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[Wrassman]

[glow=black, 3, 300]Ok, you’ve seen my sump now several times; and I’m sure that you have several questions about it that you are dying to ask. *Well, let me assure you, it has changed a little since that picture was taken; the bioballs are gone, and the protein skimmer is different, of course. And the two Fluvals I was using for mechanical filtration (I told you I was cheating *) have been changed to one Eheim 2213. In case you aren't familiar with what one looks like, I just happen to have a link in my pocket:[/glow]



This is, of course, the way Eheim suggests that the 2213 be packed for proper filtration. *Areas 1 and 3, in the diagram, are filter pads, which are, IME, nothing more than nitrate producers, rather than eliminators. *Areas 2 and 4 are sintered glass and ceramic media, respectively. *These can both be use to hold de-nitrifying bacteria.

Using some of my "newfound" information (from my German colleagues), I discovered another way of packing the Eheim 2213 that works even better, for low maintenance, high bioload tanks (see my post on “How to Use a Canister Filter,” to go there click here) *I've been keeping SW systems for a long time, and I've found that this system works for keeping heavy bioloads, by keeping the nitrates very low. *My fish are happy and healthy -- my corals are happy. *[glow=red, 2, 300]And my algae war has been WON!!![/glow]As long as my critters are happy, I'm happy... *

I have been carrying on long, technical discussions with a few people on the German site of which I am a member (meerwasserforum.com). To say those discussions were enlightening would be a gross understatement. Those discussions caused in me a "[glow=maroon, 2, 300]paridigm shift[/glow]," forcing me to re-think just about everything I have been doing as a SW aquarist, for the past several years.

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One of the things that I had to re-think, was the use of bio-balls. *A couple of my German friends ask me to defend my usage of the bio-balls, which I did, as I always have. *But, after I had done so, my colleagues began to tear it apart, piece by piece, which no one had ever done before, in a polite, respectful, and considerate way. *Always before, people have been more interested in defending their egos than debating an issue in marine aquatic theory. *

German marine aquatic theory is quite different than that which we are used to. The common lack of a DSB is only one instance. *The common use of Nitratereductors is another (if you are interested in these strange devices, let me know and I will post an explanation of them for you).

However, in a few short hours they helped me understand my OWN THEORY better than I ever have, plus, they helped me come up with a simple plan to put MY THEORY into practice better than ever.

1. *Redesign my sump/refugium. *Now, it was not going to be as much a refugium (that I will add later as a hang-on unit), but as a nitrate-reducing sump. *Remove the bio-balls, add more substrate (about 4 x 4 x 12), plus more live rock. *I will be adding live rock until the from tank side is completely full. *Here’s a pic of my “new sump/refug.”

2. *Use my redesigned Eheim 2213 as an additional and necessary part of this high bio-load / low nitrate system.

[glow=Teal, 3, 300]Edit: *As you can see, my new sump is not complete. *There's at least 30-40lbs of live rock that I need to fill the 'from tank' side. *When that is complete, I will write part 4 of this series, and the Evolution will be complete...[/glow]