120 overhaul and refugium question

[ShirleyM]

We have an extra 30-gal tank and we have room next to our 120 reef to set it up. Would it be majorly beneficial in terms of nitrate export to try to set up a refugium for the reef tank? I visited Cyberchef's refugium site...pretty cool site
http://www.thereeftank.com/forums/sh...0613#post50613
and I'll have to have a real good reason for doing all this before I'll get Steve and Troy to make it happen.

Our 10G minireef has maybe 5 ppm nitrates and hardly ever change water, but have a lot of macro caluerpa in the overflow box...no filter media, just macro algae. Also, only two fish.
If the reason our nitrates are low is b/c of the macro, then I'm thinking that would help our 120, which has nitrates of >30 or 40 ppm. Also, Casey's nitrates were the same as mine and dropped to zero when he added a refugium...

Your thoughts??

I can read the archives and topic of the week, etc for refugiums, but is this going to be a major hard task?? Getting the 30G taller than the reef would be difficult, and running pumps with the chance of one failing is scary...don't need anymore floods

Thanks so much,
Shirley see correction Nitrates below pls

[ShirleyM]

Correction on Nitrates Just checked nitrates and they are slightly, if any, higher than 10ppm. I wonder if the Maiden's Hair Caluerpa that has sprouted up in there is helping with the nitrates...and I'm trying to get rid of it before it takes over. It seems to stay on certain rocks and not spread, but it is spreading slowly to other LR.

Thanks again,
Shirley

[cyberchef]

If your going to set it up strictly for nitrate export and use macroalgae in it exclusively then I would not put any substrate in the tank. Makes removing the excess macro much easier. If your going to set it up as a refugium to supply "live" food for the tank as well as for nutrient control then set it up. LR, LS (DSB or Plenum), Macos of your choice, add some grammaris shrimp, pods and such and let it thrive and multiply... I just placed an order with a couple of places in FL for Gracilaria, grammaris shrimp, raw live fresh caught plankton, SW Rotifers and FL shore shrimp to restock my refugiums from the losses from the move. That and beefing them up for the addition of the SPS grow out tank. Personally I feel that live self reproducing food is better overall for the whole system.

Check out this thread for a whole slew of links for "critters" and such...

http://www.thereeftank.com/forums/sh...threadid=13752

[ShirleyM]

The plumbing is the problem I'm having. I'm afraid to have a pump sending water to the 120 and another pump sending water to the refugium...if one goes out either way, I'll have a flood. I don't see how I can get a tank that size (30G) higher than the 120 and manage it (gravity return, pump into refug.) Also, I'd eliminate the 10G mini reef and put those two fish and such into the refugium (neon dottyback and watchman goby/pistol shrimp)

Thanks,

Shirley

[Jimbo]

Hi Shirley just looked at your tank specs. I would just run a pump from your sump into the 30g and then overflow it back into the sump. Although the little critters will have a harder time gettting into the main tank, you would be surprised on how many can make it. Although I have not seen any specs except some data we gathered on flow rates to a refugium, most are using somewhere around 200gph.

This will certainly lower your nitrates. Many people like to run the photoperiod opposite the main tank. This helps to stabalize PH. Plus you can view stuff in the refuguim after the main tank's lights go out.

~Jimbo

[ShirleyM]

Hi Jimbo!
So, ... I would have a pump or powerhead that sits in the sump, sending water at ~200gph up into the refugium, which might be a foot higher than the sump, and then a siphon tube goes from the 30G refugium back into the sump. If the elect. goes off, then the refug just siphons into the sump until the siphon is broken. Is this sounding correct?

Thanks so much!
Shirley

[cyberchef]

Originally posted by ShirleyM
Hi Jimbo!
So, ... I would have a pump or powerhead that sits in the sump, sending water at ~200gph up into the refugium, which might be a foot higher than the sump, and then a siphon tube goes from the 30G refugium back into the sump. If the elect. goes off, then the refug just siphons into the sump until the siphon is broken. Is this sounding correct?

Is the tank currently setup or did you break it down as well? If you broke it down, then get it drilled on the back for a bulkhead fitting for the drain at least if not 2 holes for the drain and the return. If the power goes out, then you don't have to worry about loosing the siphon to drain the tank so that when the power comes back on the refugium won't fill up and overflow.

[ShirleyM]

so that when the power comes back on the refugium won't fill up and overflow.

Duhhh! I didn't think about when the power comes back on...

The 30G is empty. I have no clue where I would get a tank drilled. It's about 15 yrs old, and glass. Drilled so that it gravity feeds into the sump...a hole to send to the sump and another hole to receive from the pump in the sump? Is 30G large enough to be worth it? The reef is 120G.
Thanks,
Shirley

[cyberchef]

Check with either local LFS or a good glass shop, if the LFS doesn't or know where to get it done, the glass shop should be able to do it. Since glass is actually a liquid, the age really doesn't matter. Anything is better than nothing so yes in my opinion it is worth it. I'm working on getting a prop system, placed a bid on some used equipment from a shop that is closing. If it happens I will definately have at least 1 refugium, maybe even 2-3 on the whole system. Even if all I could set up for a refugium was a 10G tank on a 200G system, I would still do it, and I would set ip up to produce "food" as well as to help with nutrient removal.

[Jimbo]

Drilled or use an intank overflow box, as long as hose pumping into the tank is close to the top, only about an inch of water will back drain. There's a trick you can do also with the incoming tube, make a small hole in the intake tube inside the tank about 1/8 close to the top of tank pointing down, if the power goes out this little hole will suck in air and break the syphon. If you use an overflow box the overflow tube should not lose it's syphon if the power goes out. It will just start pumping again. The only real danger with overflow box is if something gets in the syphon tube like a snail or fish. Always good to have two tubes.

-Jimbo