Decisions

OK, so the Sump /refugium is all set up and running, I do have a couple of issues and will ask the questions here in bullet form, rather than boring you all to death
1. I am also running a cannister filter, if there a reason why i shouldnt ? I want to ensure my water is crystal clear and clean, and I dont have any faith in the sump as yet
2. Should I be running my skimmer all the time in the sump ?
3. I have a inline coral life 6x UV filter, should this be running all the time ?
4. due to size constraints i have had to put my recirculating pump and skimmer in the same section, this has caused some very minial/fine bubbling, whats the best was to get rid of this without moving either, as i dont have the room
5. I have a 90 gallon main tank with 100lbs of LR in it, and now 20Lbs of live rock in the sump, is that too much ? should i also leave some snails/hermit crabs in there to keep it clean and tidy ?
6. I am also running my heater in the sump, is this ok ?
7. the discharge from the skimmer i am keeping in a bottle and putting down the sink, am i supposed to be doing that ?
8. the light i have above the live rock, should i be leaving that on 24 hours a day ?


Sorry, but thats what I had to ask

 

1) Absolutely not! Just understand that the canister is a high-maintenance filter-- trapped debris will still deteriorate into DOCs, same as if left in the tank. This is how the canister got the label "nitrate factory", although I disagree if proper maintenance is applied.

2) Yes. No harm in running the skimmer 24/7.

3) There's a lot of controversy over the actual benefit of UV filters, however, there is no harm. It, too, can be run 24/7 if you choose to use one.

4) Add an intake sponge to the return pump. That should filter out most of the bubbles.

5) I don't think there is such a thing as "too much" live rock, so long as it fits in the tank and leaves adequate room for livestock. The snails and hermits can be left in the sump for clean-up.

6) Yes. That's where most people put their heaters.

7) Yes. Don't see a problem, there.

8 ) No. Leaving the lights on 24/7 can spawn nuisance algae growth. There's really no benefit in 24/7 lighting.

 

1) Absolutely not! Just understand that the canister is a high-maintenance filter-- trapped debris will still deteriorate into DOCs, same as if left in the tank. This is how the canister got the label "nitrate factory", although I disagree if proper maintenance is applied.

I am planning on cleaning it out completley once the sump has proven itself.

2) Yes. No harm in running the skimmer 24/7.

Done !

3) There's a lot of controversy over the actual benefit of UV filters, however, there is no harm. It, too, can be run 24/7 if you choose to use one.

Done !

4) Add an intake sponge to the return pump. That should filter out most of the bubbles.

Is this an actual bought item, or something that is bought for a different reason and "encouraged" to fit ?

5) I don't think there is such a thing as "too much" live rock, so long as it fits in the tank and leaves adequate room for livestock. The snails and hermits can be left in the sump for clean-up.

Done !

6) Yes. That's where most people put their heaters.

Done !

7) Yes. Don't see a problem, there.

Done !

8 ) No. Leaving the lights on 24/7 can spawn nuisance algae growth. There's really no benefit in 24/7 lighting.

I will put it on a timer for the oposite hours the tank lights are on, is that too much ? about 10 hours ?



Thank you Sir. !

 

Some pumps come with a sponge, if yours didnt, you could use some filter floss over the intake depending on the pump design, also your skimmer may have a sponge on the output pipe, adjusting the sponge to be an inch or so above the output pipe may help reduce micro bubbles.

As for the fuge light, I run mine for 10 hours at night with great results.

 

Friend of mine suggested a putting the pump into a old tube sock ?
The pump is a maxi jet 4500 utility pump


thank you for the help Sir.

 

That may help to some extent, but I doubt it would be as effective as a sponge or filter floss. Your LFS should carry replacement intake/prefilter sponges. If they don't have one for your pump, one for a different pump will work, so long as it has the same size intake.

 

with a pump design like the one you have, im really not sure how to apply a filter sponge. Perhaps just allow the suction to hold a thin piece of filter floss over the intake but im not sure how much this would reduce the flow. I have a mag drive pump. If you look at the design of a mag pump or eheim pump you can see they have an intake that sticks out to place a sponge over. Hopefully someone will chime in who uses the same pump as you.

 

u are never suppose to restrict water flow into ur pump that will surly burn it out if u want the skimmer to sit with pump the skimmer output should not dump into same chamber make it dump in a different chamber

 

ARGH!! Didn't look up the specific pump. Just assumed it was like the Maxi-Jets I've used that did have an intake "nose" for the snap-on screen and prefilter sponge.

Anyway, a flat sponge or some filter floss could be held in place with plastic electrical cable ties. Other than that, someone who uses the same pump may have a better idea, as Blue Falcon suggested.

 

thanks Guys.

Another little issue occured last night........... slurping from the over flow tank hanging on the back of the tank (Aqueon 220), initially i took off the 2 sponges and the slurping stopped, but . . . . . . . . . . . at 2am this morning, the slurping started again . . . . . . . . my thoughts . . . . . . . .add some live rock to the holding tank to raise the height of the water ? or add some filter material into the tubes to reduce the noise ?
Both lines out of the over flow tank are flowing really well, I am running the Maxi 4500 at full, so the GPH are about 1175 GPH, my tank is only 90 gallons ?

I dont mind the slurping too much, but I know a lady who would like to pull the plug on the tank this morning ? LoL