FOWLR difficulty

WuHT · 01/21/2008, 11:14 PM

Now if i were to set up a 150 gallon aquarium ... what would be the lowest maintenance way of going about it ? Ie: reduce number of water changes, reduce siphoning time..and more time enjoying the acquarium!

I've spent a lot of time reading on this forum and even then i can't sum up everything! (very tough job)

LR seems like a no brainer, doubling as both nitrifying and denitrifying processess. < -- best to cook it first ? I do not value coralline algae (or any for that matter) and would rather it be a bacteria factory

sand vs BB vs crushed corals...and what substrate depth preferred ? --> Not entirely sure about this one,
Sand can be live..and tended by smaller organisms
Crushed corals can accumulate detritus, but wont have dead spots
BB = detritus caught in deadzone underneath rock ? Tipping over safety ?

sump ?
Better pay more for a strong skimmer i imagine
DSB and refugium...are they worth it ..or will i constantly have to take care of it (though i dunno how bad it would be)
A wet/dry is very easy to maintain .. yet could be a nitrate factory.

generally i'd imagine keeping cleaning crews would help keep clean the tank as well as look neat...so that'd eliminate some of my choices (some triggers/tusks/puffers) but i can still select from a HUGE list of stock.

so yes, any advice i'll take..as my above post was more a rant than a summation.

bertoni · 01/22/2008, 12:03 AM

Crushed coral is a high-maintenance mess, in my experience. Shallow or deep sand beds can be low maintenance. A thin sand bed is usually fine, and has fewer stocking restrictions. Auto-topoff is useful. A refugium requires some maintenance, but not much.

schigara · 01/22/2008, 12:51 AM

A good skimmer and DSB refugium will reduce the amount and frequency of water changes. Also lightly stocking with fish.

Is this just something pretty you want to show off or is it something you are passionate about?

uscharalph · 01/22/2008, 01:51 AM

I agree, a lighter stocked tank would help in lowering maintenance.

WuHT · 01/22/2008, 02:28 AM

lol yes there is some truth in that.

Btw : Is there any merit in keeping eggcrate under a sand bed?

bertoni · 01/22/2008, 02:32 AM

That's usually done to keep the live rock off the bottom of the tank.

jamiep · 01/22/2008, 05:16 AM

If you want to aviod syphoning you can set up a sump behind the tank, but raised up slightly so you can fit a bucket under it. Then drill the sump and put a ball valve in it so you can just turn the tap, let the water drain into the bucket and turn the tap off. You could even do it straight into the drain if you had enough pipe but then you don't know quite how much water your removing!

snorvich · 01/22/2008, 06:17 AM

There is somewhat of a trade off between maintenance and cost. For example, my sumps and equipment are in the basement. This allows me to do easy water changes and avoid noise and space restrictions.
It also allows me to have more total water volume as well as a remote deep sand bed and refugium in addition to a sump.

WuHT · 01/23/2008, 12:37 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by jamiep
If you want to aviod syphoning you can set up a sump behind the tank, but raised up slightly so you can fit a bucket under it. Then drill the sump and put a ball valve in it so you can just turn the tap, let the water drain into the bucket and turn the tap off. You could even do it straight into the drain if you had enough pipe but then you don't know quite how much water your removing!

Ah yes i have a drain right under the aquarium.

I'm just looking for a long term aquarium that wouldn't be too hard to care for (demanding scheduled maintenance, or awkward/back breaking manual labour)

What is limiting me so far is that I don't have a lot of "single" sump space, so if aside from the skimmer and return pump, it'll be hard to put in a decent sized DSB (though something better than nothing).

I could stick with LR + skimmer + hardier fish(which doesn't mean they dont look great!)

digression :
As of now, my emperor is definatelly under noticeable HLLE, even though he has a varied diet , so i'm guessing it's likely my high nitrates (50+ ppm) or stray voltage (i'm not too sure about this one)
My shrimp, snails, crabs, and sea star seem to handle the nitrate fine.... maybe they are hardier than i thought (or emperors are more sensitive than i thought)

demonsp · 01/23/2008, 12:44 AM

keeping stock low,good skimmer , no SB but atleast 1 lb per gallon of LR , good flow , a HOB or caniter filter with carbon , good test kit. You can get by with this and 20% water changes monthly for many yrs.

But i see many cases of reef type fish in a FOWLR system and just dont seem right. What type fish do you want and how many as this should be something you know before you even start to be sure they are compatable together and what would be the best order to add them.
Do you know what fish your going to add?

WuHT · 01/23/2008, 09:03 AM

O the fish part is IMO easier to deal with.. i just to need accept the fact that some fish arn't as hardy as others !

Just curious why you dont' recommend a SB demonsp <--
Don't mobile inverts do better with SB ?
Don't fish not-like seeing their own reflection?
If i dont get burrowing wrasses, it's not a total loss (as more burrowing wrasse give inverts trouble)

01/21/2008, 11:14 PM	#1
WuHT Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 911	FOWLR difficulty Now if i were to set up a 150 gallon aquarium ... what would be the lowest maintenance way of going about it ? Ie: reduce number of water changes, reduce siphoning time..and more time enjoying the acquarium! I've spent a lot of time reading on this forum and even then i can't sum up everything! (very tough job) LR seems like a no brainer, doubling as both nitrifying and denitrifying processess. < -- best to cook it first ? I do not value coralline algae (or any for that matter) and would rather it be a bacteria factory sand vs BB vs crushed corals...and what substrate depth preferred ? --> Not entirely sure about this one, Sand can be live..and tended by smaller organisms Crushed corals can accumulate detritus, but wont have dead spots BB = detritus caught in deadzone underneath rock ? Tipping over safety ? sump ? Better pay more for a strong skimmer i imagine DSB and refugium...are they worth it ..or will i constantly have to take care of it (though i dunno how bad it would be) A wet/dry is very easy to maintain .. yet could be a nitrate factory. generally i'd imagine keeping cleaning crews would help keep clean the tank as well as look neat...so that'd eliminate some of my choices (some triggers/tusks/puffers) but i can still select from a HUGE list of stock. so yes, any advice i'll take..as my above post was more a rant than a summation.

01/22/2008, 12:03 AM	#2
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	Crushed coral is a high-maintenance mess, in my experience. Shallow or deep sand beds can be low maintenance. A thin sand bed is usually fine, and has fewer stocking restrictions. Auto-topoff is useful. A refugium requires some maintenance, but not much. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

01/22/2008, 01:51 AM	#4
uscharalph Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Long Beach, CA Posts: 1,248	I agree, a lighter stocked tank would help in lowering maintenance. __________________ Ralph Mendoza Jr. Long Beach, CA Current Tank Info: 80 Gallon Reef Tank

01/22/2008, 02:32 AM	#6
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	That's usually done to keep the live rock off the bottom of the tank. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

01/22/2008, 06:17 AM	#8
snorvich Team RC member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Outlander Posts: 40,953 Blog Entries: 46	There is somewhat of a trade off between maintenance and cost. For example, my sumps and equipment are in the basement. This allows me to do easy water changes and avoid noise and space restrictions. It also allows me to have more total water volume as well as a remote deep sand bed and refugium in addition to a sump. __________________ Warmest regards, ~Steve~

01/22/2008, 12:51 AM	#3
schigara Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Memphis, Tn Posts: 525	A good skimmer and DSB refugium will reduce the amount and frequency of water changes. Also lightly stocking with fish. Is this just something pretty you want to show off or is it something you are passionate about?

01/22/2008, 02:28 AM	#5
WuHT Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 911	lol yes there is some truth in that. Btw : Is there any merit in keeping eggcrate under a sand bed?

01/22/2008, 05:16 AM	#7
jamiep Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Ireland Posts: 458	If you want to aviod syphoning you can set up a sump behind the tank, but raised up slightly so you can fit a bucket under it. Then drill the sump and put a ball valve in it so you can just turn the tap, let the water drain into the bucket and turn the tap off. You could even do it straight into the drain if you had enough pipe but then you don't know quite how much water your removing!

01/23/2008, 12:44 AM	#10
demonsp Moved On Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: el paso tx Posts: 7,634	keeping stock low,good skimmer , no SB but atleast 1 lb per gallon of LR , good flow , a HOB or caniter filter with carbon , good test kit. You can get by with this and 20% water changes monthly for many yrs. But i see many cases of reef type fish in a FOWLR system and just dont seem right. What type fish do you want and how many as this should be something you know before you even start to be sure they are compatable together and what would be the best order to add them. Do you know what fish your going to add?

01/23/2008, 09:03 AM	#11
WuHT Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 911	O the fish part is IMO easier to deal with.. i just to need accept the fact that some fish arn't as hardy as others ! Just curious why you dont' recommend a SB demonsp <-- Don't mobile inverts do better with SB ? Don't fish not-like seeing their own reflection? If i dont get burrowing wrasses, it's not a total loss (as more burrowing wrasse give inverts trouble)