Are small refugiums effective in AIO nano tanks for pods, water stability, ect

ezrider2 · Jan 16, 2016

Thinking about setting up a refuge in the second chamber with some cheato. I want to increase the water stability and increase the pod population. Help keep it simple.
Are small fuges effective? When you compare tank to fuge size are they beneficial or just a waste of time? Do I need rubble too or just plant life? Have a small led to use from the back.

12g nano cube
AI Prime light
Media basket with floss and carbon 1st chamber
Fuge? 2nd chamber
Heater and pump 3rd chamber

1-2 gallon weekly water changes

Various zoas, small toadstool, rainbow acans, 1 clown fish, 2 snails, 2 crabs, and some kenya tree that I am removing from the tank and giving away. See free stuff if you want some.

Want to add a dragonette ( if I can keep the pod count up) and maybe a few sps

Anyone have experience or knowledge positive or negative?
Thanks

NVTE · Jan 16, 2016

ezrider2 said:

I think it help with your tank. I had the hang on back refugium that double size your compartment on my 60 gallon before and I think it help a lot. especially you want more pod. it is good place for them. Do run light reversed with your main light. help with O2 level as well

Rubble rock can be add if you have less rock in main display. If you still have room for it. go ahead, but make sure they don't collect detrius on it.

ezrider2 · Jan 17, 2016

NVTE said:

I think it help with your tank. I had the hang on back refugium that double size your compartment on my 60 gallon before and I think it help a lot. especially you want more pod. it is good place for them. Do run light reversed with your main light. help with O2 level as well

Rubble rock can be add if you have less rock in main display. If you still have room for it. go ahead, but make sure they don't collect detrius on it.

Thanks NVTE
the light is arriving today!

Confuse · Jan 17, 2016

I feel like a small compartment like that won't make much of a difference. I would much rather run a small GFO reactor (maybe IM MiniMax) in that compartment to bring your phosphates down. On a tank that size, I would be doing small weekly water changes to keep up with nutrients, but if your nutrients are high, I'd run some kind of media. I think some people use chemi pure too. I'd look into that as well. I don't have much confidence in the small fuge in my 150g, but it is a great place to harvest pods. But even my 10g IM Nuvo has a huge pod population all over the tank without a fuge. Chaeto is also a mess and you gotta trim it every week if you have rapid growth. I'd much rather change the media every few weeks or once a month.

ezrider2 · Jan 17, 2016

Confuse said:

Thanks for the input.
My levels are all great. Zoas are growing and getting new polyps. It is more about getting the pod population up and doing anything I can to help the water parameters. Any suggestions on getting the pod count up without one?
I have read that any fuge is helpful and others agree with you. I don't think it will hurt any.

xtian27 · Jan 17, 2016

I run my 10 gallon im nuvo with a ghost skimmer and turned the left side to a refugium with chaeto works great for me. I have mix lps softies and sps in my tank

just dont overload with fishes if you want a stable params

ezrider2 · Jan 17, 2016

xtian27 said:

How many fish do you consider overload? I will have 2 or 3 total.
Thanks!

NVTE · Jan 18, 2016

ezrider2 said:

You want pod then refugium is way to go. Pod need safe places to reproduce. They can't do that in tank that have predator.
Hope you can find Dragonnet that eat frozen food cause 12 gallon might be hard to have enough pod for him. You might end up adding more.
I would look into those nano fish (like gobies)

theMerchant · Jan 23, 2016

I have a slightly larger tank, 24g. I do have a red scooter dragonet and fug in my 2nd chamber. dragonet has been in the tank for about 1 month... seems pretty happy. you always buy pods in a bottle and feed them (or grow your own)

first day converted

today

I do block allot of pods from passing cause I put a filter pad to catch the loose chaeto before hitting my pump.

*i have very little algae in my main tank

russ13 · Jan 23, 2016

I had one in my 24 gallon nano cube. I used the first chamber and took the black tape stuff off the back. Macro grew very well but It didn't make much of a difference in my nitrate of phosphate levels. I then switched to an upflow algae scrubber and got pretty much the same result.

ezrider2 · Jan 23, 2016

theMerchant said:

Thanks that looks nice. What light are you using? I want to grow enough so I can keep a ruby red and not buy any!

theMerchant · Jan 23, 2016

I bought this LED at CK Fish World in Azusa. Peter told me this will grow chaeto

I stuck some Velcro on the ends and some masking tape on the sides to block out any light bleeding

russ13 · Jan 24, 2016

The problem I have found with keeping fish that only eat pods is that they are usually slow swimmers and slow eaters. The faster fish in your tank with also eat pods and eat them before a mandarin or scooter Benny can get to them. I have only found two successful ways of keeping them. First is to get lucky and find one that will eat frozen or pellets. The other one is to have a very large tank with lots of life rock for the pods to hide in and be hunted down by the fish

organism · Feb 1, 2016

In all honesty I would be really surprised if a dragonette didn't die a slow and agonizing death from starvation in a tank that small. I know they look awesome, but they are alive and deserve better than a "maybe I can" after flying halfway around the world.

ezrider2 · Feb 3, 2016

organism said:

I have thousands of pods in my tank and fuge and they are replenished on a regular basis. Although it is small (fuge) it is a safe place for pods and others to grow and seed my tank and rock. A slow and agonizing death won't happen here bud. I try to preserve life not take it. I got a dragonet with a sunken in belly and it is fat and happy now. I guess it depends on the system and the care taker.

ezrider2 · Feb 3, 2016

russ13 said:

The problem I have found with keeping fish that only eat pods is that they are usually slow swimmers and slow eaters. The faster fish in your tank with also eat pods and eat them before a mandarin or scooter Benny can get to them. I have only found two successful ways of keeping them. First is to get lucky and find one that will eat frozen or pellets. The other one is to have a very large tank with lots of life rock for the pods to hide in and be hunted down by the fish

They will be the only fish in the tank. No competition. Just 2 fish and thousands of pods!

organism · Feb 4, 2016

ezrider2 said:

Pods do not breed fast enough in a tank that size, and you can't manually add enough of them. I will never understand the theme where newer hobbyists ask all kinds of questions but are suddenly seasoned experts when it comes to keeping mandarins in tiny tanks.

orbela · Aug 16, 2016

ezrider2 said:

Check out nano reef forum they have a whole thread dedicated to keeping dragonets in nano tanks. Most people use a sump since your trying to get more space to maximize the adult copepods that reproduce. You could always culture them.

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rusted180 · Dec 6, 2016

Wish my clown would stop hunting pods at night. Before the fish was added, I had so many crawling around everywhere. I should setup a refugium too in my next tank

Atoll · Dec 19, 2016

Go for it. Check out/youtube/research this product Xport-NO3 Biological Filtration Dimpled Brick - Brightwell ........they have cubes and bricks. This would utilize the small space much better than rubble as far as benefits go.

Are small refugiums effective in AIO nano tanks for pods, water stability, ect

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