is the MiniMax Reactor a good idea?

[Friendly]

when i get my tank, I won't have the space for a true sump and if the MiniMax reactor is a good idea/product, at what size tank is it needed?

 

the Nuvo 10? 14? 20? or not needed until you go bigger...30? 40? 

 

also...would using one allow for a higher than average bioload in a tank? ie, 20 gal tank with a few inches of fish than recommended?  

[thedon986]

I wouldn't worry about it. Maybe consider a small skimmer and just do regular water changes.

[jambon]

I have a 20 fusion and use a ghost skimmer and reactor. To be honest I didn't notice much difference adding the reactor but the skimmer works well. IMO a bit of pollution in the water is good feed for some corals, clams etc. (a bit). As far as the reactor goes it has the cartridge which holds the media which slides into the main body. It has to be positioned correctly to get the media moving, otherwise it just sits on the bottom. I lined mine up and used a file to mark the sweet spot on the 2 pieces.

[Friendly]

hmmm, so perhaps what I thought a reactor was, is actually wrong. 

 

it just holds bio media for beneficial bacteria? nothing more? 

 

perhaps I was thinking a reactor was a skimmer.  

[bk_market]

In my 30L, I run skimmer, fuge, carbon reactor and GFO reacor. Out of those 4, I think GFO is overkill which I plan to take it offline and only use if there is any issue with the tank.

[Friendly]

hey bk, what are you using for skimmer, carbon reactor and fuge?

[Mariaface]

I flipping LOVE the Minimax reactor. I run carbon in it. The strength may depend on how much flow you run through it (it's variable, though difficult to gauge), how much media you use, etc. I'm sure it's capable of stripping nutrients, big time, if you overdo it. 

 

Between it and the Cadlights PLS-50 skimmer in my Nuvo 20, I just need to remember to keep feeding  

[Friendly]

hey  Maria, what made you choose the CADlights skimmer over the IM Ghost?

[Mariaface]

2 minutes ago, Friendly said:

hey  Maria, what made you choose the CADlights skimmer over the IM Ghost?

 

I wanted the highest gallon-rating I could find in a size profile that fit in the back of a Fusion 20. I kept finding conflicting reviews on the Ghost, I didn't want to move my return pump for the tunze, etc etc. So when I stumbled upon a mod for the Cadlights that would make it fit in the second chamber of the Fusion 20, I more or less had my heart set on it. ...And then I procrastinated because I had no faith that I'd be able to do the mod, but one day I stumbled across an already-modded one in the equipment forums here. Snagged it  

[Tamberav]

I wouldn't just add stuff in the hopes of having more fish, that may come back to bite you in the ass. I would just buy the appropriate size tank for the fish you want. I like to think we add stuff to make our regular maintenance smoother.

 

Besides, I still haven't figured out why one person can only have 3 fish and the next can have 8 fish. A lot of times it doesn't appear to have a lot to do with chemical filtration. My guess is more to do with established and a variety of biological filtration. I am speaking strictly for smaller tanks.