Sump vs Pods

Bixby'sMenagerie · Feb 10, 2023

So I regularly note a large amount of pods and the occasional small bristleworm in my filter floss. Is this a pod breeding ground I should keep going or is there a better solution? The sump is my first diy and honestly not great. At the moment the water falls straight down to filter floss then into a mostly empty main chamber, before 2 baffles and the return pump.

Subsea · Feb 10, 2023

Your title begs a question, yet your post did not expand.

I looked for a tank thread. Is this sump for your 120G display that is 3 years set up?

Consider removing filter floss and allow cascading water to fall over a wet/submerged section of rubble. Degassing of water is very important in moving oxygen, nitrogen and carbon dioxide fron a gas to saturated in water. In the open area of sump, get some real live rock to inoculate cryptic sponges in a dark sump.

Also, by removing the filter floss, detritus will begin to settle in open area of your sump. This is energy rich carbon that fuels the microbial loop. Consider what PaulB says about MULM.

"Mulm" in a reef tank

I think one of the most important, and least understood or mentioned things in a reef tank is "mulm". That stuff that grows in the dark portions of a tank if it is set up long enough. "Mulm" is a combination of algae, sponges, bacteria, pods, worms, detritus, poop and any thing else that can be p...

wamas.org

Bixby'sMenagerie · Feb 10, 2023

Subsea said:
Your title begs a question, yet your post did not expand.

I looked for a tank thread. Is this sump for your 120G display that is 3 years set up?

Consider removing filter floss and allow cascading water to fall over a wet/submerged section of rubble. Degassing of water is very important in moving oxygen, nitrogen and carbon dioxide fron a gas to saturated in water. In the open area of sump, get some real live rock to inoculate cryptic sponges in a dark sump.

Also, by removing the filter floss, detritus will begin to settle in open area of your sump. This is energy rich carbon that fuels the microbial loop. Consider what PaulB says about MULM.

"Mulm" in a reef tank

I think one of the most important, and least understood or mentioned things in a reef tank is "mulm". That stuff that grows in the dark portions of a tank if it is set up long enough. "Mulm" is a combination of algae, sponges, bacteria, pods, worms, detritus, poop and any thing else that can be p...

wamas.org

This is that tank, (2 years not 3 may have mistyped elsewhere.) I recently (2 months ago) removed all the rock from the sump as part of my aquascaping project amd while i was at it added some sand and crushed coral to the sump.. I am debating adding more rock to the main section or building a cheato box. So if I take the filter floss out entirely, what do I do for mechanical filtration? Just the protien skimmer? I'm not exactly a water clarity nut. Ive found geowing mulm in my display is difficult as until recently it was very lightly stocked (and poorly lit) and just didn't produce much detritus. I did have a nice layer at the bottom of the sump which was usually crawling with pods so i put the sand down to give extra surface area.

Subsea · Feb 10, 2023

I don’t see the advantage of sand in sump. Bacteria will stack on each other and make their own surface area.

In 25 year mud/macro refugium, I converted to cryptic by removing Chaeto, prior to adding live rock, I stacked eggcrate in the mud to keep rock elevated above the MULM. I had bought 75G system used with 30G EcoSystem mud filter. In 25 years of operation, the depth increased 0.5”, felt spongy to the touch and is crawling with worms & stuff.

PS: I don’t use any mechanical filtration. Filter feeding invertebrate & anemones are your mechanical filters.

PSS: The 55G tank on top is < 2 years set up. It is skimmerless, sumpless and fishless: Sally Lightfoot crab and six peppermint shrimp are the apex predators in the tank. I add live phytoplankton, liquid seaweed, live mussels and ammonia.

Subsea · Feb 10, 2023

Protein skimmers remove bacteria and other microbes from the water column. I use those microbes to feed all filter feeders. Your coral is your biofilter

Bixby'sMenagerie · Feb 10, 2023

Wait a mud filter? Never heard of that one. Viral? Also how did you introduce all the extra microlife species into your tank? All my rock came from a local guy tearing a tank down so no idea what all critters are living in it aside from pods and bristleworms. And those dang zoa eating asterinas. I keep a melanarus wrasse so any other pests havnt made themselves apparent.

Subsea · Feb 10, 2023

Bixby'sMenagerie said:
Wait a mud filter? Never heard of that one. Viral? Also how did you introduce all the extra microlife species into your tank? All my rock came from a local guy tearing a tank down so no idea what all critters are living in it aside from pods and bristleworms. And those dang zoa eating asterinas. I keep a melanarus wrasse so any other pests havnt made themselves apparent.