smallreef Posted February 22, 2003 Share Posted February 22, 2003 Hey I posted my first post a couple of days ago and got some great responses...I have decided to go with building a small refugium above my 29 gallon eclipse tank and grow macro algae to help with the export of nutrients as I plan to go skimmerless...As I am very new to this hobby I really need some help starting the small refugium...I am doing it with an eclipse 3 gallon or 6 gallon max as I have to install a shelf on my wall to even support the tank (I have no more room) I need some info on how to start the refugium and just as important how do I connect the two tanks???....I have read about using one pump and the flowback into the main tank works off of gravity but what happens if the electricity fails, the large tank overflows???? I do not want to drill in the small refugium as it is so tiny...please help with as much details and don't use abbreviations as I am really new to this and don't know much... thanks so much.... below i posted some info on the tank to help... -29 gallon eclipse -bottom of tank 20 pounds crushed coral, on top of that 20 pounds of live sand and 10 pounds of a fine white sand -31 pounds live rock mixed fiji and tonga -tank has been going for almost 3 weeks -serious brown algae replacing beautiful corraline algae -temp 79-80 -ammonia 0.0 -nitrate almost nothing to even measure -nitrite 0.0 -ph 8.1 -salinity 1.023 On a side note a added a gallon of top off the other day and salinity went down to 1.022 I have added little salt over the last couple of days and salinity really hasn't risen...this got me nervous that my hydrometer is not accurate...I am using the aquarium systems hydrometer and heard terrible things about it..I can't afford to buy one of the expensive ones but heard about the glass floatable one made by Tropic Marin going for around $20 is this better to use? I've heard horror stories about the others reading normal measures however it being really above or below....thanks so much for input Link to comment
tinyreef Posted February 22, 2003 Share Posted February 22, 2003 sorry to say but i'm going to suggest the 'search' button. not because i don't want to answer you but because there are so MANY different configurations and possibilities for a refugium/sump. it sounds like you're looking more for a sump/algae scrubber than a true refugium. my post can get really long and simply re-state what others have said in other threads better than i can here so hence the 'search' suggestion. here's a snippet tho. if you go over your display tank your best bet would be to drill for a bulkhead imo (cheap). if you go under you could just go with an overflow ($$$) and return pump. you could just put a bucket with a lip and let that be the sump/refugium. the lip kinda gives you the gravity return, some kind of funnel return to the main. like i said, there are so many possibilities. look around and see what fits your setup and then sketch it out. imagine how the water is going to travel. especially, look for places where something might get plugged up or is difficult for you to easily do maintenance. btw try http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod...d=6&pCatId=4942 for a cheap floating hydrometer. i've bought three of those cheapies and one large one and they're pretty good imo. hth, good luck! Link to comment
smallreef Posted February 22, 2003 Author Share Posted February 22, 2003 Hey tinyreef, Thanks for the advice I have done searches and you are right there are so many methods that it has confused me.... The small refugium will be directly above my 29 gallon reef tank and I am looking for some advice on the simplest method to combine the two tanks without having to drill holes and overflows etc.....any have advice? please help thanks Link to comment
tinyreef Posted February 23, 2003 Share Posted February 23, 2003 it can be daunting. the first thing you want to answer is what you intend to use the extra tank for: refugium, sump, algae scrubber, cryptic, low turbulence display, dsb, so on and etc. there are at least a half dozen refugium styles in the member tanks section. someone even had a 2-gallon surge device if i remember correctly (it may be dismantled now but the pics are probably still there). for overheads plumbing-wise there's basically a couple of options. drill & bulkhead (cheapest and simplest) and overflow. the overflow may seem easier but suction needs to be maintained (especially after a power outage) and they're $$$. more chance for catastrophic failures imo. CPR's is a good overflow tho ime but a U-tube (crap imo) can also be used. make sure you gauge the return pump (to the fuge/sump) to your overflow (usually only an issue with the U-tubes). i can't think of any other method without serious diy and caliberating pumps and stuff. much easier to go the other two ways AND more secure. sorry, hth. Link to comment
madness Posted February 23, 2003 Share Posted February 23, 2003 Here's my two cents for what they are worth. I would pull the water into the refugium using a pump. And, I would let the water flow back into the aquarium by gravity. If you don't fill your display tank all the way to the tippy top, you won't have any problems during a power outage because only a small amount of water will flow back into the aquarium before the level in the fuge drops below the outlet. You also don't have to worry about starting the whole thing up after a power outage. Unless you are getting them for free, I'd dump the idea of using some kind of eclipse. They are bow-shaped and would be awkard to connect to the display tank. I'd get a glass 2.5 or 5 gallon tank. Then I'd get some acrylic and silicone to put in a partition seperating the sand bed from the pump. I'd drill a hole for the overflow on the opposite end of the refugium. Now for the fun stuff. I'd do a deep sand bed with lots of critters. I'd also grow some macroalgae and try to get a pod colony going to help feed the tank. This is my main reason for having a gravity overflow. The little pods will flow easily into the display tank. I've also been wanting to try out some of IPSF's sea bunnies. They would help keep algae down and create more food by laying lots of eggs. Have I missed anything? Has anybody really read this far? I could just sit and dream up refugium schemes all day long. Link to comment
madness Posted February 23, 2003 Share Posted February 23, 2003 Oops. Forgot to mention: check nanoreefin's set-up. I think it is very clean! http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/showthread...t=hood+refugium Link to comment
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