My New Marine Tank Log.

[norite]

It's now generally acknowledged that UGF's don't really belong in a marine setup, particularly if you're planning on keeping corals. Nitrates won't be broken down in a UGF setup, so they will gradually rise, and you will never get zero levels of nitrate, which is what you should have. This is because in a UGF setup, mainly/only aerobic bacteria thrive. Live Rock (LR) is the way to go now, with plenty of water circulation (aim for up to 20 times the volume of the tank) and a good protein skimmer. LR also requires less maintenance compared to a UGF setup, and should result in zero levels of nitrate

 

[andywg]

It's now generally acknowledged that UGF's don't really belong in a marine setup, particularly if you're planning on keeping corals. Nitrates won't be broken down in a UGF setup, so they will gradually rise, and you will never get zero levels of nitrate, which is what you should have. This is because in a UGF setup, mainly/only aerobic bacteria thrive. Live Rock (LR) is the way to go now, with plenty of water circulation (aim for up to 20 times the volume of the tank) and a good protein skimmer. LR also requires less maintenance compared to a UGF setup, and should result in zero levels of nitrate

If live rock is so good for 0 nitrates, why do so many people grow macroalgae and utilise deep sand beds to control nitrates?

 

[atmmachine816]

It's now generally acknowledged that UGF's don't really belong in a marine setup, particularly if you're planning on keeping corals. Nitrates won't be broken down in a UGF setup, so they will gradually rise, and you will never get zero levels of nitrate, which is what you should have. This is because in a UGF setup, mainly/only aerobic bacteria thrive. Live Rock (LR) is the way to go now, with plenty of water circulation (aim for up to 20 times the volume of the tank) and a good protein skimmer. LR also requires less maintenance compared to a UGF setup, and should result in zero levels of nitrate

If live rock is so good for 0 nitrates, why do so many people grow macroalgae and utilise deep sand beds to control nitrates?

I'm sorry but that IS funny, In case you guys didn't read the other topic andywg is good at defending his point.

JoeDaPro-Do your research and figure out if you want to use it or not, it's personal choice, my opinion on them is I don't use them since their more expensive then HOB filters.

 

[JoeDaPro]

It's now generally acknowledged that UGF's don't really belong in a marine setup, particularly if you're planning on keeping corals. Nitrates won't be broken down in a UGF setup, so they will gradually rise, and you will never get zero levels of nitrate, which is what you should have. This is because in a UGF setup, mainly/only aerobic bacteria thrive. Live Rock (LR) is the way to go now, with plenty of water circulation (aim for up to 20 times the volume of the tank) and a good protein skimmer. LR also requires less maintenance compared to a UGF setup, and should result in zero levels of nitrate

If live rock is so good for 0 nitrates, why do so many people grow macroalgae and utilise deep sand beds to control nitrates?

I'm sorry but that IS funny, In case you guys didn't read the other topic andywg is good at defending his point.

JoeDaPro-Do your research and figure out if you want to use it or not, it's personal choice, my opinion on them is I don't use them since their more expensive then HOB filters.

ive done research and couldent come to a conclusion, hence why i asked here.

 

[JoeDaPro]

It's now generally acknowledged that UGF's don't really belong in a marine setup, particularly if you're planning on keeping corals. Nitrates won't be broken down in a UGF setup, so they will gradually rise, and you will never get zero levels of nitrate, which is what you should have. This is because in a UGF setup, mainly/only aerobic bacteria thrive. Live Rock (LR) is the way to go now, with plenty of water circulation (aim for up to 20 times the volume of the tank) and a good protein skimmer. LR also requires less maintenance compared to a UGF setup, and should result in zero levels of nitrate

I heard UGF's are fine in a marine setup as long as im not Growing corals, which i stated im not, i also thought it was Live rock that broke down the nitrate, not the lighting.
I have bought a good protien skimmer (see 1st post).

 

[andywg]

I heard UGF's are fine in a marine setup as long as im not Growing corals, which i stated im not, i also thought it was Live rock that broke down the nitrate, not the lighting.
I have bought a good protien skimmer (see 1st post).

You heard pretty much correctly. Other people use UGF with reefs as well.

One thing you have to remember on these boards is that almost everyone only knows the Berlin method of reefkeeping. This is not a great problem, in and of itself, but they don't understand that there are other ways to keep a SW tank, and as such, if they see someone who is not setting it up in the same way they post saying you should adopt the Berlin style.

 

[atmmachine816]

It's now generally acknowledged that UGF's don't really belong in a marine setup, particularly if you're planning on keeping corals. Nitrates won't be broken down in a UGF setup, so they will gradually rise, and you will never get zero levels of nitrate, which is what you should have. This is because in a UGF setup, mainly/only aerobic bacteria thrive. Live Rock (LR) is the way to go now, with plenty of water circulation (aim for up to 20 times the volume of the tank) and a good protein skimmer. LR also requires less maintenance compared to a UGF setup, and should result in zero levels of nitrate

I heard UGF's are fine in a marine setup as long as im not Growing corals, which i stated im not, i also thought it was Live rock that broke down the nitrate, not the lighting.
I have bought a good protien skimmer (see 1st post).

One of the ways

 

[Miss Wiggle]

take a look at this tank, run on a UG filter

http/www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/pfk/...?article_id=594

 

[SkiFletch]

I'd actually like to propose that you're going WAY overkill on this tank as far as filtration is concerned. You've got a skimmer with LR (berlin method), a canister, AND a UGF. Thats a TON of filtration capacity, more than you'll need.

UGFs have been largely abandoned for the Berlin method cause they're much harder to maintain. As has been illustrated countless times here, if detritus is allowed to accumulate in a UGF, they become nitrate factories. Painstaking vaccuming is required to properly manage one longterm. People kept reefs quite successfully (especially back in the '70s-90s) with UGFs for filtration, but they also had to maintain them a lot.

I don't know anything about your personal time schedule/committment that you can put into this tank, but if you're like 95% of the population out there, your time is probably better spent doing other things than maintaining and worrying about a UGF.

Again, we can't make the choice for you, and I can only tell you that my own tank has been very successful using the berlin method (LR+Skimmer).

Btw, great choice of skimmer Those AquaC's are really reliable, compact, easy to tweak, and pull a heck of a lot of DOCs. You'd be hard-pressed to find a better one for a tank that size.

 

[AK77]

Wouldn't using an UGF on reverse, pump water through the coral sand and aerate it, thereby making it difficult for anaerobic bacteria to form?


The link Ms Wiggle posted is cool. Those tanks are huge! And he uses tap water . Since he has no inverts its no problem though. One thing, after skimming through the article and the pictures, that I thought was particularly worth noting.... was his girlfriend.... She's hot!!

 

[JoeDaPro]

Ok thanks, i guess i will abandon the UGF filter.
sounds like alot of trouble that i dont need, oh well 2 powerheads is more circulation.

Also a quick question.
About cycling.

Can i put My water/sand & live rock all in one day?
Im not impatient its just i dont drive and its struggle keep getting lifts up my LPS to get all the bits.
and do i need all my filters set up befor i can start cycling?

 

[norite]

Ok thanks, i guess i will abandon the UGF filter.
sounds like alot of trouble that i dont need, oh well 2 powerheads is more circulation.

Also a quick question.
About cycling.

Can i put My water/sand & live rock all in one day?
Im not impatient its just i dont drive and its struggle keep getting lifts up my LPS to get all the bits.
and do i need all my filters set up befor i can start cycling?

That's good to hear you're not impatient. Patience is key! For what it's worth, when I recently set my SW tank up, I had my water in for about a week before adding my first bit of Live Rock. This gave me an opportunity to let the salt mix in properly (as this was my first batch of saltwater, I mixed the salt in the tank), get the SG & temperature correct, check pH etc. and make sure all the equipment was A OK, and that I had no leaks.

Getting back to the UGF/Berlin system - I kept marines about 17 years ago for a number of years, and back then, everyone was using UGFs, Live Rock was basically unheard of. I was surprised to hear of this whole LR when I came back into marines, but after much research, and talking with 2 of my LFS, i quickly ditched the idea of using an UGF, and embraced LR.

 

[JoeDaPro]

Thanks alot

Ill do that then

 

[JoeDaPro]

Update!!:

This morning i received my 2 AquaClear 301 Powerheads!
The instructions arent very good and i dont understand it!

How do i attach My external air pump to it, or am i not meant to?

 

[JoeDaPro]

BUMP