Frag tank under display tank - who has them?

[FishyDP]

I am trying to get some ideas for adding a frag tank under a display tank. Would love to see some pics, and how you set up/plumbed it. I know alot of people plumb frag tanks into their display. I am curious to see examples of those who are limited in space, and added one in their stand/directly under their display.

 

[Flippers4pups]

Bump. Sure there is quite a few out there!

 

[Bleigh]

I'd like to see this too! I'm thinking about adding a frag tank next to the new display tank I'm setting up. I'd like to see how people plumb it.

 

[Brett S]

When I originally installed my tank I built two sections in the middle of my sump... one to use as a fuge and one to use as a frag tank...

My thought was that by doing it this way I could use one light for both sections and life would be good. In the end it didn’t work out so well

First, I discovered that a fuge and a frag tank really have different lighting requirements. Ideally a fuge should have a different light spectrum and a longer photo period. When I was using one light for both sections I would light for the frags and hope the fuge got enough light, but the algae in the fuge never really took off and I was still dealing with a lot of nuisance algae in both the DT and the frag section.

Which leads me to the second issue. I had nuisance algae in my frag section, but because it was part of my sump there was no way to contain a CUC or a small fish in the frag section. I tried putting up some egg crate barriers at the bottom where the water could flow out into the next section of the sump and at the top because the water level would rise when the power was shut off and livestock could go to any part of the sump then, but it really didn’t work... things still found ways to get out of the frag tank section.

So in the end I just wound up removing the middle barrier dividing the two sections, replaced the light and created one large fuge in my sump.

I then plumbed a 20G frag tank into a cabinet next to my sump and moved the light I originally had over my sump instead...

This has worked out much better for me. It’s in the cabinet to the left shown here...

 

[Mike_Diako]

Here's mine under a 40 breeder tank. Used a 29g to make a custom sump, refugium, frag tank.

 

[ether]

Anyone else?? Reviving an oldish thread because I'm planning this setup if possible.

 

[Mono]

Plumbing a frag tank to the right of my display. Display on a 36" stand, frag tank on a 30" stand. Overflow cacades from display to frag tank to sump.

 

[ether]

Plumbing a frag tank to the right of my display. Display on a 36" stand, frag tank on a 30" stand. Overflow cacades from display to frag tank to sump.

I would do that, but I don't have room where my tank is going for a frag tank on the side. It has to go in the stand.

 

[krash7172]

I drilled a biocube 16 and sat it on top of my sump

 

[FishyDP]

Have been doing some more research since starting this thread. A good solution for this seems to be having the main display drain into the frag tank under the stand, and then having the frag tank mounted a bit above sump and overflow into sump. As long as the frag tank is sized properly to handle overflow from display and you have enough room in stand, I dont see a why this will not work. This may be challenging on a 48" or less tank, but on 72" tank with a 30-36" sump this seems very possible.

 

[krash7172]

I used a small pump to feed the frag tank and didn't mess with my DT plumbing at all. It can be handy to isolate it from your DT if necessary. Instantly change from frag to quarantine. In my case, I had aiptasia. Very simple to tear down the frag tank and focus on DT.

 

[FishyDP]

When I originally installed my tank I built two sections in the middle of my sump... one to use as a fuge and one to use as a frag tank...

My thought was that by doing it this way I could use one light for both sections and life would be good. In the end it didn’t work out so well

First, I discovered that a fuge and a frag tank really have different lighting requirements. Ideally a fuge should have a different light spectrum and a longer photo period. When I was using one light for both sections I would light for the frags and hope the fuge got enough light, but the algae in the fuge never really took off and I was still dealing with a lot of nuisance algae in both the DT and the frag section.

Which leads me to the second issue. I had nuisance algae in my frag section, but because it was part of my sump there was no way to contain a CUC or a small fish in the frag section. I tried putting up some egg crate barriers at the bottom where the water could flow out into the next section of the sump and at the top because the water level would rise when the power was shut off and livestock could go to any part of the sump then, but it really didn’t work... things still found ways to get out of the frag tank section.

So in the end I just wound up removing the middle barrier dividing the two sections, replaced the light and created one large fuge in my sump.

I then plumbed a 20G frag tank into a cabinet next to my sump and moved the light I originally had over my sump instead...

This has worked out much better for me. It’s in the cabinet to the left shown here...

Yea it is funny how things find their way out of a refugium. I had an urchin that made it out of my fuge, similar setup to yours, and somehow made it to the return section. The only way it could have made it was climbing over baffles, out of the water! Btw, really nice looking setup.

Oh, and yea the intense red spectrum seems to be a popular choice in order to outcompete the blue spectrum in the display to grow macro or other types of algae. I just installed an algae scrubber because I cannot seem to keep macro alive..I like the idea of keeping things separated and providing the best conditions for them to thrive.

 

[FishyDP]

I used a small pump to feed the frag tank and didn't mess with my DT plumbing at all. It can be handy to isolate it from your DT if necessary. Instantly change from frag to quarantine. In my case, I had aiptasia. Very simple to tear down the frag tank and focus on DT.

Great idea. I really like the thought of just shutting off a small pump to have an instant isolated quarantine system, will definitely keep this in mind.

 

[gotmesalty77]

I used a small pump to feed the frag tank and didn't mess with my DT plumbing at all. It can be handy to isolate it from your DT if necessary. Instantly change from frag to quarantine. In my case, I had aiptasia. Very simple to tear down the frag tank and focus on DT.

I had built a small stand under my tank and above my 40 breeder refuge. ive been thinking that it might be a little easier to put the ato holding in something next to the tank and to make that little 10g into a little frag. I was frist thinking of manifold for the return but the idea of a dedicated small pump feeding it. It would be more clutter but i mean i think im past that point. Any suggestions on pumps or plumbing ?

 

[krash7172]

What I did was very simple. Hole drilled in side for a bulkhead overflow. I used the existing pump and put a longer hose on it. Here's a clear pic of when I was testing it as a refugium.

 

[FishyDP]

What I did was very simple. Hole drilled in side for a bulkhead overflow. I used the existing pump and put a longer hose on it. Here's a clear pic of when I was testing it as a refugium.

I like the idea of simplicity. Did this drain setup run silent, any noise?

 

[krash7172]

First, be aware that a simple overflow like this can clog. I have plumbed my frag tank, scrubber and DT returns below the water line of the sump. Quiet