Frag Tank questions

fattyratrat · 02/19/2008, 12:40 AM

I am setting up a 20 gallon long frag tank with a 150 MH over it. I will only be running a hang on back penguin biowheel and maybe a korolia 2 or something. I plan to have no sand, and no rock. Is this going to work? Will pods colonize? Is there even a need to cycle the tank, or can I just put frags in as soon as the basics are stable?

thanks for your help.

xenon · 02/19/2008, 12:42 AM

What are you going to feed your corals and how are you going to remove the waste?

Bio wheels on sw tanks are useless

fattyratrat · 02/19/2008, 12:51 AM

Why do you say bio-wheels are useless? The wheel part is biological filtration, which will take the place of live rock, and the mechanical and chemical filtration part is just like putting the same filtration in a sump or something... I dont understand why they are useless.

I do plan to do quite frequent water changes, and I also have a large skimmer I might hook up from time to time (take it off my main tank).

What would be your suggestion for an alternative to the biowheel?

xenon · 02/19/2008, 01:43 AM

Bio wheels work great in fresh water tanks, not salt.

There is no replacement for live rock and sand.

I will ask again. What will you feed your corals?

IslandCrow · 02/19/2008, 02:20 AM

I wouldn't go as far as to say that biowheels are useless, but they are not nearly as effective as live rock and a good protein skimmer. They work decently for fish only tanks, but since there is no anaerobic region on a biowheel, there is not an environment for denitrifying bacteria. In other words, although it works alright for removing ammonia, the nitrates remain in the water. Not a big issue for fish, but problematic for invertebrates (like corals). I'd use a sump with a protein skimmer and either a remote DSB or an area where you keep live rock. Not rubble, by the way, but decent sized rock. A frag tank isn't going to have nearly the bioload of a tank with fish, so you don't need 1 lb of live rock per gallon, but I think it's a good idea to have a source of denitrifying bacteria. When I had my frag tank set up, it shared a sump with my main tank, so that wasn't really an issue.

fattyratrat · 02/19/2008, 12:07 PM

Thanks for all the help...

I may decide to just find a bunch of really thin rock, and have htat under the lowest level of egg crate. The tank isnt drilled, so I am going to avoid a sump, and i hate sand and how it restricts the use of powerheads because it gets everywhere. I want easy removal of waste too, which will be easier without sand. I will probably buy a skilter of some sort, to put some kind of protein skimming on it.

So thats the plan... have as much rock as can fit under the first level of egg crate, and get a skilter to hang on the back.

And just so you know what i will feed my corals... i will feed them what they eat - if they will accept bigger meaty foods, I will give them just that, and if they are filter feeders, i will feed them that.

Thanks again for your thoughts.

02/19/2008, 12:40 AM	#1
fattyratrat Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 278	Frag Tank questions I am setting up a 20 gallon long frag tank with a 150 MH over it. I will only be running a hang on back penguin biowheel and maybe a korolia 2 or something. I plan to have no sand, and no rock. Is this going to work? Will pods colonize? Is there even a need to cycle the tank, or can I just put frags in as soon as the basics are stable? thanks for your help.

02/19/2008, 02:20 AM	#5
IslandCrow Reef Monkey Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Rockledge, Fl Posts: 5,759	I wouldn't go as far as to say that biowheels are useless, but they are not nearly as effective as live rock and a good protein skimmer. They work decently for fish only tanks, but since there is no anaerobic region on a biowheel, there is not an environment for denitrifying bacteria. In other words, although it works alright for removing ammonia, the nitrates remain in the water. Not a big issue for fish, but problematic for invertebrates (like corals). I'd use a sump with a protein skimmer and either a remote DSB or an area where you keep live rock. Not rubble, by the way, but decent sized rock. A frag tank isn't going to have nearly the bioload of a tank with fish, so you don't need 1 lb of live rock per gallon, but I think it's a good idea to have a source of denitrifying bacteria. When I had my frag tank set up, it shared a sump with my main tank, so that wasn't really an issue. __________________ All opinions in the above message should be taken with 35 ppt salt. -Mike C. Current Tank Info: I have a reef screen saver on my phone, does that count?

02/19/2008, 12:42 AM	#2
xenon Owner of Canada Corals Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Mississauga, Canada Posts: 3,148	What are you going to feed your corals and how are you going to remove the waste? Bio wheels on sw tanks are useless

02/19/2008, 12:51 AM	#3
fattyratrat Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 278	Why do you say bio-wheels are useless? The wheel part is biological filtration, which will take the place of live rock, and the mechanical and chemical filtration part is just like putting the same filtration in a sump or something... I dont understand why they are useless. I do plan to do quite frequent water changes, and I also have a large skimmer I might hook up from time to time (take it off my main tank). What would be your suggestion for an alternative to the biowheel?

02/19/2008, 01:43 AM	#4
xenon Owner of Canada Corals Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Mississauga, Canada Posts: 3,148	Bio wheels work great in fresh water tanks, not salt. There is no replacement for live rock and sand. I will ask again. What will you feed your corals?

02/19/2008, 12:07 PM	#6
fattyratrat Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 278	Thanks for all the help... I may decide to just find a bunch of really thin rock, and have htat under the lowest level of egg crate. The tank isnt drilled, so I am going to avoid a sump, and i hate sand and how it restricts the use of powerheads because it gets everywhere. I want easy removal of waste too, which will be easier without sand. I will probably buy a skilter of some sort, to put some kind of protein skimming on it. So thats the plan... have as much rock as can fit under the first level of egg crate, and get a skilter to hang on the back. And just so you know what i will feed my corals... i will feed them what they eat - if they will accept bigger meaty foods, I will give them just that, and if they are filter feeders, i will feed them that. Thanks again for your thoughts.