refgm question

[kevinbeth]

I have added a 15 gallon ref.. underneath my 90 gallon tank. Most of my filtration is done by my tidepool.I just wanted to add a little extra. I have it set up with a very slow flowing pump.My question what is the best thing to put inside.Does it need sand and rock? I really just want to remove nutrients at this point so could i just fill it with some sort of macro alg.. ? Is there any rule on how much you put in? Also is macro algae pretty eff.. at removing nutrients. I currently have a small outbreak of cyano, partly due to lack of consistent water changes.

 

[wbholwell]

Personally, I like a deep sand bed (>= 4in) and cheato (generally a safe, fast growing macro algae.) Many fellow reefers will give you a handful of chaeto to start you off.

 

[seedless reefer]

I have a deep sand bed, a couple pounds of rock, some cheato and a handful of mangroves.

My fuge has lots of pods which I assume are getting sucked into the mag and feeding the display.

There are also various snails and worms.

My fuge reminds me of when I first started our tank and would look into it at night to see all the strange critters.

 

[calireefer]

I would look into updating your filter. Biowheels produce too much nitrates and are better suited for freshwater tanks. I think you would be better off taking the wheel out and putting a skimmer or algae filter in it's place.

 

[kevinbeth]

I have a coralife 125 skimmer going and a phosban reactor. I have never seen and nitrates or nitrites so far. The cyano tells me something is there but so far nothing has shown on the tests.It also has 3 trays in one i have carbon and in the other 2 are filter pads.

 

[camg]

what does the cheato do exactly?

 

[george]

kevinbeth;167110 wrote: I currently have a small outbreak of cyano, partly due to lack of consistent water changes.

In the fuge or in the tank? Cyano in a fuge can often be because there is insufficient flow in the fuge. Not to be confused with flow through the fuge which you don't want to be real high.

camg;167421 wrote: what does the cheato do exactly?

It provides a medium level of nutrient export in your system by absorbing nitrates and phosphates out of the water column as it grows. Algae such as filamentous/hair (aka "nuisance") or any one of several other types is more efficient than cheato. Things like mangroves are less efficient than cheato. You'll never beat hair algae at growing with cheato, but it helps keep the stuff from blooming in the first place and compliments other filters in your system nicely.

Additionally (and perhaps more usefully), cheato and the growths on it, provide nutrients and a safe haven for microfauna (copepods, isopods, amphipods, bristleworms, etc) to flourish which provides your display tank with a natural food supply and establishes a more complete ecosystem.

 

[camg]

thanks!