Why can't we be more like our dark side brothers and sisters.

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nfored

nfored

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Apr 4, 2008
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Missouri
So I know they use sumps, but mostly because they need the space. I mean they get their filtration by power heads or other circulation over the rocks. I don't understand why we can't do the same thing, I mean that's the same principle behind UGF and RUGF, which seems to have faded.

I as this because even when we use canister, sumps, or what ever we use if we don't have the in tank circulation good we still end up with with unfiltered water. Most of our ceramic media is always under water any way so why can't we have in tank filtration? I mean As a cichlid owner what could better then the very decoration you use and get comments on also being you filter.

In the end its also cheaper, I mean you can get 2600gph worth of power heads for like 50.00 where as a pump for your sump would cost at least 4 times that much, plus use maybe 10 times more electricity.

I started out wanting my tank as natural as possible, then I wanted as little in the tank as I could get away with, now I want as little to the filtration as possible.

END SILLY POINTLESS RANT
 
if you really want the least amount of filtration, then just run a trickle filter and do a large volume water change every day. no sump, pumps for water movement only, don't need much. you would have to have a heater (or 2) in your tank to keep the fresh water up to temp....

your gravel would have some BB and for the most part all the bad will just flow down the drain..... simple but high water bill :)
 
The live rock plays a big part in filtering on the dark side and I guess a similar type could be used in fresh but it would mean less space for the usually bigger fish that we keep.
 
I may be reading your post wrong, but powerheads aren't used for filtration. Powerheads are used to keep debris from settling on bottom of the tank and to push nutrients around to corals. Live rock is a huge part of biological filtration in reef tanks which we don't have fresh. Some people use lava rock but it's not quite the same.
 
Freshwater fish for the most part don't like the high flow that salt tanks have. I have a powerhead in my Malawi tank and all the fish dive for the rocks when it's on :)
 
Try live plants
 
There is alot more to dark side filtration than what you mentioned... Your forgetting skimmers and refugiums.
 
I'm going to be applying a dark side touch on my 125 in the next few weeks, I'll be doing a freshwater refugium. Instead of algae though, I'll be using anacharis. Obviously we don't have anything that comes close to live rock in freshwater (at least not that's readily available to my knowledge) and even if we did I'd never have it in my main tank. I always wonder why both sides don't take ideas from each other and apply them from time to time. I'm not 100% sure how well a freshwater refugium will work but if it's anywhere near as good as a salt setup it'll be worth every penny.
 
what is this dark side talk?

There are entire threads dedicated to tanks that don't have traditions filters. Some use worms, clams, shrimp, otos, plants etc. all you need is proper circulation and bam you are done. Just don't over stock.
 
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