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Tell me what you think of my sump.

MatteZ

MatteZ

I have a 36" Trigger sump and I was wondering if you could tell me some suggestions. This is my first tank that has a sump so it has been new to me. I was reading another thread about a nano tank with a HOB filter that had LR rubble in it and that was causing their problems. It got me thinking about my set up...
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Let me know what you think. Currently the center chamber is full of mostly rubble live rock. I have no sand bed. I have no light hanging above it and no cheato. All of my parameters are good. However I would like to avoid any problems later down the road if I can.
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Ph is at 8.17
Ammonia is close to 0ppm
Nitrites are 0ppm
Nitrates are abut 0ppm

Let me know if you think I should change anything.

Thank you in advance.
 
MatteZ

MatteZ

greybolt03 said:
Looks to me like you may have too much rubble rock. I am not sure if it will help or hinder it...
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That's what I was thinking. I know that there are all different ways to do it I was just hoping I could get some advise on if I should remove the rock keep some. Add miracle mud. Don't add miracle mud. Etc...

Thanks for giving me your opinion.
 
greybolt03

greybolt03

When I setup my fuge I was told to stay away from the mud and just go with crushed coral...
on the other hand I have heard of people having great success with it, most people use it to grow mangroves in..
 
TanksNStuff

TanksNStuff

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
I would say you have way more than you need in there. My "rubble" is actually just baseball to softball sized rocks that stack up. Every few months I can easily remove them and vacuum out all the junk that accumulates in there.

I would also suggest getting a nice ball of chaeto and let it float in there. For lighting, you can just use a HD clamp-on light (the work light kind with the metal reflector) and then just use a cheap 6500k CFL bulb and your chaeto will grow like weeds. Chaeto is great for reducing phosphates and nitrates.

I'm in Blackwood, not too far from you. I could hook you up with a nice sized ball of chaeto for free. Send me PM if interested.
 
fatoldsun

fatoldsun

NJRC Member
Matt
I have Chaeto too. You're welcome to come by and get some. Mine came from George originally so it'd be sort of like getting the same thing with a shorter trip.
 
greybolt03

greybolt03

grink said:
Just curious, why not the mud??
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Like I said I never used the mud but I was told if not done right or the mud gets stirred up some how your display would look like chocolate milk...and crushed coral was just as good but wouldn't have that affect.. Which is why I stayed away from the mud..
 
Empire

Empire

i would ditch all that live rock and plant a nice deep sand bed refugium. +1 on the chaeto. get a light on top of the fuge (homedepot $12) and call it a day. how old is your tank? you should do a water change if you believe you have some ammonia.
 
Fish Brain

Fish Brain

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
Waaaay too much rubble in there. That is a nitrate problem waiting to happen.

One thing you might consider is to make 4 or so pod condos, and keep them in the sump and run some cheato.
 
MatteZ

MatteZ

Empire said:
i would ditch all that live rock and plant a nice deep sand bed refugium. +1 on the chaeto. get a light on top of the fuge (homedepot $12) and call it a day. how old is your tank? you should do a water change if you believe you have some ammonia.
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The tank is about 3 months old. I have no ammonia issues as of now. This is just my first system with a sump. I have a 24g nano cube so it is just all-in-one deal. I was reading threads and want to make sure that I don't do anything wrong that I could of avoided. I always hear mixed opinions on a deep sand bed. Thanks for your help. I am def going to ditch most of the rock and I went to HD today and picked up a light.
 
MatteZ

MatteZ

Thank you both Dave & George! I will def be taking one of you up on the cheato. Should I go with a sand bed or bare bottom?
 
fatoldsun

fatoldsun

NJRC Member
MatteZ said:
Thank you both Dave & George! I will def be taking one of you up on the cheato. Should I go with a sand bed or bare bottom?
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I think the number of opinions there may rival salt opinions. To each his own. I have a sand bed in both. My fuge is a bit deeper and there's nothing in there to 'sand sift' so it behaves differently. Only time will tell if its good or a problem...
 
Fish Brain

Fish Brain

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
I run my sumps bare bottom on both tanks. Just last night I vacuumed out the bottom of one sump. I use 100 micron mesh socks, and while they are easier to clean, they let small stuff pass through. This fine dust settles at the bottom of the sump over time and needs to be removed.

I mentioned the pod condos as a way to keep some of the benifits of the rubble, but keep it contained and easy to move around for cleaning of the sump. Having the rubble in the little "cages" allow for better flow in that chamber of the sump and will not trap detritus at the bottom of the rubble pile.

Put four condos in each corner of that sump chamber with a ball of cheato in the center and you will be set.
 
TanksNStuff

TanksNStuff

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
MatteZ said:
I had to google what a pod condo was. I think I like it! Thanks for the suggestion Brian!
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I've got like a whole roll of that plastic mesh leftover from when I made a couple. You're welcome to have some if you want to try to make the pod condos. They're great to have a few in the sump and then just rotate them into your DT once they get populated.

They're also good to put into a QT tank when you buy a new fish. Not only will it be a constant food source for the fish, but it will also have some bacteria built up on the rubble so that will help with filtration too.
 
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