wet/dry and refugium

Discussion in 'Say Hello!' started by RCV, Jan 15, 2015.

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  1. RCV

    RCV Plankton

    Joined:
    Jan 15, 2015
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    Hey everyone, I'm semi new here (just signed up tonight, but been reading for 2 years) I currently have a 75 gallon tank with a wet/dry filter. I'd like to add a 29 gallon refugium. I can find a lot of posts online for wet/dry VS refugium, but nothing for having both. Does anyone have any input? is it just a wasted effort? Also, if anyone can make a suggestion for a good, easy to use, reasonably priced protein skimmer that would be great too.
     
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  3. Corailline

    Corailline Super Moderator

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    It is a dry heat, yeah right !
    Hi and Welcome to 3reef. :)

    I think the extra maintenance will be more of a hindrance long term than it will be helpful. If I had to choose between the two I would take the refugium because of the additional volume of water the 29 will add. Wet/dry are fine but can be detritus traps, as can a refugium but you can grow macro algae and add interesting inverts to assist in keeping it a little less dirty.

    JM2C
     
  4. Oryo

    Oryo Feather Duster

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    I also have a wet/dry filter system and I'm curious of what somebody told me a while back.

    I was told to remove little by little the bio balls and replace it with live rock? Is this a good idea?

    Would I have to only do rubble rock or would I be able to add bigger pieces like maybe 2"-3" big?

    Would this benefit the tank instead of the bio balls?
     
  5. Corailline

    Corailline Super Moderator

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    It is a dry heat, yeah right !
    As is often the case with this hobby a couple years back it was all the rage to bash an older style of reefing, wet/dry aka bio-balls. The thinking was that bio-balls were not porous enough to provide an area for the growth of anaerobic bacteria. Many hobbyist were told to change out or completely remove bio-balls. While some bio-balls may not be the perfect medium for anaerobic bacteria growth some are quite efficient as providing an anoxic area for the growth of denitrifying bacteria, long story short most bio-ball perform effectively, no need to remove and replace with rubble.

    If I was running a wet/dry I would prefer the bio-balls over rubble as it's much easier to clean and replace or remove bio-balls versus rubble.

    If your tank is functioning well than I would not be concerned.
     
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  6. Oryo

    Oryo Feather Duster

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    Thank you so much for the information. Somebody gave me the advice to remove them little by little and add rubble to replace them but after reading what you read...... I'm going to stick to your advice!

    I have been using the same wet/dry on & off for 20+ years and haven't had really any issues.. I never really thought about removing some of the bio-balls to clean them?

    I'm sorry to hijack this thread, but I saw the topic and thought it might fit in... The problem with my set up it's a 36 gallon corner bow front tank and the cabinet is made for it BUT it only has a cabinet in the middle and on there is a shelf on each side of cabinet. So to add anything inside the cabinet is limited and the rear of the tank is full with skimmer & electrical wires/strip outlets.
     
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  7. Vinnyboombatz

    Vinnyboombatz Giant Squid

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    Good advice.^^
    You cannot stockpile bacteria.If your system is healthy you have enough.:)
     
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