Mangrove Mud in Refugium

[magyarhammer]

I have been using seachems mangrove mud in a 30 gallonish sump that is divided into 3 chambers, with refugium in center.

I have to tackle the horror of moving my main aquarium, so I'm wondering about keeping the mud versus a deep sand bed.

thoughts?

 

[bcavalli]

I dont think this answers your question. But, this is what has worked for me.

I have a group of small mangroves (7) about 24"+. I keep them in my 30 gallon breeder refugium in about 1.5" of sand and the roots are starting to grow towards the surface.

The reason i went with a shallow sandbed was to allow the roots to take hold, but also to allow me to remove some of the roots down the road when they try to find seams in the tank. Mine are growing like crazy adding a couple if leaves every week or two. I supplement with magnesium and iron and use a cheap 5k bulb and mist daily which is hugely important.

 

[magyarhammer]

Are you using mud or just sand with the mangroves?

I had some mangroves in the past, but the lighting was inadequate and I didn't have much height. I have the height and light now, so I might put some mangroves in. Right now I just have macro algae.

 

[bcavalli]

Just the sand bed. As far as nutrient export, Ive read you really need a small forest to make a decent impact. I mostly have them in my remote fish room for aesthetic reasons and it gives me something else to do when Im feeding the banished ones in the refuge. Lol. I bought mine on Amazon surprisingly enough pretty cheap. Something like 20 bucks shipped. Just make sure you slowly acclimate their salinity levels to match your over the course of a couple of weeks. I almost killed mine as they nearly dropped all their leaves.