Fuge Problems??? :mad:

[LakeEd]

About 4 weeks ago now, I setup a dedicated 40 gallon Fuge on my system. It sits above, and to the side of my main tank... allowing free flow back into my display. My reasoning behind this particular setup, was to allow free flow of any pods back into my tank without having to go through any pump impellors. This all seems to be working very nicely now.

Unexpectedly, about a week after setting up my Fuge, I started developing a very nasty case of Diatoms. I wasn't expecting this at all, since the water going to my Fuge is from my tank overflow. I just sat back and decided it must be part of a "new tank syndrome"... deal with it.

I cleaned the heavy part of the diatoms out of the Fuge, being as careful as possible to contain them, not allowing it to become too free-flowing.

Now... my problem is a month later... I'm still having a diatom problem ONLY in my Fuge!?!? I have to clean the side of my Fuge at least weekly, or I no longer can see into the darn thang! Is this something that is just "normal" with a fully external Fuge like I've setup... or have I missed some information here, and need to change things to keep these diatoms from continuously forming?

Any ideas would be very much appreciated all!!! Thank you in advance!

 

[Herefishyfishy]

Add a small circulation pump inside the fuge to get some water moving around. Cover the impeller against getting plugged with plants.

 

[auqua man]

About 4 weeks ago now, I setup a dedicated 40 gallon Fuge on my system. It sits above, and to the side of my main tank... allowing free flow back into my display. My reasoning behind this particular setup, was to allow free flow of any pods back into my tank without having to go through any pump impellors. This all seems to be working very nicely now.

Unexpectedly, about a week after setting up my Fuge, I started developing a very nasty case of Diatoms. I wasn't expecting this at all, since the water going to my Fuge is from my tank overflow. I just sat back and decided it must be part of a "new tank syndrome"... deal with it.

I cleaned the heavy part of the diatoms out of the Fuge, being as careful as possible to contain them, not allowing it to become too free-flowing.

Now... my problem is a month later... I'm still having a diatom problem ONLY in my Fuge!?!? I have to clean the side of my Fuge at least weekly, or I no longer can see into the darn thang! Is this something that is just "normal" with a fully external Fuge like I've setup... or have I missed some information here, and need to change things to keep these diatoms from continuously forming?

Any ideas would be very much appreciated all!!! Thank you in advance!

I have the same problem with the small 5 gal Fuge I set up 3 weeks ago so I will be taging along also.

 

[Krish]

Besides the added flow, what lighting are you using Ed? Could possibly be something that is promoting it to grow...Hope you get it sorted out soon

 

[MCSInc]

I am looking for the cause of this same problem also. I added a high powered pump about a month ago and it helped a little. Once again the problem does not extend into the main tank or the sump just the fuge.

Candy

 

[LakeEd]

Add a small circulation pump inside the fuge to get some water moving around. Cover the impeller against getting plugged with plants.

I have a SEIO1500 in my Fuge, doing a reverse-flow type effect. My input to the fuge is at the oppisite end of the tank... and this SEIO is at the far end, blowing back along the bottom towards the input. I have done this to keep my ball of Chaeto constantly floating and rotating, like a bouncing ball. This, at least in my mind, is helping my Chaeto get a more even concentration of lighting 360 degrees around it.

 

[LakeEd]

Besides the added flow, what lighting are you using Ed? Could possibly be something that is promoting it to grow...Hope you get it sorted out soon

I am using a new light for my Fuge. It is the LightsofAmerica light pictured below. I have heard nothing but good about it, but definately won't rule out that is may be part of the cause of this problem???

 

[Herefishyfishy]

WOW, diatoms with high flow, hmmmm. Thats a tough one. Guess all I can come up with is "Diatom happens"

OK, here is a question, how many hours a day is the fuge light running?

 

[Reefdaddy1]

Very intresting, What is the kelvin on that bulb? And like Mike asked how Long of lumination periods do you have?

 

[Scooterman]

Well if you were to have a problem better in the fuge than the main display, nothing wrong with that, your supplying a more competitive place to grow algae, this is why I don't bother dealing with a fuge, don't need them IMO! This would be normal though because even with lighting & good flow your basically holding a trap for detritus. Anthony had a great article about setting up one with different reasons & based on that helps determine what is used in your fuge.

 

[Elmo18]

IMO, it is the kelvin rating of the PC bulb.

Best,
Ilham

 

[Krish]

Hmm...Well, it is weird that you are having a "cycle" and experiencing diatoms growing in your fuge at this point in time, but when I ran a light over my fuge, I ran my lights on an alternate photperiod with more watts per gal for a longer period of time each day than my tank and diatoms and cyno grew like crazy down there as it cycled as well as other types of nuicance algae. It was a pc 6500K bulb I used and nothing ever grew in the main display, but only in the fuge. However, as the tank matured, it eventually stopped growing down there which is why I can't understand why you are experiencing them....It's a mystery!!!

 

[Slickdonkey]

You should see mine, it's totally overrun with hair algae. It's even outcompeting the chaeto. But the display looks fine so I'm not complaining... Maybe I'll put the fuge rocks in a garbage can for a month or two and see if that cuts it back.

 

[LakeEd]

WOW, diatoms with high flow, hmmmm. Thats a tough one. Guess all I can come up with is "Diatom happens"

OK, here is a question, how many hours a day is the fuge light running?

I'm running my Fuge lighting, reverse schedule (kinda) to my main tank. Light comes on at 10pm... off at 10am.

 

[LakeEd]

Very intresting, What is the kelvin on that bulb? And like Mike asked how Long of lumination periods do you have?

Of course, I don't have any means of measuring the Kelvin myself... but printed on the bulb it claims 6700K... which is why I purchased it for a Fuge light in the 1st place.

 

[Reefdaddy1]

Hmmm, Cut down on the photo period a bit, may help, But as scooter said, no biggie if its in the fuge .

 

[Haole]

Is there anything else in your fuge besides the cheato?
Do you have any substrate in there?
How fast is the cheato growing? Have you had to trim it back yet?
Is there any detritus settling on the bottom of the tank?

 

[LakeEd]

Hmmm, Cut down on the photo period a bit, may help, But as scooter said, no biggie if its in the fuge .

Very true! This is only happening in my Fuge... my tank is about as totally clean of any algaes (other than Coraline) as I have ever seen... so I guess I don't have room to complain much.

 

[LakeEd]

Is there anything else in your fuge besides the cheato?
Do you have any substrate in there?
How fast is the cheato growing? Have you had to trim it back yet?
Is there any detritus settling on the bottom of the tank?

My Chaeto has about doubled in the month it has been in my Fuge, which I'm happy about. Being a 40gallon Fuge, and since I started out with about a football size piece of Chaeto, I haven't done any trimming of it as yet, and at its current growth, probably won't for about another month.

The Fuge is bare bottom. Right now, the only thing that seems to be accluminating in my Fuge is Coraline and Diatoms.

Thankfully the diatoms easily brush off... and the coraline continues growing.

 

[gbr]

As Ed knows (we've talked ) I am having the same problem as he is. I am also running the lights of america bulb but I don't believe this is due to the spectrum because I have even MORE diatoms in my grow out tank that is lit by an XM10K. Both of these tanks are new acrylic 40 gallon tanks connected to my main system. Flow is from the sump to the grow out to the fuge back to the sump. The grow out does collect 95% of the detritus. I wonder if the substrate/rock that holds the micro organisms (fauna) in the main tank that is absent in these other tanks is the key. No animals to take care of the detritus??