I personally like algae scrubbers. Just make sure it's an enclosed system. I DIY'd a waterfall style one real quick one day and noticed my evaporation skyrocketed. So the next one I do will be an enclosed system to stop that.
Nutrient export methods, especially mangroves
- Thread starter KleineVampir
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My sump has no lid either and evaporation was probably doubled. There was also tons of salt spray that coated my led lights. So for now I'm running chaeto until I get some acrylic and make a new one that is also blacked out so I'm not pouring light into the sump constantly.
Goodair
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That was what I gathered from looking at people attempting mass mangrove export. Seen vids/threads of them being started, looks pretty but either no follow up or anything useful. Chances are it wasn't as successful as they hoped. If you want a display refugium, they are great if you mix other macros, between the stocks/roots.
In nature you find ecosystems between thier roots; macros, sponges, critters.
Properly built/sized algae scrubbers would prob be the most efficient export since that is what they are literally intended to do. Grow algae.
Can you post a pic or your sump?
In nature you find ecosystems between thier roots; macros, sponges, critters.
Properly built/sized algae scrubbers would prob be the most efficient export since that is what they are literally intended to do. Grow algae.
Can you post a pic or your sump?
KleineVampir
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My sump is not pretty! Are you sure you wanna see that? xD
It's just a couple big filter pad things, a skimmer in between them...the ato in front, the return pumps in the back.
Yeah it seems like algae makes more use out of the nitrates and phosphates in your system. It isn't sitting there pulling carbon out of the air, although it might be nice as a sort of houseplant. Lol.
Scrubber_steve
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Really? Build your own then.
KleineVampir
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Well yeah, we're talking 300-600 dollars for 2 lights, a piece of knitting canvas, and some pipes. But yeah that's about where we're at right now. And yeah at these prices I probably should just build my own. But better yet, a business could actually figure out a way to mass-produce these things and get the cost down.
I used a maxijet 1200 old one I had one elbow 2 straight pieces and an end cap cut a slit just bigger than the screen and 4 releasing zip ties good to go. If you need a pump max $80. Led grow par 38 bulb from HD.
KleineVampir
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It might not evaporate as much if it actually dipped into the water. Or I wonder if you couldn't build some kind of box around it. Or try to close up the back of your stand somehow, though I have no idea how you'd do that. Do you find pretty good results with that? Even though it's just 1 side and a 5 buck florescent bulb?
Scrubber_steve
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Hi, how long has your scrubber been up and running?
I used a maxijet 1200 old one I had one elbow 2 straight pieces and an end cap cut a slit just bigger than the screen and 4 releasing zip ties good to go. If you need a pump max $80. Led grow par 38 bulb from HD.
xxkenny90xx
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I agree scrubbers are over priced, I recommend making your own. Fwiw I have about 25 mangroves in my refugium. They are pretty but they only take up a small amount of your tanks nutrients and also eat up some of your magnesium (I believe they use it to turn saltwater into freshwater to hydrate themselves)
I have had it set up 9 months that picture was the first scrub though. It works great for algae control. If I increased flow and put another light on the other side it would do more for nitrates as well. For the 30 bucks it cost me to make well worth it. I'm cheap and would never spend hundreds on one.
Goodair
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Post a pic of your layout!! You are probally fine running some vibrant and trying chaeto again. Not sure if the vibrant will eat the chaeto, but its simetbing worth looking into.
KleineVampir
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Ha ok. I'll get a picture of the sump for you guys. It's kinda makeshift and unusual but not terribly so.
I'm getting some nopox in today so we'll see how that goes. I'm wondering if a little bit of that won't go a long way.
KleineVampir
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There's the pics from 5 minutes ago, and I even took a picture of my GHA wonderland for you guys too. And yes, since I lost my chaeto I just have some knitting mesh in there as an impromptu scrubber. That's what that light is over.
I had hair algae all over my tank and it was all extremely long. I took the rocks out twice and scrubbed them in a Rubbermaid tote. That helped knock the GHA back quite a bit, and my snails and yellow tang began eating it. I then added a reactor with Phosphate Minus and the remaining GHA turned white overnight and I siphoned it off the rocks easily. I haven’t seen GHA since and I don’t use the Phos Minus anymore. The rock scrubbing idea I have to credit to another R2R member- Brandon perhaps. The scrubbing and siphoning helps.
