Turf Algae Filter
- Thread starter acroholic
- Start date
- Messages
- 842
- Reaction score
- 0
That was one of Sprung's "Filter De Jour" several years ago.
There is a thread on Reef Sanctuary started by Santa Monica that is 76 pages long. Too long to read. but every few pages there are people that have used them and claim success with them.
I particularly like the ones that show the weight of the algae they pull off the mats when they scrape them. Just like a nog shot from a skimmer!
No BB tanks for me. I have not had luck with a refugium, no luck growing cheato, no luck growing other macro algaes, so I thought, might as well continue my winning streak by trying an algae turf filter.
Plus I am in the mood to build something.
Macros grow well in my 60 cube system, but not in the 210/100 gallon system.
The required maintenance on the algae mats doesn't seem too bad, really, not much worse than cleaning out and emptying a skimmer cup once a week or so.
Also, use of one of these is supposed to help get rid of cyano, which I have some of in my tanks. Not a plague, but some, and I run a nutrient poor system, I think.
I was thinking of starting a thread on the Algae Turf Filter build and then see it thru to whatever ending it shows.
I particularly like the ones that show the weight of the algae they pull off the mats when they scrape them. Just like a nog shot from a skimmer!
No BB tanks for me. I have not had luck with a refugium, no luck growing cheato, no luck growing other macro algaes, so I thought, might as well continue my winning streak by trying an algae turf filter.
Plus I am in the mood to build something.
Macros grow well in my 60 cube system, but not in the 210/100 gallon system.
The required maintenance on the algae mats doesn't seem too bad, really, not much worse than cleaning out and emptying a skimmer cup once a week or so.
Also, use of one of these is supposed to help get rid of cyano, which I have some of in my tanks. Not a plague, but some, and I run a nutrient poor system, I think.
I was thinking of starting a thread on the Algae Turf Filter build and then see it thru to whatever ending it shows.
Any links to info on them? I don't know anything about them.
Now would be the time to change my mind, as I bought a pretty 16" x 14" x 16" acrylic box from Creation Reef today today and haven't cut into it yet!!
I have also bought a bunch of PVC parts from Lowes, but they can be returned.
PM Dave and look on RC. Basically they it is a fuge with no macro=no lighting. I have seen it done very positively especially on nanos because of the space constraint. Even cheap white pvc and cheap pump works well.
Rubble with sponges, pods, featherdusters, worms, mini brittles, whatever and slow flow gets them going pretty well. I will check some other sites to see if they have the link I am looking for.
Rubble with sponges, pods, featherdusters, worms, mini brittles, whatever and slow flow gets them going pretty well. I will check some other sites to see if they have the link I am looking for.
- Messages
- 5,121
- Reaction score
- 7
It simply may be that your system cannot sustain any substantial amount of algae growth due to the lack of nutrients. It quite possibly is clean enough already. Take some or one of the other nutrient removal methods offline and observe if you dare.haha.
I've done the algae scrubber thing twice now. It was based on his thread on fishlore.com (an ok site for noobs but it's mostly FW). Both times I've been able to grow a good amount of algae on it. And I've never had any sort of smell from it.
That said, it's never done anything seriously to reduce any algae in the main tank. And it does take up a good amount of space in the sump. In my case it was about 12" (w) x 18" (h). Light on both sides. I built it with pvc, a screen from Michael's and a pump I aready had. The whole thing including lights was only about $30 (we'll call this a plus except for the size of the unit plus pump).
I've had far more serious algae reductions by being very aggressive in the last few weeks using 25% weekly water changes, scrubbing the rock 3-4 times per week and using AlgaeFix. I've also been using phosphate and nitrate reducing products in my Phosban reactor.
I honestly believe there are better options other than using an algae scrubber. It may cost a bit more but in the long run you'd be better off.
That said, it's never done anything seriously to reduce any algae in the main tank. And it does take up a good amount of space in the sump. In my case it was about 12" (w) x 18" (h). Light on both sides. I built it with pvc, a screen from Michael's and a pump I aready had. The whole thing including lights was only about $30 (we'll call this a plus except for the size of the unit plus pump).
I've had far more serious algae reductions by being very aggressive in the last few weeks using 25% weekly water changes, scrubbing the rock 3-4 times per week and using AlgaeFix. I've also been using phosphate and nitrate reducing products in my Phosban reactor.
I honestly believe there are better options other than using an algae scrubber. It may cost a bit more but in the long run you'd be better off.
