Zeovit vs aquaforest vs Red Sea time needed

[G.karafilis]

Hi fellows,

I am new to the hobby just starting and I bought an aquarium around 500 liters (+150 sump)

It's the time to decide about the equipment and filtration method I will use.

I had a conversation with a friend who owns a shop and is 20 years in the hobby about zeovit and told me that he knows no one in our country has used zeovit method more than 2 years because of the time you need to spend on it and measurements all day.

Truth is that I don't have all time day to be in the house only in the afternoon.

He proposed use another method of denitrification like biopellets or gfo etc.and use additives like aquaforest or Red Sea.

I would like to hear some opinions from users using this method.is it so difficult?

What about automation ?
can it be automated somehow?
I will make the tank full apex with dosing everything

Thank you

 

[jsker]

Hi fellows,

I am new to the hobby just starting and I bought an aquarium around 500 liters (+150 sump)

It's the time to decide about the equipment and filtration method I will use.

I had a conversation with a friend who owns a shop and is 20 years in the hobby about zeovit and told me that he knows no one in our country has used zeovit method more than 2 years because of the time you need to spend on it and measurements all day.

Truth is that I don't have all time day to be in the house only in the afternoon.

He proposed use another method of denitrification like biopellets or gfo etc.and use additives like aquaforest or Red Sea.

I would like to hear some opinions from users using this method.is it so difficult?

What about automation ?
can it be automated somehow?
I will make the tank full apex with dosing everything

Thank you

A good doser makes a big difference. I use the Aquaforest products as of the present. I have used the red sea product line and was also very happy with it. The only Zeovit products that I've used are for cayno control. All the products that you've asked about need a auto doser. You are looking to automate your system, I would look at doser that dose drip dosing. For the larger amounts of dosing I use 2 Jebao dosers and I am looking at a Kore fifth doser for all my a small amount of dosing. With the Kore fifth I can also set up an auto water change and auto top off. Yes is gonna be pricey, but this is what I need to totally automate my system
I have an Apex also, it's a great controller to have for peace of mind. By dosers all run but independent of the apex. I like the Aquaforest products and use their balling method. I mix my own balling method products to say on cost in like their reef salt for my system.

 

[HolisticBear]

It's the time to decide about the equipment and filtration method I will use.

This site is an amazing resource, you can go pretty deep down the rabbit hole if you so desire. There is zeovit, aqua forest, red sea, and also triton. It's hard to tell, but it's possible the majority of reefers don't use any of them. The term filtration feels wrong even though it's not inaccurate, yet someone might call them 'supplement' systems. As in non-required supplements to your tank. The word style of reef keeping is also semi-accurate. The most common 'filtration' might just be live/dry rock, powerful skimmer + quality lights, GFO + carbon, either Kalk or some brand's 2 or 3 part Ca/Alk supplement, water changes, feeding regularly with variety of foods, potentially a refugium, and potentially some type of carbon dosing.

Both aqua forest and triton have their user guides in their respective sponsor forums. Bulk Reef Supply has an amazing collection of YouTube videos. There are many different ways to run a tank. Enjoy the process

 

[ksfulk]

Im running Zeovit on my Red Sea Reefer 525xL, and I dont know where the time issue came from to be honest. Its true that you generally spend a set amount of time with your tank every day, but it doesnt take any more or less time than any other method that Ive used. In a given week, this is my "ZeoVit" tank schedule for dosing, the product and estimated time spent:

Monday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute
Tuesday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute
Wednesday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, 12 drops ZeoBak, 5 drops ZeoFood, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~2 minutes
Thursday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute
Friday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute
Saturday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, 10 drops ZeoBak, 5 drops ZeoFood, 10-20% water change/sand vacuum, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~15-20 minutes
Sunday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute

Total time spent in a week: less than 30 minutes

What I like about Zeo is that it makes me spend time with my tank every day - which is something that I got away from with other tanks. This makes me stay engaged and I have a lot better feel for what my tank is like because of it. But the arguement that it takes too much time is just ridiculous.

As something of note, ZeoVit isnt a filtration method - its a nutrient management system. You will still need to provide for Alkalinity and Calcium and trace elements with Zeo - so that's something else you need to plan for.

 

[G.karafilis]

Im running Zeovit on my Red Sea Reefer 525xL, and I dont know where the time issue came from to be honest. Its true that you generally spend a set amount of time with your tank every day, but it doesnt take any more or less time than any other method that Ive used. In a given week, this is my "ZeoVit" tank schedule for dosing, the product and estimated time spent:

Monday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute
Tuesday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute
Wednesday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, 12 drops ZeoBak, 5 drops ZeoFood, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~2 minutes
Thursday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute
Friday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute
Saturday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, 10 drops ZeoBak, 5 drops ZeoFood, 10-20% water change/sand vacuum, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~15-20 minutes
Sunday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute

Total time spent in a week: less than 30 minutes

What I like about Zeo is that it makes me spend time with my tank every day - which is something that I got away from with other tanks. This makes me stay engaged and I have a lot better feel for what my tank is like because of it. But the arguement that it takes too much time is just ridiculous.

As something of note, ZeoVit isnt a filtration method - its a nutrient management system. You will still need to provide for Alkalinity and Calcium and trace elements with Zeo - so that's something else you need to plan for.

Thank your for your detailed reply.

He didn't say that it takes a lot of time in term of time consumed but in term of that you have to be there all time.
Btw which other methods did you use?Have you ever tried the AIO bio pellets?

about your schedule:
1)can you dose at night around lets say 9-10 o'clock or it has to be done in the morning?
2)who will tumble the zeoreactor when you are away for 2-3 days?

send me some pics from your reef i love red sea style

 

[hybridazn]

Im running Zeovit on my Red Sea Reefer 525xL, and I dont know where the time issue came from to be honest. Its true that you generally spend a set amount of time with your tank every day, but it doesnt take any more or less time than any other method that Ive used. In a given week, this is my "ZeoVit" tank schedule for dosing, the product and estimated time spent:

Monday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute
Tuesday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute
Wednesday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, 12 drops ZeoBak, 5 drops ZeoFood, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~2 minutes
Thursday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute
Friday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute
Saturday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, 10 drops ZeoBak, 5 drops ZeoFood, 10-20% water change/sand vacuum, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~15-20 minutes
Sunday: 1ml ZeoStart, 8 drops SpongePower, Pump the ZeoVit Reactor 10-12 times: Time spent ~1 minute

Total time spent in a week: less than 30 minutes

What I like about Zeo is that it makes me spend time with my tank every day - which is something that I got away from with other tanks. This makes me stay engaged and I have a lot better feel for what my tank is like because of it. But the arguement that it takes too much time is just ridiculous.

As something of note, ZeoVit isnt a filtration method - its a nutrient management system. You will still need to provide for Alkalinity and Calcium and trace elements with Zeo - so that's something else you need to plan for.

I keep going back and forth on zeovit, but I think I may take the plunge. The time needed to spend with the tank daily is less time than it takes me to scrape the glass clean daily haha.

I tried biopellets for a good while and I felt they were more of a nuisance than anything. I would get massive cyano blooms and it was a pain to dial in.

 

[Medic755]

I am using Biopellets now in the BRS reactor. I haven't seen a decrease in nitrate yet but it isn't going up either. It has only been running for a month or so now and I was told that it can take up to 2 months for it to really kick in. I work weird hours as a paramedic so I have the Apex taking care of 99% of everything. I still only need to use Kalk to keep levels fine so I haven't had to cross the dosing bridge yet.

 

[G.karafilis]

I am using Biopellets now in the BRS reactor. I haven't seen a decrease in nitrate yet but it isn't going up either. It has only been running for a month or so now and I was told that it can take up to 2 months for it to really kick in. I work weird hours as a paramedic so I have the Apex taking care of 99% of everything. I still only need to use Kalk to keep levels fine so I haven't had to cross the dosing bridge yet.

You had zeovit before?
Can you share some pictures of apex setup and how you use it to control everything?

Thank you

 

[Medic755]

I haven't used Zeovit. The problem being that I have no way to automate pumping the reactor, or at least not found one that it practical. Everything literally has to be run by the system on mine as some times I am away for 48 hours. I'm even working on a way to have it take care of frozen feedings... which is quite the feat.

 

[ksfulk]

Thank your for your detailed reply.

He didn't say that it takes a lot of time in term of time consumed but in term of that you have to be there all time.
Btw which other methods did you use?Have you ever tried the AIO bio pellets?

about your schedule:
1)can you dose at night around lets say 9-10 o'clock or it has to be done in the morning?
2)who will tumble the zeoreactor when you are away for 2-3 days?

send me some pics from your reef i love red sea style

Ive run several nutrient management systems on different tanks, but I think that its important to realize that any nutrient management system needs to match your input - it took me a while to figure out that if your output isnt as much as your input, well you dont get great results. Ive run Triton method on a 300 gallon system, GFO and biopellets (though seperately, not as an AIO), and refugiums. All have their benefits and detractors - I think that its most important to pick on and commit

As for my schedule - I only feed and dose once a day (~5-6 pm, as thats when I get home from work). I dont think there's any stipulation as to when you are supposed to dose. I would read through the ZeoVit Guide (found here) and verify.

When I leave, the reactor still runs, but no one messes with my reactor at all. I have a "fish sitter" that comes by once or twice when I leave on vacation and he'll pump it then, but Ive gone on several 7-10 day trips during the time the tank has been set up without much issue at all. The tank doesnt look as good when I get back, but it bounces back within a day or two.

There's a link to my build thread in my signature, there's way too many pictures and videos therein.

I keep going back and forth on zeovit, but I think I may take the plunge. The time needed to spend with the tank daily is less time than it takes me to scrape the glass clean daily haha.

I tried biopellets for a good while and I felt they were more of a nuisance than anything. I would get massive cyano blooms and it was a pain to dial in.

I spend about 30 minutes a day with the tank, but the Zeo part is only a small small part of it. Heck it takes longer to thaw fish food or scrape glass most days I havent had any cyano, but I get some diatom dustings on the sand - but thats likely due to my shoddy vacuuming techniques.

 

[G.karafilis]

Ive run several nutrient management systems on different tanks, but I think that its important to realize that any nutrient management system needs to match your input - it took me a while to figure out that if your output isnt as much as your input, well you dont get great results. Ive run Triton method on a 300 gallon system, GFO and biopellets (though seperately, not as an AIO), and refugiums. All have their benefits and detractors - I think that its most important to pick on and commit

As for my schedule - I only feed and dose once a day (~5-6 pm, as thats when I get home from work). I dont think there's any stipulation as to when you are supposed to dose. I would read through the ZeoVit Guide (found here) and verify.

When I leave, the reactor still runs, but no one messes with my reactor at all. I have a "fish sitter" that comes by once or twice when I leave on vacation and he'll pump it then, but Ive gone on several 7-10 day trips during the time the tank has been set up without much issue at all. The tank doesnt look as good when I get back, but it bounces back within a day or two.

There's a link to my build thread in my signature, there's way too many pictures and videos therein.



I spend about 30 minutes a day with the tank, but the Zeo part is only a small small part of it. Heck it takes longer to thaw fish food or scrape glass most days I havent had any cyano, but I get some diatom dustings on the sand - but thats likely due to my shoddy vacuuming techniques.

Which one you think was best in term of easiness and results?
Can you make it possible to run full auto zeovit with the pacific sun Kore 5th?

As i read there is still no solution with the shake of the reactor

 

[ksfulk]

Which one you think was best in term of easiness and results?
Can you make it possible to run full auto zeovit with the pacific sun Kore 5th?

As i read there is still no solution with the shake of the reactor

I dont think there is one that is "easier" - all methods require diligence and committment. Just match what you want to put into your system with the expectations of that system. I dont think I would run biopellets again, nor just a refugium - but thats personal preference.

Without knowing the size of your system, I wouldnt be able to comment on your dosage amounts - but the amount of additive that is required for daily dosing is minute - the most of any additive that I put into my tank daily is 1mL. Most additives are dosed in "drops" which likely wont translate well into a dosing pump. That said, using a dosing pump for alkalinity and calcium additions is a fine idea.

As for the automated shaking, there is a piece of equipment that can make this happen, found here at Avast Marine Works, called the Vibe. Its worth a look if you want to go in that direction. Ive used plenty of their equipment (skimmers, reactors, etc) and they are of high quality.

 

[DiZASTiX]

What I like about Zeo is that it makes me spend time with my tank every day - which is something that I got away from with other tanks. This makes me stay engaged and I have a lot better feel for what my tank is like because of it. But the arguement that it takes too much time is just ridiculous.

I use a hybrid methodology with ZEOVIT and AquaForest. Except in cases where I'm fixing something, the time spent is either by choice or a few drops of this and that. It's enjoyable for me. It's not hauling buckets.

With what you asked to, I leverage a lot of automation. These are dosing pumps and reservoirs for:
AF Component 1+
AF Component 2+
AF Component 3+
Carbon dosing (vinegar)
Pohl's Xtra Special
Auto Top Off

I moved away the seat to show you how I hide the dosing equipment: