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.

[ALang]

LR is nice for even semi-aggressive fish to dart behind and hide from time-to-time. Having them do some filtration is a huge bonus.
Plus most fish likes to hang near structures of some sort, especially at night.
Good luck with your fowlr.

[Reef Pilot]

You could also try this, if you don't want to use a skimmer and a bio pellet reactor.
http://www.aquaripure.com/

But again, have not tried any of this myself, so can't vouch for it.

Will be interesting also if you can limit the growth of coralline algae on your old rock and ornaments.

[wingedfish]

You don't need live rock for a fish only. The live rock is used for the anoxic areas and the beneficial denitrifieing this produces. The lack of an anoxic area will cause the excesive build up of nitrates. This is removed with water changes. The other pitfalls of high nitrates are algae growth. Marine fish are more sensitive to nitrate levels so they must be monitored.

This is assuming you use some sort of canister with sponges or wet/dry bio balls ect. Need surface area for nitrifying bacteria. Depending on the bio load, even the sand/gravel can be enough area. Usually fish only tanks are heavily loaded so count on weekly water changes with no rock.

[Skimmerking]

Originally Posted by wingedfish

You don't need live rock for a fish only. The live rock is used for the anoxic areas and the beneficial denitrifieing this produces. The lack of an anoxic area will cause the excesive build up of nitrates. This is removed with water changes. The other pitfalls of high nitrates are algae growth. Marine fish are more sensitive to nitrate levels so they must be monitored.

This is assuming you use some sort of canister with sponges or wet/dry bio balls ect. Need surface area for nitrifying bacteria. Depending on the bio load, even the sand/gravel can be enough area. Usually fish only tanks are heavily loaded so count on weekly water changes with no rock.

YA OK and you should pee in your tank. Live rock is a natural filter for FO tanks using BIO Balls and sponges are a thing of the pass. water changes yes but that is going to depend on you filtering alot of the time the rock and sand will break down Amm to Nitrites and then to Nitrates. Heck if you want then use Ozone that will drop it right to Nitrates and then you still need to find a way to flush the Nitrates away. and Doing water changes on a huge Fo tank is a waste of money.