Is LR in sump an old thing?

Benga · Jun 4, 2018

I don't see much about LR in the sump anymore just chaeto these days. Does LR carry more cons then pros with it.

I can see how it reduces my water volume and gets somewhat dirty, but I'm starting to see detritus buildup at the bottom where the flow is low because of how stacked the rocks are in the first stage of my sump.

Curious on your thoughts?

My sump is three stage, Sock, Chaeto, LR then Skimmer, then Return.

Jesterrace · Jun 5, 2018

I have a few extra chunks in my sump, a lot of it just depends on what sort of configuration you are going for.

mike werner · Jun 5, 2018

I have it but i'm old school.i will say I have nice sps growth and don't know if it would be better with out it.i'm sure you'll hear both sides of this style of reefing

mfinn · Jun 5, 2018

I don't keep live rock in my sump.
I've found that it turns into a detritus trap.

Roid Reefs · Jun 5, 2018

I have an area in my sump that is about 6"x6". I keep a bunch of rubble rock in there. I like to keep it because I have a majority softie tank, so it works great for gluing down frags, then gluing the rock to plugs. This allows the rock to be pulled off the plug easy and allows the frag to be placed more natural looking in the tank.
Extra rock will provide more surface area for the nitrogen cycle, and it also gives a good place for pods to reproduce. What I plan to do is cover the bottom of my future fuge in a thin layer of rubble rock instead of sand. but it does trap detritus, so that is something to watch and maybe clean out every 6 months to a year.