Can I change my sump from DSB to refugium

Papitto

Papitto

PatrickF
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HI,

My tank is still young and I have a DSB in my sump. I have LR rubble and chaeto that started as an orange size and now has grown to spanspek size.
So I was thinking about aragonite from the DSB in my DT and make my mid section of the sump a LR and chaeto area.

would this be wise or not?
 
you can remove the DSB anytime you want to. we removed a friend of mine DSB not to long ago. it was running for a couple of years. nothing major happened at all. so in my opinion you can remove it. Just to be sure. the rock that you wish to add for Refugium, is it still live or has it been out of a system to dry for a while?
 
the fish said:
you can remove the DSB anytime you want to. we removed a friend of mine DSB not to long ago. it was running for a couple of years. nothing major happened at all. so in my opinion you can remove it. Just to be sure. the rock that you wish to add for Refugium, is it still live or has it been out of a system to dry for a while?
Click to expand...

The LR rubble is in my DT and in the overflow section of my sump. about 12Kg's since I started my tank.
 
they should be well seeded so it will be safe to move it to sump and use. so there should be no cycle that will happen.
 
You want to remove the sand from the DSB to the display tank? The unsettling of the strata and the bacteria will surely cause major die off - I had a small cycle just from piling my substrate about 10cm high for about a week and then moving it back - never run a DSB so I could be wrong -
 
You should be able to remove the dsb, just be very careful when doing so. The dsb can release some nasties into the water, so I would isolate that chamber of the sump first, then remove it. Did the dsb start to turn black yet in the centre or bottom?
 
If you do move the LR to your sump ensure you have good flow through the rock and clean up or siphon out any settlement in the chamber
 
You can just have a ref on top of your DSB if you have the room. I would not remove my DSB in fact I have just added another DSB with a refugium on top of it. Killing two birds with one stone.
 
a picture says a thousand words.

a much better reply could then be given.

Plus dimensions of that chamber. Water depth above the sand.
 
I removed my DSB and the tank is just getting better and better.
 
if you plan to remove the DSB here are some steps

a few days before start dosing seachem stability
then on the day
turn of the return pump
remove the DSB
thoroughly clean the sand, and i mean thoroughly
throw away all the water left in the sump, clean it while you can.
then add fresh ASW, let the heater bring it up to the right temp, start the skimmer etc
then start the return and carry on dosing seachem stability for 7 days after.

now if the DSB is removing NO3 and some PO4, you will have a spike for a while until the refugium plays catchup. Also remember the DSB acted as a aerobic biological filter as well, so keep the bacteria dosing until things have played catchup. also i dont recommend adding any new livestock for a week or 2 atleast
 
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