Refuge question

[bgiles11]

I have a 90 gal reef, and I am seriously considering a HOB refuge. My question is the one in which I am looking at is not very big. Probably 5-10 gallons. Will a fuge this small have any benefits? I don't have room in my sump to add a refuge. (wont make that mistake again). Any thoughts will be appreciatecd.

[barbra]

If that is the only fuge you can do then I think it is an outstanding plan compared to not having a fuge at all :)

[rachelcb80]

I've been having to kick this idea around also. Can one of those HOB refugiums be hung on your sump instead of the tank? (No room between the wall and my tank)

[BryanJ]

you could hang one on a sump as long as the water level is high enough to support it. Allthough the higher water level will not allow for a power failure which would cause your sump to emtpty on the floor. What kind of lights do you have? a 125 could support one on the side wall if you have a hanging light fixture

[ledford1]

I was a little unsure too about adding smaller fuges to a tank, but it worked for me.

I decided to get the large AquaFuge for my 90. It's not a drilled tank, so going HOB was the most convenient. In the fuge, I put some smaller pieces of rock that I had in the garage and some cheato from the LFS.

Within a week, I noticed improvement in my tank. Instead of using the magnet algae scraper every other day, now it's maybe once a week. The LR and the sand bed look better, and I have a nice pod population going.

[rachelcb80]

Bryan, I have a canopy on my tank so nothing can hang on the side. I wasn't sure how the HOB refugiums work so I didn't know about the water level issue in the sump. How far from the top edge does the water have to be for the HOB's?

Didn't mean to go off topic from the OP!

[BryanJ]

I have a ecosystem 40 and it would need to be filled to the top. As for the CPR variety it would be however low that pump on the intake side needs to be. Maybe someone who owns one could speak to that. So I will pose the question to all the cpr HOB fuge owners what water level is necessary to operate that fuge.

[pledosophy]

I have an HOB refugium from CPR and it is possible to extend both the pump intake hose and the return to use it on a sump. Will cost you less then $5.

[rachelcb80]

Great! I'll check out those refugiums. Is it just some flexible tubing needed to extend both intake and return?

[pledosophy]

Flex hose for the intake and some PVC for the return, you don't have to mod the return if you don't mind the noise.