Saltwater Aquarium Success System. Anyone bought it or know if it is even worth buying?
Seen this on FB.
- Thread starter charlieborg
- Start date
jbartell123
New Member
The keys to my success: Filtration: large protein skimmer, filter floss, live rock (though not a lot). Carbon: Instant Ocean nitrate reducer, bio-pellet reactors -- to reduce nitrates and water changes. Food fed twice daily: generous amounts so that the fish stay healthy with both frozen and flake, all with green stuff for the Tangs, which also get one sheet of Noori Sea Weed per day. Minimal water changes: 5 gal per week for 85 gallons of total system volume; small changes to reduce the stress for the fish. Parameters: 1.025 specific gravity (compromise for fish and inverts), nitrate 5 ppm, temp 75-78 degrees. Backup: air stone, air pump, UPS to run 24 hours without power. Reliable Sicce and Hygger pumps. Lots of flow with 3 power heads. Additives: Kent Purple-up for calcium and carbonate, SeaChem Reef Plus vitamins, Instant Ocean Reef Accelerator for minerals, all added once daily. 1.3 Watts LED/gallon with half Actinic blue for light with 12 hours of light per day. That combination works well for me. And it supports 6 Tangs, 2 Gobies, 6 shrimp, 15 snails, 25 crabs, 6 small clown fish, 1 Angel fish and several corals in a 75 gallon tank.
You run carbon 24/7?? and why not a lot of live rock(Best filter period!)
I do!
I have heard many people cautious about running carbon 24/7, claiming that it strips too many nutrients. I don't seem to get that result. I feed pretty heavily and have no issues.
Eric_n_Ga
Well-Known Member
I keep large amounts of carbon in all the time as well
+1 for the carbon running 24/7. I typically change it once a month. Running the BRS ROX 0.8
jbartell123
New Member
The carbon I am talking about is something added to the water to encourage bacteria that convert Nitrate to gas and remove it from the system. I do not rely on activated carbon for much.
ahh, carbon dosing. But do you really have 6 tangs in a 75g?
jbartell123
New Member
Yes 6 smaller tangs, always swimming all over the tank, bumping elbows sometimes, but getting along great once they are assimilated.
Holy heck - thats a lot of livestock for that size of a system. How long have you had it running?
I assume there's always something bad. I a very paranoid guy
jbartell123
New Member
I have had it going for about 6 months. Fish get along just fine. Pecking order and all. But I have to be aggressive about Nitrate, so I dose each day and have two carbon pellet reactors. That is the only way Nitrate would be 5 ppm.
I did reef tanks about 15 years ago, and Nitrate was always a problem back then. Macro algae and water changes were the only solutions. Today, carbon dosing does the job quite well.
With so many fish, I do have to feed twice a day two frozen cubes and a little flakes, or just flakes. So the bio load is quite high. But since I added the second reactor, things have been stable and healthy.
I did reef tanks about 15 years ago, and Nitrate was always a problem back then. Macro algae and water changes were the only solutions. Today, carbon dosing does the job quite well.
With so many fish, I do have to feed twice a day two frozen cubes and a little flakes, or just flakes. So the bio load is quite high. But since I added the second reactor, things have been stable and healthy.
