un-lit refugium

[homegrown]

This subject has likely been discussed, but I'm not on-line often. Does anyone have practical experience keeping an un-lit refugium? Do I need to seed it with anything or will the live rock do? Is there any harvesting involved? Last but not least, is it effective?

[kar93]

Refugiums need to be lit for the macro algae to grow.

[seapug]

you can create a very effective "dark refugium" with live rock and sand alone. Microfauna and sponges will be the primary nutrient assimilators, which have many benefits. It only needs to be lit if you want to grow macroalgae for Phosphate assimilation.