Refugium Vs. Turf Scrubber??? Let's Vote and Discuss...

DarthSimon · Feb 23, 2019

So I thought to start a poll and discussion on your thoughts on Refugium's vs Algae Turf Scrubbers.
In the last 2 years, I have setup and explored both avenues of Nutrient Export.

To start off, I have tried 2 different refugium setups. My first was undersized, and barely helped in reduction of nitrates and phosphates. My second attempt at a refugium I used a larger 40 Gallon breeder tank with a Kessil Grow light and had better results. The chaeto would grow and I would have to prune every 3-4 weeks on average. Nutrient were lower but not the lower levels I was looking for. Also I kept getting the weirdest brownish slime algae all over the FUG and chaeto. Fearing Dino's I tore down that setup on two different occasions and restated. FYI never saw this slime anywhere else in my system. I have a 55g SPS tank, 90 gallon FOWLR, Frag tank and 100g Sump on top of this and entire system is plumbed together. So after having issues with Fug I tried a Clearwater Turf Scrubber. Easy to plum into system, and got installed and running quickly. The Screen on the scrubber starts out perfectly clean from day one. It took 3-4 weeks to actually grow turf algae, and after that it was all down hill. I have to scrape sheets of algae of the screen every 7-10 days. My nutrient levels are amazingly low and have little to zero nuisance algae anywhere in system.

In conclusion, I find the Turf Scrubber to be the clear cut winner in natural nutrient export. I find it to be much more efficient then a properly sized refugium, and it takes up less space.

Look forward to thoughts and first hand experiences.

pdxmonkeyboy · Feb 24, 2019

I have tons of space and I dont want to scrape anything but my DT.
so for me, chaeto and a powerful ebay LED works banger for me.

Ron Reefman · Feb 24, 2019

I prefer the refugium because I find it useful for other things as well as, or besides macro algae. I can put a frag rack in and hold new frags for long time frames. I have a place to put tank critters that become a problem, like an urchin that knocks over stuff in the tank.

Gareth elliott · Feb 24, 2019

Refugium, agree with the reasons above. Also a fuge lets me keep a zone below my algae for sponges, feather worms, bristle worms etc. free detritus removal

revhtree · Feb 25, 2019

Currently neither! I have never tried a scrubber although I would like to at some point!

DarthSimon · Feb 25, 2019

Rev,
What do you do for nutrient transport?

revhtree · Feb 25, 2019

DarthSimon said:
Rev,
What do you do for nutrient transport?

Skimmer and water changes.

Josh@ClearWaterScrubbers · Feb 25, 2019

revhtree said:
Currently neither! I have never tried a scrubber although I would like to at some point!

Let me know when you’re ready Rev!

DarthSimon · Feb 25, 2019

Hey Josh!!! 6 months later your scrubber is kicking but!!!! I can grow lawns on my screen lol!!!

Thanks again for all your help!!!!

Treefer32 · Feb 25, 2019

I have a Turbo Aquatics Turf Scrubber (L4) and love it. I have the skimmer offline currently due to space constraints. My tank has been operational for 4 months. Scrubber for about 1 month. And other than a massive Cyano outbreak in the display (which I'm told is normal for new tanks) the scrubber has been building sheets of slime algae. I sent pics of what I scraped off to Bud at Turbo Aquatics and it's thick sheets of slime algae that are growing on top of each other. I'll scrape more frequently until I start to get hair algae in the scrubber. Which, after cleaning last night, I had several small tufts of hair algae starting, I pulled these off the sheets of slime algae and rubbed the hair algae back on both sides of the screen. So far, I have very little, if any forms of slime or hair algae. Once the nutrients reach a balance. I fully expect the hair algae to take off in the scrubber and out perform the nutrient export I need over the cyano in the display. The sheets of cyano will peel off and the nutrients they hold would be consumed by the scrubber. I'm probably 2 months away from defeating the cyano, but, once it's defeated. My rocks will start developing coraline and we're off to the races. Or well, watching Caraline and Corals grow even faster than they are now. I have some SPS that are showing signs of lots of growth over week to week. A branching tree coral that all the branches have nice signs of new growth. I'm assuming they'll all do better once the cyano is gone.

hart24601 · Feb 25, 2019

I have used both in a few systems and find myself going back to refugiums every time. Most people are now in an era of worrying about reducing nutrients too far rather than being concerned with removing every last bit of nitrate and phosphate and IME fuges are just easier to maintain long term and have other benefits as other have said when it comes to other uses and, in general, less equipment and fussing.

Tom Blevins · Feb 25, 2019

I have both, The Red Sea 750xxl don't have a whole lot of room for the refugium that I would like to run
so it's only 30" long by 5" wide and 7" deep in the front, my scrubber is a 302 with 2 30watt led's rated to 225 gallon.

SJ Blane · Feb 25, 2019

I have never achieved significant nutrient reduction from my refugium but I like having a place where tanks inhabitant can be separated from the general population, temporarily.

mborn · Feb 25, 2019

I have a refugium and a macro algae reactor that work well for me. I’ve never tried a scrubber.

ca1ore · Feb 25, 2019

Scrubber works better; chaeto is easier to setup (though doesn’t always grow well) so I’d expect it to be more popular.

Captmcfly · Feb 25, 2019

I like the fuge.. never tried a scrubber. Fuge for breading of pods and a safe haven for tank bullies ..

malacoda · Feb 25, 2019

On my 24g I haven't had a need for either.

I run a nitrate reactor -- a slight shortened Phosban 150 reactor that contains some Seachem De*Nitrate, along with a mesh pouch containing a bit of Phosguard and some MatrixCarbon (with the latter two being replaced ~every 4 months).

In addition to the nitrate reactor, I use a strip of filter floss between my two sump baffles which I replace weekly.

This simple set-up combined with a 20% water change once a month has been more than adequate for keeping my PO4 and NO3 rock-steady at 0.012 mg/l and 1 ppm for the past 2 years.

Time will tell if a similar approach will be sufficient the new 65G I'm in the process of setting up ... or if added removal via a ATS or refugium macro will be needed.

leepink23 · Feb 25, 2019

I have ran both, my chaeto always died, I had good luck with calupera then it all withered away and nutrients spiked, I have great luck with my algae turf scrubber, I only clean my screen every 2-3 weeks. I have friends with great success with a refugium.

Captmcfly · Feb 25, 2019

leepink23 said:
I have ran both, my chaeto always died, I had good luck with calupera then it all withered away and nutrients spiked, I have great luck with my algae turf scrubber, I only clean my screen every 2-3 weeks. I have friends with great success with a refugium.

Sounds like a low Nute system to begin with.??