To Mud, or not to Mud...that is the question.

basscyn · May 30, 2011

I am plumbing in a display macro tank to my system.
Like most of my “expansion” projects…it seems to take forever before it is realized but I am almost there! I only have a little more plumbing to do and she will be ready to go. I have reached a point where I need to make a final decision about the substrate. I am still conflicted on whether or not to use Miracle Mud, Fiji Mud…ANY kind of mud or just go with a deep bed of fine grain aragonite.

My objective here is to grow sea grasses and some cool looking macro algae in a refugium environment.

My current set up.
175 display with two 70 gallon Rubbermaid stock tanks. 
I am tying in a 58 gallon aquarium for this project. 

Mud!
I read some great things about it. 
Also read plenty of things that indicate it’s just marketing genius. 
Nowhere have a read it is harmful, just may not worth the money.

Anyone have any experience with these muddy products for growing macros?
Any advice most appreciated!

basscyn · May 30, 2011

Anyone?

I cant believe no one here has an opinion on Miracle Mud :confused2:

I may mix it in just to see what the fuss is all about.

hud3339 · May 30, 2011

to be honest ive never seen anyone with it before

skriz · May 30, 2011

Crap. Don't waste your money. It's just mud.

hnguyen · May 30, 2011

I use the Fiji gold mud and I love it. I'm running it now in my external fuge and did the same with my old 60. These two tanks were the two most successful reef tanks I've owned out of 5. I'm not saying that is due to the mud, but I'm not saying I did anything else different either. I was never able to grow chaeto until I added the Fiji mud.

I don't care what people say, maybe it's just mud but this mud works for me. I like it and for only about $50 for a bucket of the thing. It's worth trying. You don't have to remove it after time because it just dissolves away and you'll just have to top it off. just my 2 cents

KrisDeitz · May 30, 2011

Hnguyen;650482 wrote: I use the Fiji gold mud and I love it. I'm running it now in my external fuge and did the same with my old 60. These two tanks were the two most successful reef tanks I've owned out of 5. I'm not saying that is due to the mud, but I'm not saying I did anything else different either. I was never able to grow chaeto until I added the Fiji mud.

I don't care what people say, maybe it's just mud but this mud works for me. I like it and for only about $50 for a bucket of the thing. It's worth trying. You don't have to remove it after time because it just dissolves away and you'll just have to top it off. just my 2 cents

+ one. I got some for my Mangroves and noticed a difference

basscyn · May 30, 2011

:doh: See what I mean?
Some folks love it...some say its a waste.

Again...the only thing I hear from both sides of the fence is that it is
not harmful.

I am leaning toward wasting my money and giving it a go

ralph atl · May 30, 2011

Skriz;650480 wrote: Crap. Don't waste your money. It's just mud.

:up:

I used it a few years back, it's a waste of money. seriously.

basscyn · May 30, 2011

So...whats the "ultimate" substrate for a project like this folks?
If not with mud.

Any suggestions?

skriz · May 30, 2011

People use chaeto in their aquariums to pull out crap from the water column. The more crap it consumes, the faster it will grow. If it starts growing rapidly after the introduction of X, what does that say about X?

One of the "producers" of mud laughs that anybody even buys it. It is truly nothing more than mud. You can get that for pretty much free if you dig it up yourself. There's nothing magical in it. If it was so magical, then it would easily be the choice of public aquariums, as mud is cheap, uses no electricity, requires no cleaning or maintenance; it would save millions in expenses.

To those that use it and love it, by all means continue using it. A happy reef and happy reefer is the goal and if it's achieved by mud, then mission completed.

I would just use sand if I were setting up a refugium.

basscyn · May 30, 2011

I hear ya Raj.
I wonder though if the mud/silt mixture with sand benefits seagrass in particular. Seagrass or any rooted macro will uptake nutrients primaily from the roots alone. Could explain why Deitz' mangroves like it.
Hmm...

skriz · May 30, 2011

BASSCYN;650640 wrote: I hear ya Raj.
I wonder though if the mud/silt mixture with sand benefits seagrass in particular. Seagrass or any rooted macro will uptake nutrients primaily from the roots alone. Could explain why Deitz' mangroves like it.
Hmm...

Sure, plants will grow well in dirt. They way I see it is if you're adding a refugium as a filtration device, you don't want to introduce waste to help your plants thrive, you want the plants to pull that waste from your system as-is.

If you're making a stand-alone plant tank, then you definitely want to have dirt as the base. I just see no reason (or empirical evidence) to add it to a reef tank.

hnguyen · May 30, 2011

As I said, I don't care what anyone else says. It works for me and I have an SPS dominate tank. I haven't lost a single coral since I've started my 60 and that was when I started using the Fiji mud. I use it now on my 93 and everything looks just as good as it did in my 60. So many of my friends will give me a frag of their SPS just to see its true color potential because they know my tank can bring that out of the corals.

I haven't done anything different with any of my set-ups. I run an ATO and calcium reactors in all of them and I've been using the same salt ever since I started reefing. But I don't think any of us will know unless we take it to a lab and get it tested for everything thats in the mud. It doesn't hurt to try. I did, and I like it.

ralph atl · May 30, 2011

Very anecdotal...to say the least...

I had mud, I refreshed mud, then I put said mud in garden a couple of years later..better left for the garden, IMHO.

jennm · May 30, 2011

Skriz;650480 wrote: Crap. Don't waste your money. It's just mud.

:yes:

skriz · May 30, 2011

Hnguyen;650680 wrote: ... But I don't think any of us will know unless we take it to a lab and get it tested for everything thats in the mud. It doesn't hurt to try. I did, and I like it.

It has been analyzed (independently). The results revealed it is mud. I'll see if I can find a link.

Like I said earlier, if you like it, use it.

hnguyen · May 30, 2011

Skriz;650757 wrote: It has been analyzed (independently). The results revealed it is mud. I'll see if I can find a link.

Like I said earlier, if you like it, use it.

Fair enough for me, I'll pay that. Either way, I still like it!

basscyn · May 30, 2011

I think I will mix a little in to the sand for the grasses and rooted macros.

I dunno... Just makes sense to me somehow.

hnguyen · May 30, 2011

BASSCYN;651334 wrote: I think I will mix a little in to the sand for the grasses and rooted macros.

I dunno... Just makes sense to me somehow.

Here's how I have my fuge set up with the mud.

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Works very well for my system.

To Mud, or not to Mud...that is the question.

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