Thinking of setting up a FOWOLR

[Palmer]

Hi Everyone,

So I have had my reef up and running for 2 and a half years and pretty happy with it no major issues (besides the occasional RO flood.) I have also kept Cichlids for about 15 years and I am kind of getting tired of my 125 G african cichlid tank.

I like the aquascaping of the tank though (Big Buddha statue and lots of slate rock.) I am thinking I would like to convert it to Fish only but without live rock and as a separate system from my reef.

So would a good skimmer regular waterchanges and perhaps some "detritus free" bioballs with mechanical filtration do the trick? I know everyone is pro live rock and negative on wet/dry filtration but is that more for corals which in many cases are more sensitive to nitrates?

Also I could start another thread but any suggestions on fish for a 125 G 6' long tank? I honestly have spent much more time reading about corals over the last couple of years and have spent little time researching fish I would not put in my 120 G reef.

thanks!

Palmer

[Palmer]

Wow not one response in a day and a half?!

Either nobody wants to get into a need to use live rock discussion and I am out to lunch or the FOWLR section pretty barren.

[lpsreefer]

If you have seen the show tanked. They use wet/dry filters it looks like on all there setups.

[Palmer]

I have never seen the show but heard about it here on Canreef. From what I remember there seemed to be a bit of contraversy over their tanks but I dont remmember what it was over.

[Reef Pilot]

Can't say myself, because have never tried that. But if you have enough surface area with your old rock work and bio balls with beneficial bacteria, maybe that is enough to provide an adequate nitrogen cycle for your organic waste. Then use a bio pellet reactor and with your skimmer you may be able to keep your nitrates low enough.

Why don't you give it a try and let us know how it works out. You can always add live rock later, or fill up a sump with it.

[Palmer]

I think that will likely be my plan. Good suggestion i was considering rock in the sump as well that is a good option if I dont want it in the display.

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

It is very possible to do what you suggested (little/no live rock, with good skimmer & bio-ball filter), but keeping the bioload low in order to reduce the number and volume of water changes until your bio-balls filtration gets fully up to speed would probably be a good idea.

Fish only with live rock is the preferred system nowadays because of the natural filtration provided by the rock. On the other hand, critics of FOWLR's point out that when the need to treat a tank arises, you're stuck because most effective medications will kill the live rock. So pros & cons.

Anthony

[SauceBoss]

Originally Posted by Reef Pilot

Can't say myself, because have never tried that. But if you have enough surface area with your old rock work and bio balls with beneficial bacteria, maybe that is enough to provide an adequate nitrogen cycle for your organic waste. Then use a bio pellet reactor and with your skimmer you may be able to keep your nitrates low enough.

Why don't you give it a try and let us know how it works out. You can always add live rock later, or fill up a sump with it.

+1000

[Skimmerking]

Palmer what I would do is a strong Skimmer and Live Rock eith asand bed deep enough to denitrfy and running Ozone will keep your water clean and allow you to only worry about Nitrates. That's where the Sand bed comes in to play

Originally Posted by Palmer

Hi Everyone,

So I have had my reef up and running for 2 and a half years and pretty happy with it no major issues (besides the occasional RO flood.) I have also kept Cichlids for about 15 years and I am kind of getting tired of my 125 G african cichlid tank.

I like the aquascaping of the tank though (Big Buddha statue and lots of slate rock.) I am thinking I would like to convert it to Fish only but without live rock and as a separate system from my reef.

So would a good skimmer regular waterchanges and perhaps some "detritus free" bioballs with mechanical filtration do the trick? I know everyone is pro live rock and negative on wet/dry filtration but is that more for corals which in many cases are more sensitive to nitrates?

Also I could start another thread but any suggestions on fish for a 125 G 6' long tank? I honestly have spent much more time reading about corals over the last couple of years and have spent little time researching fish I would not put in my 120 G reef.

thanks!

Palmer

Hey Palmer, your tank is already setup properly with a sump. Just replace the gravel with sand and add a protein skimmer and a refugium or bio balls in the sump.

Check out lafishguys on youtube and you'll see a whole bunch of different setups that he has going without live rock.