fish only?

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MatthewM

Aquarium Advice Activist
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Aug 16, 2011
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So the name of this sub forum is fish only and fowlr which bring a question to my mind is there a way to keep fish only without live rock for filtration?
 
Yes. Hang-on-the-back filters and canister filters work if you don't have live rocks.
 
So I guess what my real question is is why use live rock if you can use standard filters to achieve the same results? Say a small fish only tank with docile species so hiding holes aren't needed why use live rock?
 
Live rock is a natural filtration and it is much more efficient than canisters or hang on filters.
 
Docile or not ,i think fish like some sense of security and like to have a nice sleeping cave ...Why don't you want it?
It also houses tons of microscopic critters and ones you can see come out at night and crawl around..Sometimes i enjoying watching my tanks at night over the day,because thats when things you never see start to come out..Its pretty cool..While i don't believe its necessary ,its definitely nice to have ,,gives a natural look too..

It really doesn't serve for as much filtration as people tend to think either..
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rs/feature/index.php
 
I had over 250lbs of live rock in my 125g and the bio filtration was excellent. I lost a huge seahare in my tank and was just testing and waiting for the ammonia spike and it never came. lol

Rock that is lightweight, porous and has lots of nooks and crannies is the best thing I think for a tank. Lots of places for pods and other sealife to grow and thrive. The live rock is sometimes just as fascinating as the fish in the tank. :)
 
So I guess what my real question is is why use live rock if you can use standard filters to achieve the same results? Say a small fish only tank with docile species so hiding holes aren't needed why use live rock?

Standard filters cannot culture anaerobic bacteria, which slightly helps decrease nitrAtes. Some people like using the combination of both standard filters and live rocks.
 
Terrance said:
Standard filters cannot culture anaerobic bacteria, which slightly helps decrease nitrAtes. Some people like using the combination of both standard filters and live rocks.

Acually my preference! It's not that I don't want to use live rock I would use it simply for looks if nothing else I was just wondering earlier when I looked and I hadn't ever heard the real need for live rock before!
 
so if i had a 30 gal with 30lbs of live rock and a hob filter doing about 300gph is that considered good filtration for FOWLR?
 
Yeah. The HOB would be mainly for mechanical filtration. It can harbor aerobic bacteria as usual.
 
A skimmer is always good for any tank. Weekly water changes is better for smaller tanks because the cost of changing 10-15g per week is not too expensive.
 
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