Brown stuff in sump help Identify?

[Ricky1066]

This is what I have begiining to assemble in the bottom of my new sump tank the sock is also very brown after only 2 days Is this stuff whatever it is ok It is like a brown foam.

Also I have a small piece of chaeto in the sump does the light in there have to be on 24 /7 Inotice th ewater in the sump evaporating I added some plain water to it but I am not sure if I should be adding to the main also .Very hard to judge how the main water is doing I have the black caps onit so I measure from the sump

Also should I add anything else in the sump?

[Fish_wiz2]

It's just junk from your tank and cheato needs to be lit 24/7, plain water put in the sump only (it will mess up your tank if you put it in directly).

[Lotus99]

Are you talking about the brown stuff in the sock? If so, that's just wastes (fish poop, uneaten food, etc.) and it's normal. You should rinse out or swap the sock with a clean one weekly to keep nitrates low.

The top off water should go in the sump. The level in your main tank will always stay the same while you have the sump running, but the sump level will drop.

You can run the sump light 24/7 or on a reverse cycle from the main tank. You could add some live rock rubble in the sump to give pods more places in which to breed.