refugium?

Just wondering what the whole point is to a refugium? My fiance wants to set one up but I have not got a good explaination on what it is. Do you set it up as nicely as the main tank because our tank is in the living room, will it be an eye sore? I am a little confused :-/


Les

 

a fuge is an area with macro algae in it. the algae in your fuge "eats" nitrates and phosphates, thus making a healthier tank and also starving out the algae in your DT. A fuge does not need to be an eye sore. They make HOB fuges, or you can put it under your tank and/or build it into a sump. does this help?

 

This is a quote from Tangster--I set my fuge up and went by this rule--My fuge has been very successful

A refugium is not ever going to be attractive if its to do the job its designed to do. Its a swamp not an attraction . When one is working and growing as it should there is no room in it for a fish and the purpose is to export nutrients and if you house algae eating animals in there unless you toss them out also along with the exported grasses then you just created more waste to deal with. No fish no snails no shrimp not nothing but deep sand and grasses and bugs . But hey you can put these in there just don't expect it to do the job you think it will perform . Just are setting up another display tank not a refugium.

Refufium means place of refuge and they where developed and brought along to be a safe place for a Dee sand bed to be safe and to give the sand fauna a safe place to live free from predation and do their magic work and to supply some natural foods . Its just a nasty saltwater swamp/marsh

 

ooooooo.... I like that Robman! GOOD ONE! Soooo true! I'll have to reference that as well!

 

Thank you, that explains it nicely, and there will be no fuge in eye sight!!

Robman, you said bugs....are you refering to copepods?