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Trey, what about the value of the Mud???

I think there are two reasons for not using a skimmer in a refugium-filtered system: 1. The skimmer may be counter-productive for the macroalgae, as Tanker pointed out. 2. Some believe that skimmers tend to remove a lot of desirable stuffs from your tank (i.e. trace elements, calcium, good...

SWKid, Look closely at your main tank and I'm sure you'll get another surprise. ;) Try dark areas with a lot of water flow.

Originally posted by Fat_Ed: <STRONG> 1) Did you set it up with a plenum? DSB? </STRONG> I went with a DSB. The unit is pretty small, so a plenum seemed overkill. Also, my suspicion is that this refugium's primary benefit is as a critter-feeder for my main tank. Having said that, I think...

Newbie, Congrats! You might want to consider marking high water and low water points on your sump, to ensure you don't overfill it. Fill the sump to the brim when the power is off. Be careful to ensure that you maintain the appropriate PH, salinity, etc. in the total water volume. Then...

New, You're improved results could possibly be attributed to the fact that your intake (i.e. Rio Powerhead) was closer to the water surface. A problem with the standard BackPAck system is that it draws water from several inches below the surface. If you're skimming below the surface, the...

Twoods, Just my opinion, but I would keep the shrimp in until Ammonia levels decrease enough to add livestock. Oherwise, the Nitrosomas will run out of waste to eat and they'll stop multiplying. Leave the shimp in to give the good guy bacteria lot's of time to make a bio-filter. your cycle...

G'day, A few thoughts: -There are numerous sources on-line for both dry and live sand. Though shipping costs are a bit high, it merits investigation -Having recently been to the Gold Coast, I must say that you've got a much better shot at getting good clean sand than many of us yanks. I would...

Originally posted by i3luedragon: <STRONG>You could save a used toothbrush or buy a special cleaner brush to clean it. :eek:</STRONG> Dragon, Any tips on how one might make the toothbrush taste better, once they've finished using it to clean their tank? :p

CChung, How long has your tank been established? What is your water quality like? Bioload? Substrate (CC or LS)? To skim, or not to skim... My shot from the hip would be to add the skimmer. You might want to seacrh this board a bit to find out the actual service(s) the skimmer can provide your...

I have the 18" AquaFuge on my 58 and it works great.

Josh, Try searching this board for refugium plans, instructions, etc. Re: the CPR overflow - You can dedicate a new venturi powerhead for maintaining suction, or buy/DIY a venturi conversion for an existing pump. Personally, I have one a circulation venturi maintaining suction in one of my...

Playtime, congrats! Observations like yours, though not uncommon, always confuse me. I don't understand how changing 20% of the water volume can immediately reduce the concentration of Nitrates in 100% of the water by well over 60%. You're not the first person that has reported this sort of...

Unless you're dealing with fully-cured live rock and live sand, it'll may be a week or longer before you notice Nitrites. Nitrates will be behind them. You excercise patience and your tank will do the rest. If you want to speed things up a bit, you could try one of the commercial Nitrosomas. :)

I have heard that Magnesium depletion is one of the undesirable side effects of Mangrove filtration. Evidently, they use Magnesium as part of their biological processes, to pass salt out through their leaves. I believe that this has something to do with them being freshwater plants. To counter...

Goofiones, add it! Your fish will eventually devour it. Also, go with what Trey said and set up a seperate tank for growing it...or a refugium!

I'm assuming you're currently got crushed coral with your UG filter. In that case, converting to a DSB will make you much happier in the long run. I just have two suggestions: 1. Use live Sand as it will significantly lower the time it will take for your tank to partially cycle. Your tank...

Crabs are tough... shrimp, however, are more sensitive. I like adding crabs early on, but lately I've been cycling tanks with good LR & LS.

Are you adding any wierd suppiments or invert food to your tank? Sometimes these can cause high Nitrate readings. Just a thought???

OK, I'm going to get a lot of flames for this... I've cycled quite a few tanks on my day. I've used damsels, shrimp, etc. Recently, I've beed taking advantage of Live Sand and some of the better bacterias of the market. I've noticed with the last 4 tanks I've cycled that my Ammonia and...