Quote:
Originally Posted by Twinfallz
Yes, I understand what coral feed on. My point is that at one time at least, people had difficulties keeping NPS corals because they needed regular feeding & polution was an issue. I'm just considering NPS utility as a filter feeder when extra food will have to be added to the aquarium?
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I really don’t think that much extra food from outside the tank is required. If you add beaucoup food, the competitors will fight for it and grow accordingly, until they outgrow the tank. At this point frag and sale becomes an option. However, if you choose to limit your food then some competitors would lose out and disappear.
The whole point to using natural filtration in our reef tank is multiple food webs to process nutrients and feed the tank live food. I believe that to my core and I have stepped out to excercise this core belief. My 25 year old Jaubert Plenum will feed NPS, sponges, clams, corals, macro and fish.
One other point about macro and herbivores. Consider reproducing Cerith snails. Even when algae is not visible, they are grazing and there population will match the food source. In the scenario where I turned out lights in refugium, the micro fauna and fana adjust populations to environmental changes. One likely scenario would be that extra inorganic nutrients from elimination of refugium light would be some visible algae growth with a corresponding increase in herbivores. Let the bugs do the work for you. They have been doing it since the geologic dawn of time. Because the dynamic equilibrium involved is not instantaneous in responding, some algae may be visible at times in tank. I have no problem with that and even consider it healthy in little to moderate amounts.
Good night Jaubert.