Ok, so I am still gathering all the info I need to have a sucessful 29 gallon nano. I feel like I have the lights, circulation, salt making, testing down good. I am learning pretty quick on the supplements and daily additives and how to properly feed a reef tank. I am still "uneducated" on fuges.

My main question is how important is a fuge? My nano will not have a skimmer, I don't know if this affects anything. I am wondering if I should now focus my efforts on designing a fuge. Let me know your opinion!

I really want an algae free tank, I want it looking good! I have access to high quality DI water so I feel like I will have very little nutrients added during WC's. Thanks in advance.

A fuge would be a nice to have but you can run an algae free tank without a fuge. My 28g Nano does not have a skimmer or fuge and my tank is very clean. I'm meticulous about maintenance and keep up with water changes which IMO is the the backbone to keeping nano tanks.

The nutrients from feeding+fish poop+whatever have to go somewhere or come out somehow and water changes aren't enough to do it alone (unless you do 100% water changes.) If you don't do it with a fuge or a skimmer then other stuff like hair algae and cyano will happily take up said nutrients and make your tank look like crap.

Basically yes you need a fuge or some sort of nutrient exporter if you want the tank to be healthy and look good long term.

do you run a fuge on your 3g? If not do you do 100% water changes? From the pics looks like a great tank and well maintained, curious if you credit that to 100% water changes or a fuge?

Like so many things in this hobby it really depends on what you are planning to put in the tank, how much you'll need to feed, how dedicated you are to maintenance and a whole host of other considerations.

You can have a very nice, clean tank that can look good for years without a refugium or skimmer. Limiting your bio-load a bit and less frequent, careful feedings (as well as a consistent maintenance schedule) are necessary here.

If you plan on having a higher bio-load ('lots' of fish and/or heavy eaters, non-photsythetic corals, etc.) and/or are not so diligent about maintenance then you may need help from a fully functional 'fuge with GAC/Phosban/WHY and a skimmer.

I have a HOB filter full of chaeto growing under a single cree cool white LED 24/7 for nutrient export, I pull out a fist sized clump of the chaeto every two weeks or so and I do a 1g/33% water change about once a week. I also run 100 micron filter fabric in the HOB filter which seems to remove more particles than the filter floss did.

It was a little rough for the first 4-5 months with hair algae but that has mostly gone away and I don't even have to clean my glass anymore except for coralline. I feed heavily for my water volume by most standards (a cube of mysis, a cube of cyclopeeze, 1 mL of oyster feast and 1.5mL of Seachem Fuel every week and sometimes bits of scallops soaked in selcon) but I rinse carefully and try to get as much as I can into the corals.

I was figuring that I would get ranging opinions on this. If anyone else wants to weigh in, feel free!

I am just scared about the whole feeding thing. I feel like I might not limit the feeding enough and get into trouble. People talk about rinsing food, in DI water I assume? Is this to limit the nutrient influx to the tank? It seems like there is so much to learn in this hobby!

i made a fuge in the rear chamber of my 14g biocube for like 20 bucks total from stuff from home depot. I figured might as well for the money as it cant hurt.

I have a basket in-tank with chaeto and a Tunze Nano 9002 skimmer in-tank. Have a converted HOB Fuge conversion from a Aquatech 30-60 from Walmart, but the light went out so I'm just using in-tank basket for my chaeto until I get a new light for the HOB.

Most of the corals commonly available utilize photosynthesis by-products produced by their internal algae. This is a very good thing since it means they don't need to have a constant external source of food particles to survive and all the pollution that goes along with that in a tank environment. I've had corals grow and prosper without direct feeding for years, so the choice is up to the aquarist. Feeding photosynthetic corals does speed up their growth, so you can start with very small, infrequent feedings and judge how your tank reacts.

Many foods, especially frozen, have excess organic material. I rinse in plain tap water, but any clean water would work.

I never have been a fan of having a fuge on a nano. I had one on my biocube and I had more luck with a skimmer. On big tanks they are nice. The term fuge is short for refuge. In the small areas of the nano tanks I am not sure there is much good to come from a refuge. I also had issues with the chaeto getting into the return pump and clogging it up or getting back into the display. IMO a skimmer with the right amount of flow and rock is the way to go. Unless you need a refuge for pods to help support your livestock if they have that need.

urbaneks is correct on the fact that you can keep a nano without a skimmer or a fuge. I like having a skimmer to help if I make the mistake and over feed. It is my safety net. Water changes are a must no matter which way you go. This just mite be the most important part of keeping a nano. I do a 10% to 15% water change at a time.

now that's just plain wrong. if what you are saying is correct, then nanos without skimmers or refugiums would see a constant elevation in nitrates, regardless of water changes. the opposite is true, however - most systems reach an equilibrium regarding nitrification, and the nitrate level evens out.

no advice > bad advice. @ the op: skimmers and refugiums are by no means necessary to a successful nano, however they are great if you are too lazy to do weekly water changes. a refugium will help in nuisance algae control by competing for nutrients. more water changes = less nutrients, and less need for a refugium.

I don't have a skimmer or a fuge. I did grow chaeto in my sump for a while, but it kept getting into the display tank and growing on my LR.

I never had any algae issues until I moved and removed my sand bed.

Of course it will reach equilibrium, all systems will. I should be more specific, if you want nitrates to be near zero then there needs to be a fuge/skimmer or other means of getting the nitrates out or preventing them from being produced besides partial water changes. With only partial water changes the nitrates will approach a non-zero value over time and whether or not that is acceptable is a personal preference. I don't want that in my tanks.

As long as they are below 10 is fine. To be honest, I wouldn't waste the money making a fuge, I would save up for a skimmer. A tunze 9002 is going to do alot more good than a fuge.

that's like saying that a cat will be better at killing a mouse than a mousetrap. same general ends, completely different methods. skimmers and refugiums serve two different functions in reef tanks - for those of you saying one is necessary and the other is a waste, you need to educate yourself a bit more.

+1 I don't have a fuge or protein skimmer on my 24 gallon AP. I do daily 1 gallon water changes and a 5 gallon weekly water change. I have about a 20 gallon or so water volume, so that consists of a 50% water change weekly. I feed my tank a lot, phyto, oyster, arctipods, roto feast, and coral aminos daily. It's predominately corals with a pair of misbarred clowns and a psychodelic dragonette. A few emerald crabs, several hermits, 4 nas snails, 4 astria snails, and a cleaner shrimp. However, it keeps my water clean and parameters stable. However, I still get a litle algae on my powerheads and have to wipe the glass every few days. You could get by without a skimmer or fuge, but it'll take a little more work to keep your tank algae free. I'll probably pick up a skimmer to reduce my work load:)

Man, thanks for all the advice. It seems like its more a pick your own adventure with this topic. If I have this correct, this is what I think:

Fuge: Nutrient export via plant removal. Bonus pod production and a "safe" haven for smaller organisims. It will add a slight amount of volume to your tank.

Skimmer: helps reduce pollutants, but there is some debate if they remove good "stuff" too.

Water changes every week: mandatory, since its a nano its not that big of a deal.

Maybe to start go without a skimmer and a fuge and adapt the system as it matures.?

Well its good to get all these viewpoints, keep em coming!

sure. if it matures into an sps dominated tank, get a skimmer and possibly a refugium. if it matures into a softy or lps dominated tank, get a refugium and possibly a skimmer.

I have a Solana SPS Tank that is doing great without a fuge. I run a Sapphire Skimmer, the usual media, and 10% weekly water changes. However, both my power heads look like salad. I just trim the algae back every so often. Even though my Koralias have the greens all over them, they still blow like mad and the corals are growing very fast.

I would have to agree with Jeremai on this one. I have a fuge, I like it on my 20H. Is it a nenessary? No not really. It maintains my nitrates at zero which is lovely. I have chaeto a piece of live rock and mangroves. The mangroves will also remove phosphates from the water which is another nice addition. I'm planning on getting another tank soon, do I plan on that one having a fuge? No not at the moment. I currently don't run a skimmer, but I might in the future. We shall see how things go. I think the best part about a fuge/sump is extra water volume. The more water you have the more stable your tank will be. I think that even more than the nutrient export was a factor in me getting it for my 20H. In the end it comes down to what you are willing to pay for and what you are willing to do for maintenance. I am unwilling to do a daily water change, I just don't have the time between work and school. Weekly is very manageable so the fuge helps me maintain a better environment with a bit less maintenance. If you don't mind doing big and or daily water changes I see no problem with not running either. Good luck to you and your tank. I'm sure you'll enjoy it no matter what you choose to do.

Point of arguement:

The most amazing SPS show tanks I've ever seen, and also have freaky rates of growth, don't have fuges or cheato. Nitrates tend to be quite low in these tanks, but rarely zero, and nobody worries about it. However, every one was running a top of the shelf skimmer. Matter of fact, I actually add nitrate from my freshwater tank to keep my 10gal at about 5-10ppm because softies and Zoas simply grow better.

A fuge can never be a bad thing because it adds ecology to the tank, and cheato does act as a nutrient sump. What I would happily argue is that the amount of nutrient intake caused by cheato or mangroves isn't nearly what it's claimed to be. Keeping an intelligent bio-load of fish appropriate for the tank and reasonable water changes makes more of a difference.

Time for a noob to chime in. (It really is about a fuge)

Recently started my first reef tank in a 28g HQI nano with several modifications. Did a ton of research here and elsewhere along the way. Currently starting third week of cycling. for the past two week's my Ph has continously fallen. Even now when the cycle is mostly stabilizing and ammonia and nitrites are at 0, my PH still continues to drop.

So I started adding a buffer to try and bring it up. brought it to 8.1, next day it's 7.9 again (this is the average throughout the day with PH swing).

more buffer to bump back up to 8.1. Next day.... you guessed it... 7.9

Did this for three days straight, then went back to researching. Learned all about Alkalinity and it's ability to stabalize PH. Bought a Salifert Alk test and found out my Alkalinity was 14.6. Definitely not a problem of too low alkalinity. Back to research.

I then came upon this wonderful, miraculous article.... http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-03/rhf/index.php

OMG! High levels of CO2 in the air can cause PH issues with the water dropping to low!

This was a thunderbolt from heaven for me. I'm an indoor hydroponic hobbyist and my house has significantly larger CO2 ambient than a "normal" house. I then read the suggestion that growing chaeto in the fuge can use up CO2 (duh... it's a plant) and help stabalize Ph.

Added chaeto to the back of my cube with a light. Ph went from 7.79 to 8.13 in 24 hours, and after 48 hours is now stable at 8.2.

I have nothing living in the tank right now but bacteria and several different colors of algae, not quite ready for any kind of housekeeping yet... in no hurry. I add this so no one panics about drastic PH shifts and 14.7 Alk!

May not be the best thing for every setup, but for me a mini fuge was the bee's knees. I've read everything from nitrate/phosphorous exporter to micro fauna breeding grounds. Can't say how this works in relation to regular water changes, chemical removing filter flosses etc. as I have no experience there.

Thanks to all the experts and "old hands" that share their knowledge here every day! Thanks also to the noobs like me that ask all the questions that draws the former out to help us! I hope to contribute with a thread when my setup is complete.

Peace.

Well written! Looks like you've done a fair share of research. Now back to the hydoponics. You growing organic tomatos?

Well, a 'fuge isn't necessarily just for algal growth. They are, by definition, a refuge for various macro-organisms to have a spot where they won't be eaten by the typical fish and inverts we keep in the main tank. That being said, over the years, one of the greatest contributors for long term tank success (I'm talking over a decade) is biodiversity. While not 100% essential, I have always had the most luck with tanks that had high amounts of diversity and a 'fuge can do just that. It takes a bit of preliminary work on the aquarist's part, but it can pay off over time. The added stability is definitely a plus.

As far as algal filtration goes, it can certainly help, especially for people who struggle with inorganic N and P parameters, as well as people who wish to feed quite heavily. They also make great CO2 scrubbers, as bfruacikned said.

My move to make my tank more self-sustainable (I'm not talking 100%, but more than it was before) has led me from natural, to electronic/chemical driven, back to natural. A refugium with natural filtration isn't the only way to accomplish all this, but I do think it is a move in a better direction. The part I like the most is that you aren't actually adding anything, short of light. If anything, the algae are removing things for you, which sits a bit better with me after past experiences with additives, carbon dosing, multiple reactors, etc. Be it an algal turf scrubber or Chaetomorpha refugium, it is one natural way to reduce the N and P that constantly confound many aquarists. Give it a shot--you may end up liking the results you see . JME.

I would add a fuge if you plan on keeping fish that need a lot of copepods to survive like a mandarin fish for exemple.

I have a 20 gallons without a fuge but I do keep quite a bit of cheato in my tank behind the live rock (totoka live rock).

I don't have any nitrates, nor phosphates and my Ph is very stable at 8.3.

I have tons of pods, all sort of pods, so I feel that a refugium is not really necessary if you have the proper type of liverock. What I like about Totoka rock is that it is basicaly dead coral and very porous, plus there is a huge amount of surface compared to regular flat rock. I think that this really help the bacterias and pods establish in the aquarium. I am glad that I did not buy the regular flat type of live rock with sleek smooth surface for that reason, because I would probably need a refugium to keep my mandarin happy.

Another argument in favor of a fuge is that they're just plain cool to look at. A fuge can be quite a hive of activity.

Over the past couple of months I've been regearing towards breeding and have set up 3 seperate 20g high tanks to temporarily house my pairs of clowns.

Now each tank is set up the same way.

Each tank has about the same amount of LR, no sand, it's own heater and a koralia 2 for flow. Each tank also houses one pair of clown fish. I've even split the CUC in each tank as evenly as I could.

But what I didn't have is 3 skimmers and 3 fuges - I only have one of each - go figure.

So I set up:

Tank 1 with a skimmer - Aqua C Remora
Tank 2 with nothing extra
Tank 3 with a medium HOB fuge with cheato

So now this is what I see after two months of identical regular water changes / feeding schedules etc...

Tank 1 - Fairly clean - some purple on the rocks and some stringy brown and green algae on the glass. Tank has some small corals - all doing well - my rics are growing and multiplying like mad.

Tank 2 - More algae - green algae and stringy brown stuff on 2 sides and some of the rocks as well as algae on the power head and cords. Some purple growing on the glass / rocks. This tank has some xenia that looks like it has seen better days - but to be fair the clowns do host it.

Tank 3 - Very clean, rocks covered in purple as well as the glass (sides and bottom) and the powerhead. minimal green algae growing on the sides. This tank also has an abundance of life that can be seen on the rocks unter actinics. This tank also has some Xenia that is thriving and 3 rose anemone's (1 of which just split) that are very healthy.

I did attempt to keep a nem in tank two - only because those clowns had hosted one previously but it did not do well in that tank at all. It looked limp and deflated most of the time - just didn't appear healthy. A day after transfering it back to tank 3 the bulbs filled up and it looked happy again.

So - what I've conluded is that - yes you can keep a tank without a skimmer or fuge. With some effort and maybe some inexpensive mods I could keep tank 2 looking good.

If I had to choose between a a skimmer or a fuge I would pick the fuge first. In my tanks it has proven to be much more benficial.

Of course once I finish my stand and plumbing - all of my tanks will be skimmed and have a fuge.

Hope this helps

Edit: I failed to mention that for lighting all 3 tanks have one 36" aquactinics TX5 light unit across the top of all 3 tanks. So even the lighting schedule is identical.