Refugium vs. Fluidized bed

6stokes

6stokes

Member
So when I got my first tank, I was doing a fish only. That didn't last long. Now I'm about six months in have a complete reef system and am wishing I belonged to this forum for a few months prior to purchasing everything. I did read about three really good books, but they can't give you the current trends, just a good foundation.
So when I was deciding on the equipment, one of the books showed fluidized bed filters being far superior to trickle systems. Guess what I bought? I'm wondering how these bed filters compare to refugiums? What's the skinny out there? I'd like to hear pros and cons because the pumps I have, which flow through filters before the fluidized beds, I'm not happy with, and I fugure if I'm going to change them, I need to know if I should also change to a refugium.
I'll save the filters for a different post. That's another whole story.
BTW, I have never had a nitrate reading, so I think they do a good job, but I heard that in power outages they could quickly become anaerobic.
 
robchuck

robchuck

Active Member
Are you running sand as your media in the fluidized bed filter?
By the way, I've heard the same thing about these types of filters becoming anarobic during power outages. Basically, most of the denitrifying bacteria in the bed dies and the filter would need to recycle before it's useful again.
My opinion on FBF's vs. refugiums favors the use of a refugium. While FBF's are great at reducing nitrates when running sand media, refugiums strip nitrates from the water as well as other nutrients like phosphates, and those nutrients can be exported from the system entirely by pruning the macro algae in the 'fuge. Plus, a 'fuge has the added benefit of being a haven for pods that can become food for your display tank.
If you do decide to stop using the FBF and go with a 'fuge, all is not lost. You can always modify the FBF to run as a iron-based phosphate remover reactor, calcium reactor, or anything along those lines.
 
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