The Puffer Forum

I don't think you ever mentioned before that this was a FOWLR tank.

It is relatively easy to control nitrogen wastes in SW if you do not over-feed or inappropriately feed, but the untested and highly undesirable organics (by hobbyists at least) are not quite as easily controlled. Reef tanks by their nature are more readily controlled than FOWLR. And they are still likely to do better with non-trivial water partials. In FO or FOWLT tanks nitrate is just an easy test for checking part of water quality. Unfortunately it cannot and does not show the water to be high quality by itself.

im not sure what berlin method is, but im pretty sure the only way to achieve and keep 0 nitrates is either veggie filters, heavy water changes, or light fish stock and no over feeding. of course planted tanks keep that down also. but were talking FOWLR, thats a lot tougher to keep 0 nitrates, especially in a tank to small for the fish to begin with. AFAIK, if you dont have veggie filters, do 30% WC 3x a week, or have a heavy planted tank they are the only reasonable ways for an average hobbyist to keep nitrates undetectable. that live rock and sand bed doesnt sound much more different than my sand bed or live rock thats been set up for 2+ years, except mine isnt good enough to take out nitrates i guess... -_- can you show me this "nitrate removing" live rock and sand? i might get some

For the simplest introduction, see:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_Method

For the nitty-gritty, visit the reef sites.

The basis for the method is valid, but in practice the best water quality control is likely to achieves by more than just the original Berlin techniques, incorporating the LR, DSB or plenums, skimming/foam fractionation, and macroalgae refufugia. Multiple sumps or refugia can be linked to the display if you prefer segregating the various elements for optimum efficiency and to keep the display "clean" looking - i.e,, free of clutter.

HTH

I have probably 200lbs of LR in my 90g reef tank, a 20g sump & 20g refugium with macro algae & more rock rubble. Still do 30% WC every 3 weeks.

sevenyearnight wrote:Balki is all the gsp I need.

especially with how cute he is when he sleeps! =P

Pufferpunk wrote:So you agree that a 55g isn't large enough for 2 adult GSPs?

Just wanted to throw my two cents in on this topic. I have a 55 gallon full marine with my two GSP's. One is 2.5 inches, the other is 1.5 inches. I consider it "okay" for now. (I'd muuuuuch rather a huge tank for my babies, but I'm living in a 1 bedroom apartment - space is an issue). But, I can't imagine keeping them in a 55 gallon for the rest of their lives. They, in my opinion, definitely need at least double that. They are both small now, so the swimming space isn't an issue. But I can't imagine two "fists" swimming around in there!

Pufferpunk wrote:I have probably 200lbs of LR in my 90g reef tank, a 20g sump & 20g refugium with macro algae & more rock rubble. Still do 30% WC every 3 weeks.

How many fishes do you keep in your DT?

Probably around 20, if you include all the lil clown gobies. Largest, is the Copperband butterfly & I just got a yellow coris wrasse.

jus85411 wrote:im not sure what berlin method is, but im pretty sure the only way to achieve and keep 0 nitrates is either veggie filters, heavy water changes, or light fish stock and no over feeding. of course planted tanks keep that down also. but were talking FOWLR, thats a lot tougher to keep 0 nitrates, especially in a tank to small for the fish to begin with. AFAIK, if you dont have veggie filters, do 30% WC 3x a week, or have a heavy planted tank they are the only reasonable ways for an average hobbyist to keep nitrates undetectable. that live rock and sand bed doesnt sound much more different than my sand bed or live rock thats been set up for 2+ years, except mine isnt good enough to take out nitrates i guess... -_- can you show me this "nitrate removing" live rock and sand? i might get some

you can get live rock or live sand anywhere. online, or your LFS.

I'm surprised you're saying a 30g tank is sufficient when you're including live rock in that tank. If you're going with the typical 1-2 pounds of rock per gallon of water, your water volume is substantially less than 30g.

FYI to jus85411, the other way you can keep nitrates way down in a FOWLR tank is to use a very good skimmer and have a deep sand bed, either in the main tank or in a sump or refugium. A deep sand bed is 4+ inches of an aragonite-based sand. The depth is to encourage the growth of anaerobic bacteria, which convert nitrates into nitrogen. The protein skimmer does not directly remove nitr*tes, but it does remove the organics that would otherwise eventually become nitr*tes.

I have super terrible interpersonal skills, so my animals are my family, my little buddies, I want the very best for them as much as I am able to provide. Balki is 2.5" in a 29 gallon while we set up a custom built tank for him (it needed resealing and some tlc) it's 40" X 20" X 16". I'm going to be moving at some point, at that time he'll be moving into a 120 gallon because he's awesome and he deserves it.

sevenyearnight wrote:I have super terrible interpersonal skills, so my animals are my family, my little buddies, I want the very best for them as much as I am able to provide. Balki is 2.5" in a 29 gallon while we set up a custom built tank for him (it needed resealing and some tlc) it's 40" X 20" X 16". I'm going to be moving at some point, at that time he'll be moving into a 120 gallon because he's awesome and he deserves it.

Is Balki in full marine yet?

He has been since Dec.

sevenyearnight wrote:He has been since Dec.

How much flow is in your tank? Also, do you have powerheads in your tank?If so what kind? and how much flow would you recommend?