refugium cheato and lighting

[Phishnoob]

The new third of my sump that is being built right now is going to be a refugium as a home for pods.

Is cheato the macroalgae of choice for this? The sump will be inside my stand just how much light is needed under there. Do they make a handy little clip on kind that anyone can recommend?

Also, once I get it does it have to be seeded somehow? Should I put some live rock pieces in there with it?

[aquawolf]

Chaeto is usually the macro of choice as it is one of the most manageable. You can get a clip in metal dome reflector light from Lowes or Home Depot, and put a 6500K compact flourescent bulb in it and it will work just fine. The other option is to get a compact flourescent flood light and mount it to a piece of wood, which is the way I went. My light has been running 24/7 for well over a year and has given me very good results.

The macroalge does not need to be seeded. If you are going to put sand and rubble in the fuge section, then you will probably want to seed that sand.

[jenglish]

I tend to favor the chaeto fuge w/o any sand or rubble. It can be cleaned easily. I would just use a clamp lamp from a hardware store.

[Phishnoob]

I just dug through the box of junk the guy I bought my tank from. It looks like an enclosed small PC light is in there.

Looks like that and cheato will be good enough then. I have never even seen a pod and hopefully this will work.

[Fat Tony]

Yep.. Chaeto the winner. Melev's Reef also shows some CF bulbs that work quite well.

[Phishnoob]

Originally Posted by Fat Tony

Yep.. Chaeto the winner. Melev's Reef also shows some CF bulbs that work quite well.

I ordered all the fittings today to plumb the sump, and just need to trim up the glass tomorrow. Right now the sump is full of used equipment, vinegar and water.

Cheato and that PC light will go in the refugium and we will see how it goes.

[Salty O'Shen]

i keep chaeto and also LR in my refuge as well. i have the LR there because i have a mandarin and I use the LR to move into the display to transfer a great number of pods rather than expect them to voluntarily go through the whirling tornado of death (my return pump). i seeded my refuge with a bottle of pods from the LFS ($20) to give it a jump start. within the first 2 weeks i have tons of pods. you can also get the refuge seeded with the chaeto because it'll come in with pods most likely. i move the LR into the display and then swap the pieces every couple of days.

[Cuttlefish]

You know when mandarins sleep they are completely oblivious. Mine turns greyish in color, thought he was dead a few times. Im wondering how sleeping habits like that could be condusive to survival lol. I guess in the wild they would sleep in some little knook, hidden away. But in my tank he just lays in the open.

I wouldnt think youd get many pods in the DT if they have to go through the pump to get there. Use the live rock to transport them back and forth, better yet make some "pod hotels". There was a great thread somewhere on how to make em. Basically they are just small cubes of rubble held together by plastic screen type material. Every day, every other day, just drop one in the tank to be grazed upon.

[Phishnoob]

Originally Posted by Cuttlefish

You know when mandarins sleep they are completely oblivious. Mine turns greyish in color, thought he was dead a few times. Im wondering how sleeping habits like that could be condusive to survival lol. I guess in the wild they would sleep in some little knook, hidden away. But in my tank he just lays in the open.

I wouldnt think youd get many pods in the DT if they have to go through the pump to get there. Use the live rock to transport them back and forth, better yet make some "pod hotels". There was a great thread somewhere on how to make em. Basically they are just small cubes of rubble held together by plastic screen type material. Every day, every other day, just drop one in the tank to be grazed upon.

I like that idea. Time to do some research on that.