Refugium or Cryptic Zone?

[fragit]

I have a 120 peninsula with a 40 breeder refugium and a 40 breeder sump. I run the aquaforest system. Recently discovered that I have a nutrient issue as in zero nitrates and some phosphates 0.037. So I removed my Cheato, and kept the caluerpa. After about a week with heavy feedings I finally got some detectable nitrates at 0.6 and phosphates dropped a little. Then my caluerpa essentially melted. I'm now as of Tuesday getting 0.35 nitrates, phosphates are still at 0.037, and I have no real macro algea in the fuge. There is just some Chaeto pieces that are here and there, and a couple pieces of caluerpa that just started to show up two days ago, and some hair algea that is starting to show. I have plenty of pods growing in there both tisbe, and tiger so that is not really a concern. They seem to be very prolific. So I'm at a cross roads, I need to get my nitrates up still and have begun to consider dosing spectraside. I also am wondering if I should just turn the fuge into a cryptic zone, and add some more live rock I have laying around and kill the lights (also saving on electricity). Or should I restock my macro algea. Refugium and sump are in the basement so it's not like I have a display fuge. That's the deal, tell me what you think please.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

IMO IME my .02
Id put some chato back. leave the calurpa you have. keep it contained of course. Then feed food. try different kinds. what have you got to lose really.
I love hate calurpa. I love it because its like a fuse. If theres a nutrint spike itll BLOW UP. I swear you can watch it fgrow in the couple times its happened to me. keep it trimmed.
I like what macros/fuge do for PH. So I balance my system with the fuge in mind. Ive stripped nutrints with the fuge so I do keep that in mind and keep the fuge trimmed.

In my mind, Im balancing feeding for the entire tank. As a tank matures(my observation anyway) it processes food faster. In both my tanks this year Ive been feeding a surprising amount to keep the nutrints up even though I have few fish. when I was feeding for just the fish the nutrints dropped really fast. It was odd to look at the tank and think the tank, rock , bacteria and coral are actually consuming more than the fish.

Fwiw my smaller tank 30g cube, is sumpless, fugeless. was skimmerless for months. and still processing nutrints to the point the zoas started to shrink.

 

[fragit]

I agree with everything you said and that's why I've always had a refugium. But with a ULNS do you think it will be more trouble than it's worth trying to balance nutrient load?

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

I agree with everything you said and that's why I've always had a refugium. But with a ULNS do you think it will be more trouble than it's worth trying to balance nutrient load?

I'm afraid I have zero experience with ULNS. I would would guess so however.

 

[fragit]

Bump[emoji848]

 

[Zero Nitrates]

Either way will work. I had a 75 gallon system with a cryptic zone that did really well. I ordered some sponges from Steve Tyree. He has some good info on the subject.
Currently I am going the chato route. It is very hard to find that perfect balance of feeding. I haven't figured out the perfect balance yet. The cheto grows well for a couple weeks then dies off. I wait a couple weeks for nutrients to come up then add cheto again.
The cryptic zone did not have the swing of nutrient levels, but the nutrients also never got low in that tank.

 

[fragit]

Either way will work. I had a 75 gallon system with a cryptic zone that did really well. I ordered some sponges from Steve Tyree.QUOTE]
Do you have a link for purchasing stuff from Steve or for the information you referred to?

 

[fragit]

Either way will work. I had a 75 gallon system with a cryptic zone that did really well. I ordered some sponges from Steve Tyree. He has some good info on the subject.
Currently I am going the chato route. It is very hard to find that perfect balance of feeding. I haven't figured out the perfect balance yet. The cheto grows well for a couple weeks then dies off. I wait a couple weeks for nutrients to come up then add cheto again.
The cryptic zone did not have the swing of nutrient levels, but the nutrients also never got low in that tank.

Do you have a link for purchasing stuff from Steve or for the information you referred to?

 

[Zero Nitrates]

http://www.reeffarmers.com/farmsponge.htm

 

[fragit]

http://www.reeffarmers.com/farmsponge.htm

Thanks!