Filtration Options, System in General 10/15/08
Hello,
<Paul.>
I am switching my tank over from a wet dry system and would like a few options... I was going to set up a old 75 gallon tank as a refuge tank or just a live rock tank. What is your opinion on the two..
<Both are worth while, you can do a refugium with a purposefully grown macroalgae and live rock; really the way to go.>
I have a 150 gallon fish/live rock tank with 150 pounds of rock in it... The wet dry filters I keep hearing are not an option and add to the problem of building up algae.
<Indirectly, through the accumulation of primarily nitrate.>
Should I put a light over the 75 gallon refuge tank?
<I would, with the macroalgae, on a lighting cycle reverse that of the main display.>
Is the 75 gallon overkill for a refuge tank or live rock tank should I still put light over it if it is just a live rock tank?
<75 is a nice large refugium, by no means too large. You will have little to no benefit to lighting just rock, a huge benefit with the addition of the macro.>
... How much extra live rock do I need in the refuge tank?
<Depends on how you end up setting this up, anywhere from 50-100 lbs, the more the merrier.>
Should I still use carbon in a chamber filter?
<You can.>
How much water movement should I add to the 75 gallon tank so it does not become stagnant?
<Generally the same that applies to your display, a minimum of 10X turnover within the refugium itself will do the trick.>
Many questions, I know. I am just looking for the best option and heath of my fish....
<This is a good one.>
Thank you for the time and all the help... love the site and read a lot, but sometimes it is nice to ask directly to my own situation.
<Glad you have found the site of use.>
Thank you again,
Paul
<Welcome, Scott V.>  

Filtration Questions & Lighting Question. 06/05/2008
125 gallon aquarium AGA, at least 200-300 lbs of rock, Fiji, holey lime and bowl.
Substrate is mostly crushed coral and sand.
<<Make sure the crushed coral is kept very clean to save elevated nitrates>>
Life forms - soft corals.
Fish - too many, but working on getting them down to a low roar.
Lighting - T5HO 4 6' long, CF 96 watt bulbs, 6' length.
2 heaters, I think high wattage, but not sure off the top of my head.
Timers set for lighting to fluctuate. 3 hours T5HO, 3 hours of T5HO + CF, 3 hours of CF. Is this a good schedule?
<<Sounds fine, as long as about 8 hours of white marine light is apparent, i don't see any issues>>
Refugium - Aquafuge Pro Large, built-in skimmer, 17 gallon holding area, return 2100 Rio, maxi-jet 1200 on skimmer, kelp and Chaeto and something else, 8lbs of live Fiji, substrate is crushed coral and sand.
<<Ok>>
I have a wet/dry from Tru Flo I used to use. I had converted this to a fuge, but have removed it and inserted a real fuge.
I am wondering if I should be running that alongside the fuge or not.
<<The Wet/Dry?? No, not really>>
I do dose with Purple Up, Iodine, Trace Elements, Calcium and Alkalinity steps 1 and 2.
<<You don't mention hard corals, do you "need" to be dosing calc and Alk? Stop doing iodine and purple up. Purple up is a complete waste of money as all you need for good coralline algae growth is light, calc and mag. With these apparent, additives will not be required. Trace elements / iodine should not really be needed as these are replenished via your water changes. Does an iodine test show that your suffering from a deficiency?>>
I have built a Kalk drip and may use that, but am a bit afraid it would drop the alkalinity without my ability to re-establish that...how would I go about doing that?
<<As above, do your tests stipulate that you need to use this? if they do not, then don't use, no need. Incorrect setup of the drip can lead to problems, please do read more here http://www.wetwebmedia.com/calcalkmar.htm >>
I feed every 3 days, except eel, who I feed every day or every 2 days so he won't eat my shrimps.
<<Sounds fine>>
The biggest question is do I run dual overflows and run the wet/dry on one side with a skimmer in that alongside the Aquafuge Pro Large, or do I just run the refugium?
<<I would just run the fuge, as i really don't feel that wet/dry filters have any place on a marine aquarium as i feel the maintenance aspect is very high. If anything, convert it in a sump or add as another refugium>>
What do you guys suggest?
<<Thanks for the questions, i hope this helps. A Nixon>>

Saltwater 55g FOWLR low maintenance, 5/16/08
Good day gentleman,
<and ladies>
first I would like to say great site just stumbled across it. I'm ready to set up my1st glass s.w 55ga FOWLR. Before reading your site I have bought a  magnum 350 canister filter, ac 70 powerhead, Hagen Glo t5 ho 36in dual light with 2x39w marine bulbs, a Marineland stealth 200 heater, a Prizm
hang on skimmer,
<Has a less than optimal reputation.>
and two 20pd of bags bio-activ live aragonite reef sand also a 10g tank that I was going to try and make a wet dry system and a 375gph Pondmaster pump for return. Now my question is I only have a small room under the tank, can I avoid a wet dry sump system if I use appropriate amount of live rock in tank or can I use a Eheim 2239 wet dry canister and avoid having to buy a overflow box bioballs etc.
<Yes to both.>
I'm worried that the space will not hold a wet dry tank system without overflowing being that only 10 gallon just fits under their I still have time to return anything does this sound like a good setup or should I change any thing
<Sounds fine, many/most tanks are run without a sump system, where everything is either in-tank or of the hang-on-back variety. In future queries please use proper grammar and spelling, we need to correct this so that the information is easily accessible to readers and search engines. http://www.wetwebmedia.com/WWMAdminSubWebIndex/question_page.htm >
<Chris>
 

Filtration 02/25/2008 Hello again. <<Hello, Andrew here>> Sorry for all the questions <<Its fine, no need to be sorry>>, but you guys are a huge help. I am a bit confused about what I need for filtration. I have a leather coral, some mushrooms, and some polyps as well in there now with two tank raised clowns. I currently have two AquaClear 30 powerheads located on opposite ends of my 55 gallon tank and a Proclear aquatics protein skimmer (AquaC Remora is in the mail on its way to my house as we speak). I also have an AquaClear 110 external Hang on Tank power filter with a sponge, carbon insert, and biomedia insert. The power filter creates sort of a waterfall effect that I cannot stand. First question, should I leave all of the media in the power filter or take out the biomedia. (I do have appx 50 lbs of live rock and am adding more slowly)? <<I would remove the filter completely when you reach a minimum of 55lbs of live rock in the tank>> Also, should I consider dumping the power filter and getting a canister filter? <<Depends on what direction you want to go with the tank. If the advice given by me here is used, then your best using the money that you would be spending on a new filter to buy more live rock>> What I really want is a sump, but my tank is not drilled and have read too many bad things about siphon sumps. Also, should I upgrade my powerheads also? Thanks for all your help. I could not do it without you. <<The syphon type of overflow is not that bad if a good one is purchased. On your powerheads, you ideally need about 25 x tank volume in water circulation. So, in your system, you need around (55 * 25 = 1375 GPH) 1375 gallons per hour water turnover. Your currently on 850 gph.. I would suggest you look into wither upgrading the two existing powerheads or add another to bring you up to par with flow. A good range of powerheads to look at are the Hydor Koralia range>> Thanks again....Matthew Diethorn <<Thanks for the questions, hope this helps. A Nixon>> Re: Filtration 02/25/2008 Thanks for getting back to me so quickly. <<Hello again Matthew>> I was actually looking at the Koralia's and like them pretty well. I think I will get 2 or the Koralia 2's rated at 600gph each. That will take me up to 1200gph just from powerheads. I will aim them to blow at each other from opposite ends of the tank. Also, with the new AquaC protein skimmer and two powerheads with more live rock, will that be enough filtration and circulation in your opinion? <<yes, that will all certainly bring you up to par with flow>> I hope so, because that would clear up some equipment and make things quite a bit quieter. Also, as far as placing two of the new powerheads, where should they go? I have about a 1 inch aragonite sand bed. Should I keep them near the surface or put one of them lower than the other. <<I would place them mid tank height at opposite ends of the tank, and aim them both slightly towards the front pane of glass, this should cause a nice bit of chaotic flow and due to the wide dissipation of the Koralia, this should also provide a nice overall circulation>> Thanks again, this is my last question, I promise. Matthew Diethorn <<Ask as many questions as you like Matt, its fine. Hope the above helps. A Nixon>>

100 Gallon Filtration  2/10/08
I have had a 55 g marine tank for two years now and am ready for an upgrade. I will make this question simple, as I have most of the basics down.
<OK>
Would a live rock, deep aragonite sand bed, protein skimmer, and canister filter be sufficient filtration?
<Yes it would be sufficient.>
I plan on no overflow or sump. This will be fish only with the live rock. Probably clown trigger and other aggressive fish.
<100 gallons is pushing the lower limits on system size for this fish. They get very large and territorial.>
Aqua c hang on, with canister filter under tank.
<Do be sure to clean the canister frequently.>
How many pounds of rock would I need and can I get away without the sump?
<You can certainly have a tank without a sump. Keep in mind you will need to stock this tank, and any other, at a reasonable (not overcrowded) bioload. As for live rock I would start with 65-75 lbs or so and see how you like the look. You can always add more.>
Thanks, your site is great for info.
<Welcome, please read through the links and related FAQ’s below for more information, Scott V.>
http://wetwebmedia.com/clntrigsys.htm
http://wetwebmedia.com/lrselfaqs.htm

Filter/Setup Questions 02/05/2008
Hello Bob & Crew,
<<Hello, Andrew today>>
I sent a couple of e-mails a couple of days ago but fear they may have gotten lost in the great beyond. If this is a duplicate of a message that is already in your queue to be answered I apologize.
<<No apology needed>>
I have a filtration question about a 125 gallon aquarium I am purchasing. I am going to add 100 lbs of live sand (brand new, I am not using the crushed coral in my current 56 gal tank), my existing 20-25 lbs of live rock from my current 56gal, along with another 25 lbs (for starters) of live rock I am purchasing when I buy the tank. I also have a Coralife 125gal skimmer that works fantastically in my 56 (knock on wood).
<<Sounds good>>
My LFS suggested (strongly) going with a wet/dry filter with the standard blue bio-balls.
<<Strongly eh???>>
I am not so sure. So I wanted your opinion on if I were to run two Aquaclear 110's and my current Aquaclear 70, along with the protein skimmer, the 100lbs of LS, and 50 or so lbs (for now) of LR, would that be sufficient to have a healthy setup? I really don't want to go with the wet/dry and especially the bio balls (after reading here on WWM) unless its an outright necessity for the health of the tank. Would this setup give me adequate mechanical filtration, bio filtration, and water movement for this tank?
<<The amount of filtration mentioned should be fine, as you are already half way there with the live rock. I would stick to just the 2 Aquaclear 110's, leave off the Aquaclear 70..The 110's are rated at 110g's each, so, that's ok. Flow wise, I would not rely on these to provide the right amount of flow. I would be adding some powerheads to create the flow for you>>
Also a quick question, if I may, on cycling the new tank. My LFS also said I "Have" to add bio-Spira to the new tank when I set it up in order to have the tank cycle in a short time frame. I can't support the two tanks (from a space perspective) for more than 2 weeks or so. With adding all of the LS, along with the LR and I also plan to add Hagen cycle which I already have a supply of, do I really "need" the bio-Spira to cycle in such a short time?
<<A common question really. How to get a fast cycle. Unfortunately, a cycle should not be rushed, its natures way of laying the building blocks of the aquarium. My advise if you want a "quicker" route to cycling, if it cant be left alone, is to use fully cured live rock, and use pure ammonia as the ammonia source to kick start the cycle. Hopefully, the levels of bacteria already present on the Fully cured live rock will give the cycle a quicker turn around>>
Thank you again for such a great site and such helpful information. It is very much appreciated.
Mike P.
<<Thanks for the questions, hope it helps. A Nixon>>