until I didn't think I could sustain anymore of em without causing massive populations die offs, then started running the main tank through it. I've yet to have to restock my fuge with pods.

 

[chrisstie]

When you folks use the pods in your fuge do you depend on flow to carry them out into the main tank, or do you take say your chaeto bundle and shake them into the main display?

I will be setting up one of these shortly and was just wondering a silly delivery question like that

I plan to keep chaeto as well since it doesn't do the going sexual-suffocating-your-tank-with-its-breeding-practices-gross-ahh-eww-argh!

I have heard of people keeping fish in there if there is some kind of issue of them getting along in the main display for a temporary home and even some corals if they need a place to recover after getting bitten\stung but i can definitely imagine if you keep the glass nice and clean you could certainly use it as a second mini display

 

[papagimp]

Chrisstie, well put on the cheato vs. caulerpa issue, lol. As for delivery, usually it's all on the return pump for this. Occasionally I will take the whole cheato clump and stick it in the display tank for a few days, but i also have some awesome stometella snails and large amphipods in my fuge that keep my cheato ball as clean as new. Just keep in mind, the majority of what the pump will return as far as pods go, are the water column dwelling pods and the small pod nauplii. if you have ever seen sea monkeys, pod nauplii are alot smaller than that, ALOT! so you may not notice them going into the display but rest assured, if you can see pods in the fuge, their going to be in the display as well.

 

[papagimp]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8498641#post8498641 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by chrisstie
but i can definitely imagine if you keep the glass nice and clean you could certainly use it as a second mini display

It's not going to matter if the glass is clean or not, you'll still wind up staring at the fuge for hours. Trust me, the micro life is just as facinating.

 

[chrisstie]

I can't wait And you're right those little guys are so hard to see. I guess I was thinking mainly of amphipods.. you know the ones detectable by our eyes lol ;p Time machine, fuge, mandarin fish here i come ;p (time machine to you know, fast forward 6 months or so)

 

[papagimp]

LOL, I like that, I want one too.


you can actually see coepods with the naked eye just fine, get really close to the glass and squint, there the little white dots everywhere. The larger amphipds though, such as my grammarus shrimp are much bigger, I know the large female amphipods in my tank are large enough that I've seen one that had jumped out of the tank, landed on the carpet and thought a bug had crawled in and died in the floor. (that's spotting it from across the house too)

 

[demonsp]

I used mineral mud with fine coral substrate. Useing cheato and put some live rock . Also added a few zebra crabs.Been going 4 weeks and already lots of pods on the glass.

 

[wiszmaster]

i've got tons of little pods, and some larger shrimp looking pods ... that can be seen when looking closer @ the display...

Thank You for the responses ... i'm planning on getting the fuge going soon ... maybe this weekend even .. i should pick up some livesand tomorrow ... since i have no more.