hello all looking for some advice..

[richiero]

hi my name is richie from nyc,
i have been running a successful African cichlid thank for the last five years. i was looking to up grade to salt water with live rock and fish only to start with the hopes of adding corrals in the future. my tank is a 75 gallon tank, and i run a wet dry filter are these filters good for sw? i have one that is rated for 120 tank. i was reading that the bio balls turn into nitrate factories over time would a protein skimmer counter act this? or would is be wise to convert my w/d into a refugium. and would anyone have info on how to convert a w/d into a refugium?

i was thinking of a filtration set up with these components.
ro/di water
w/d filter
uv sterilizer
carbon canister

thanks in advance

richie

 

[Terrance]

Hi Richie. You don't need wet/dry filters if you have live rocks (1-2lbs per gallon). Bioballs need cleaning or else they become nitrate factories. Protein skimmers would not help with that part. Instead, skimmers collect dissolved organic waste in the water.

Yes its wise to convert the w/d into a refugium. Post a pic of your sump.

 

[richiero]

my sump

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-...AAAAAAa4/M9AfxXfoLiQ/w474-h267-k/DSC00823.JPG

 

[Terrance]

Add a skimmer to that system. The water level would be fluctuating due to evaporation, so get an auto top off system.

You don't really have room for a refugium. Maybe the sump is bigger than what the picture show. With the live rocks in the main tank, you can replace the bioballs with something else.

 

[mr_X]

Those bio balls aren't nearly as effective as they could be because they are fully submerged. They are meant to be constantly showered with water but not submerged. I would either remove them or lower the water level and put the rock in the display.

 

[richiero]

thanks guys

what could i replace the bio ball with? the sump is 13 gallons total.. 9 gallons where the return pump is 4 gal where the bio balls are

 

[mr_X]

Some live rock rubble, or a decent protein skimmer.

 

[joshpwolf]

Not to invade, I have a wet/dry now I have added some live rock. My question is would it be a good idea to add another divider and put a refugium also? If so is there a way to add a divider with water in the tank?

 

[Terrance]

If you have space, then a refuge area is always something nice to have. Not mandatory, but very useful. You need to empty the water out and add the divider.

You can always add porous media inside the bioball chamber. Live rocks or Seachem Matrix. Or you could add more mechanical filtration stuff.