Questioning my refugium effectiveness

[deepseadan]

I've been running a large 24" x 16" fuge with a mud bed and three different types of micro algae including chaeto for almost a year and a half on my 135 gallon tank. Recently I've been questioning its effectiveness. I've acquired a few more fish which need feeding more often and my no3 and p04 have been slowly rising. Been treating the problem with red sea's version of vodka with success, by I would hope my fuge should be able to handle it (im not feeding to much). I have a asm g2 skimmer which runs continually. Lately I've been wondering if I bought into a trend and should quit messing with the fuge. I have an extra g1x skimmer which I could throw in the empty fuge section if I was to clear it of mud and algae. Anyone else feel the same way about the effectiveness of their fuge?

[hollister]

Maybe question amount of fish stock or the amount you feed them.Also amount of water flow in there?

[asonitez]

Originally Posted by deepseadan

I've been running a large 24" x 16" fuge with a mud bed and three different types of micro algae including chaeto for almost a year and a half on my 135 gallon tank. Recently I've been questioning its effectiveness. I've acquired a few more fish which need feeding more often and my no3 and p04 have been slowly rising. Been treating the problem with red sea's version of vodka with success, by I would hope my fuge should be able to handle it (im not feeding to much). I have a asm g2 skimmer which runs continually. Lately I've been wondering if I bought into a trend and should quit messing with the fuge. I have an extra g1x skimmer which I could throw in the empty fuge section if I was to clear it of mud and algae. Anyone else feel the same way about the effectiveness of their fuge?

If were to study the discussion on refugiums from all the leading pundits out there you would come to the conclusion very quickly that the average reefer's refugium volume is by far almost inconsequential to the overall health of their system. While the fuge will provide SOME nutrient control the actual amount is not that great. I belive having a well established fuge at least 1/2 to 3/4's of your water volume is where it really becomes beneficial. I don't have space for another 200 gallon tank under my tank so I think my 15 Gallon Fuge is plenty.

What your fuge is doing now is providing food and growing critters you can't even see that infinitely benefit your tank. Its doing SOME nutrient control but shouldn't be leaned on to do that much. Removing dissolved organics as your skimmer does is great. Provided you have a skimmer rated for your sized tank and then some adding a second skimmer probably won't do much.

If you are looking to control your nutrients the red sea program is great and I use it myself. Vodka is another method and you can look into Bio-Pellets which is easier to scale for a larger/smaller system and take up relatively small amount of space. You can retro any reactor to do it and it should help take care of your problem. In my 200 gal I got only 6 small fish lol and my problem is I don't have any/enough waste.. lmao.

I vote to keep your fuge add a biopellet reactor reduce your feeding and follow all the good feeding tips. Pumps off while you feed. Small amounts of food eaten in 5mins. Keep up on your water changes and you should be alright.

[Toadally]

^^^I agree^^^

[deepseadan]

So is the general consensus that a sand or mud bed is still beneficial in a fuge if the type of micro algae doesn't need to root in?