algae scrubber vs wet/dry - Page 2

Otty · 01-14-2008, 12:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KOgle

Otty can even attest for how crude mine looks...

But it works and didn't cost that much to build.

Tangster · 01-14-2008, 12:44 PM

I would totally agree here also I have never found any issues with a wet dry tower I find they will actually increase the systems ability to hold more dissolved 0'2 and I have never seen or experienced a NO3's problem with them. As for maintenance all I ever did was look at them (: never had any problems with them catching or holding anything . I think all that NO'3 mess was started by people wanting to unload rock and sand ..

I have seen more issues with NO3's in DSB systems as I ever did with a wet dry. The DSB users just never say anything .. And I also have ran coil denitraters for yrs and had to use them on DSB systems also. We just a few months ago added a col to a Plenum with a DSB on a to large of a refugium to control NO'3 as they really over feed the system.. But at 2 months now I am told there are zero nitrates finally .. But about 12 yrs ago when they dragged the DSB out of month balls for another run was when I first ever saw mention of a wet/dry being a Nitrate factory as they then called them..

Tangster · 01-14-2008, 12:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tty

But it works and didn't cost that much to build.

LIL Man I have a friend In Richmond we set him up 10 yrs ago with home made rock and old letterbox for a sump and a 5 gallon bucket for a refugium and little rubber maid desk waste basket for a wet dry wet dry.. His Dr. 1st cousin laughed at his stuff LOL as he had all the Fancy Amiracle stuff best rock and sand pumps all top drawer and several thouand $$$ We had his 90 set up with 2 VHO's and 2.M/H and all for less then 300.00 LOl his is still rolling like a clock the cousin's has started over now several times LOL wet wet/dry then read that DSB where the lick tank failed went Plenum then has a issue as it went south also then went back to wet dry with a coil and all is still well last I heard .

reef_guru · 01-15-2008, 12:27 AM

the only down side i have found so far is algae scrubbers wont work on sps tanks. for some reason the sps wont stay alive. reason?

wet/dry: my nutrients are 0 with no filter media to be replaced.

Tangster · 01-15-2008, 07:28 AM

I used them on sps tanks , I think it maybe could be the algae type grown ? I just had mine growing hair like algae nothing special . Gotta go operation time..

Otty · 01-15-2008, 07:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tangster

Gotta go operation time..

Let us know how things go.

inwall75 · 01-15-2008, 08:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tangster

I used them on sps tanks , I think it maybe could be the algae type grown ? I just had mine growing hair like algae nothing special . Gotta go operation time..

Hope all goes well Roger.

Yes, you are correct. It all depends on the species of algae used. Many alleopathic chemicals are released from many different algaes. Some of them are growth inhibitors for SPS, some are toxic for SPS, and some are relatively harmless. Effective use of a quality carbon can offset much of this.

reef_guru · 01-16-2008, 12:11 AM

inwall:
in my refugium there is just grape and spaghetti caluerpa. those dont conflict with sps. which ones are you talking about?

JasonSquared · 01-16-2008, 08:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Matt Rogers

I agree with this. I consider the 'nitrate factory' type comments an Internet tumble weed. Many who repeat this have never used wet/drys. When I did aquarium maintenance back in the day, many of the tanks had wet drys and growing reefs. You need to replace the pre-filter pads above the balls with regular maintenance. I think wet/drys are especially good for softie and clam tanks. They add a lot of 0₂ which should not be overlooked.

Anyway, as for ATS, I was fascinated with them for a long time. You can find many details from me and inwall75 on this if you dig.

Here is a pic of a commercial ATS filter that was sold on algaeturfscrubber.com for a while:

ATS - Algae Turf Scrubber

LIke most filters, I don't think they are the end all be all as problems surfaced with them on a commercial aquarium level. But I think that used in conjunction with a skimmer and regular maintenance they could have merit.

Huh you learn something new everyday! When I had a nitrate problem as a newb, I was told to get rid of the bioballs, and my nitrates went down. They later rose again, but I think that it just "stuck" in my head. Thanks! I am going to throw this into the list of things to try!

reef_guru · 01-16-2008, 09:09 AM

my wet/dry has live rock and bio balls. the live rock is upto the water line, the bio balls above that to the drip plate, the drip plate does not have a filter pad ( its just there to distribute the water ). my tanks NO3 has been 0 for awhile.

nitrates are over rated, some sps need NO3 to live. can someone name a particular species or genus of coral where the NO3 will harm/kill the coral at what level of NO3? if so, what is the maximum amount of NO3 that is alloted on average for all corals? most tanks have >20 NO3.

also, can someone name the algae groups that are harmfull to specific corals? as inwall suggested earlier.