what is a refugium, sump, and overflow

god i feel really stupid asking this. i have my tank set up and cycled but yet after reading all i have i have no idea what a refugium is, or any of the above. do u have to have these to have a successful tank? please help.

 

Let me preface this by saying that I have none of the 3, but I wish I had them.

Overflow: small, blocked-off area which the water flows over the top, ususally thorugh a hole drilled in the bottom of the aquarium into the sump. That lets all that junk that usually floats around on the top of the water to be processed by the skimmer or other filtration equipment in the...

Sump: extra reservoir of water, usually below the tank, which the aquarium is connected to via overflow coming in and some kind of water pump going out. Its benefits include allowing for greater water volume, making a good place for unsightly equipment like heaters and skimmers, and a good place to put a...

Refugium: usually a part of the sump where certain types of macroalgae grow that take in nurtrients used by algae. The theory is to trim the macroalgae every so often to ''export'' those nutrients from the tank. Of course, a refugium needs to be lit, a subject which I know little about, since I don't have one and all.

I say I would like to have all of these things because 1) I'm having film algae problems, 2) I have a nice coating of slime on the top of the tank that my skimmer, even with the top-skimming-thingy, just can't get rid of, and 3) my skimmer and heater look ugly in the tank. Not having them saves money, but you may pay for it in tank-unsightlyness.

 

oh, ok that's what i thought. wow sounds like a lot of work. well i have no room for those extras. i guess it just means a lot of care on the tank itself. i think i will be only doing a mini reef anyway. thanks for the help in explaining.

 

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By Matt Rogers



Jim

 

Yeah, it's not like you couldn't add the stuff on later if you wanted to, like it looks l'm going to do. The overflow would be hard anyway because usually those are drilled into the tank. You don't necessarily need the stuff for a healthy starter tank. Despite the aesthetic problems I'm having, my fish and coral are doing fine without any of them (knock on wood).

 

There are a lot of custom sump/fug out there to fit your needs . I have made overflow and sump/fug for mini tanks and tight stands . If you don't want to drill your tank go with a hang on overflow . And there is a lot of different add on out there ......

 

thanks so much for explaining things. right now it's not in the budget nor do i have a lot of room but in the future i'd like to do one. baby steps.