biological filtration

so as some as you know i am planing 90 gallon upgrade (hopefully will happen in a few weeks)

i am of course adding some rock. hopefully i will have dry rock ( think from BFS) running in a large tupperware container next to my 55. its probably going to be about 50 lbs worth.

here are my questions:

how long do you think it will take for the dry rock to become efficient in biological filtration??

my current rock is kinda homely. if i cram most of it in the new sump (29 gallons) will it still be effective???

 

1) If you are using water from an existing system, about two weeks.

2) Live rock in the sump is how it got it's start as a super-efficient biological filter (think Berlin filter system). Just make sure you provide plenty of circulation- away from your livestock, there's no such thing as too much.

Cheers

 

yeah, i was planning on plumbing the large tupperware container into my tank with an eshopps overflow box, and ocean runner 2500 i have from a failed DIY project. so my current set up would seed the dry rock. then when i transfer everything i would put my existing rock in the sump and the new rock in the DT

 

That plan should work perfectly.

 

So not sure what you are doing. You have LR in your current system...you don't want to use it in your next display?.... so the dry rock you are adding and you want to seed it.... so what will you eventually do with your LR you have now???.... just run it in your sump?

 

ha, ok here it is

i am going from a 55 to a 90. want to avoid a large cycle. not increasing bioload at all. i want to eventually ditch most of the rock i have now (not that great looking).

i just ordered 50 lbs of fiji dry and 25 shelf dry rock from bulk reef supply

i want to put all the new dry rock in a large container next to my current 55 gallon display tank. kinda like a makeshift large sump (i do not have one now)

let it run while i wait on the new tank to come in, get drilled, and stand to be built (all by LFS)

when i get the tank i can kinda practice my auqascaping with the new rock.

when i do the big switch to the 90 (tank is going to stay in the same spot so its kinda a nightmare logistically) i plan on putting my current rock into the sump just to act as a filter until the dry rock completes its "cycle"

 

So just understand this.... The rock you have now is colonized and those colonies are the size they are because that is what the size of your bioload will support. So putting dry rock in a container and seeding it will work.... BUT... you could run it for a couple of weeks and then you will have the same colony spread out over more rock..... so then using the new dry only still will not support your bioload without the other rock.

Just understand rock is not just rock and bacteria is not just a layer, it is sized for your load. Bottom line is that you need to get rid of the old and put in the new.... you will probably have a mini cycle, but probably not much. Seed the new like you said.... put it all in the new tank....keep some old in your sump....keep testing and keep removing old as long as your tests are good. The colony has to move soit is not as simple as seeding and swapping. And as long as there is no need to move, they won't. You need to give them the reason. Does that make sense?

 

yep, make sense 100%. very good point. ill remove the rock from my sump very slowly. plus, any of the rock that wont fit into my sump ill throw into the DT, even if it doesnt look that great. ill just remove those pieces first.