What I'm doing with my ATS

[philosophile]

Hi everyone, I just wanted to share what I'm doing with my ATS. I have my ATS as a supplement to my tank filtration. I run a skimmer 24/7. My sump is divided into three parts, and my ATS flows into my refugium.

The screen for my ATS goes below the waterline, so I can have shore shrimp graze from it. The idea is that eventually they'll spawn, and feed my corals.

If I need to grow more algae, I have a rigid airline tube that I shaped as a hook, to lift the bottom out from the water which makes the screen a little more horizontal, and algae grows back on the screen in about a day.

I made a video so you can see it here: http://youtu.be/uTA-bmiqQsg

 

[thejuggernaut]

How much do the shrimp actually eat? How often are you having to harvest. Reason I ask is because if the only thing cleaning the screen is the shrimp, and you aren't manually scraping it a few times a month, then you aren't really removing the nutrients. Although you could say you aren't adding any either. Because without the scrubber, you would have to be introducing more food to feed the shrimp. Either way it's a cool project and the shrimp look fun to watch.

 

[rt67ghy]

Nice idea with the shore shrimp.

 

[philosophile]

How much do the shrimp actually eat? How often are you having to harvest. Reason I ask is because if the only thing cleaning the screen is the shrimp, and you aren't manually scraping it a few times a month, then you aren't really removing the nutrients. Although you could say you aren't adding any either. Because without the scrubber, you would have to be introducing more food to feed the shrimp. Either way it's a cool project and the shrimp look fun to watch.

The shrimp can actually clean the part of the screen that is in the water, partly because when under the water the screen doesn't grow algae as well. I clean the rest of the screen about every week.

I usually leave it down for a couple of days, and then lift it up for a day, then out it back down a couple of days. I supplement feed them the day I leave it up with maybe a few pellets.