Nano Refuge questions...

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mikeguerrero

Active Member
Hi reefers,

Can someone guide me on how much live rock rubble to drop in the second compartment in a 12 gallon cube?

Also I've been able to place the coral light 3/4 moon light hanging directly over the 2nd compartment.

I guess some light is better than no light. I've heard many others have done it without any light. Will this light help out? Or am I just wasting the light back there.

It fits perfectly and it will illuminate the 2nd compartment fully. But it is a moon light and it's not white light.

Any answers to my questions are greatly appreciated.

Mike
 
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incysor

New Member
mikeguerrero said:
Hi reefers,

Can someone guide me on how much live rock rubble to drop in the second compartment in a 12 gallon cube?

Also I've been able to place the coral light 3/4 moon light hanging directly over the 2nd compartment.

I guess some light is better than no light. I've heard many others have done it without any light. Will this light help out? Or am I just wasting the light back there.

It fits perfectly and it will illuminate the 2nd compartment fully. But it is a moon light and it's not white light.

Any answers to my questions are greatly appreciated.

Mike
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The moonlights are the wrong wavelength for any kind of photosynthetic benefits. Unless you're trying to keep macro algae with your rubble, there isn't any need for any light on the rubble. Adding the rubble is just an additional bit of space for the anaerobic bacteria to reside, and a protected place for pods to breed.

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dragon79

New Member
well said incysor!! I have already done this process for Sandra's JBJ before I left Vegas. I got like 6 lbs of live rock already cycled from a tank where there were gobys swimming around. They came with cool extra critters, like baby nassarius snails, little flat white slugs ( no shell) polyps of differenct colors, and feather duster worms. I have a cool yellow one in my pico. Between the rock I got I was able to balance between how much went in the pico, and how much I would give to Sandra. It didn't take long to fill the 2nd compartment. I'd say buy like a 1 lb, 2 lbs tops, if you have a lil bit extra I'm sure you could find room for the small pieces inside the tank. It's the perfect way to gain more of the beneficial bacteria and have a place for the pods to populate in a safe place, so mr spotty can stay well fed. BTW: he's looking fat when I saw him today.
 
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Vafik

New Member
I've heard many ppl say that you wouldnt want to have bio balls or sponges running in your filter so the anaerobic bacteria can grow on the LR and

LS. But then people put some LR in their filter for more anaerobic bacteria. Just wondering why buy more live rock?

Is it for the pods and maybe a hidden coral or two? :D Those are the only reasons I could think of buying more LR and sticking it back in a filter.
 
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incysor

New Member
anaerobic bacterica - oxygen kills it, lives deep inside LR and deep in the sand bad.

aerobic bacteria - needs oxygen, lives on surface of bioballs, other high surface area media, outside of LR etc... Generally does better if it's not totally submerged, but kept wet.

So LR rubble is an added place for bacteria cultures as well as a safe place for pods to breed where they can't be predated by critters. If it's in a chamber that's wet, but not submerged you'll mainly have aerobic bacteria, if it's a submerged chamber it'll mainly be the aerobic bacteria that's growing.

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Vafik

New Member
But wouldn't anaerobic bacteria grow anywhere or on anything you put in the chamber? If you stuck something really porous in the chamber wouldn't that act like LR. Just trying to get a clear picture.
 
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