[Fishhead Junkie]

all u experts out there that know how a bio-cube is set up...tell me what you think about this idea...

i already ordered some copepods from ebay, it also comes with 2 6"x6" gualepra and 20 nassirus snails. it was an impluse buy for me, dont ask me why. so i am thinking...i will probably put the snails in my 29gallon cube...do you think its a possibility to maybe stick some of that gualepra into the section of the back filter that returns the water back into the tank..sorta like my own lil refugium tank for a nano..or could i shove some of it into the center section under the top grate with the bio-balls or place some in the intake section. the problem with the last 2 ideas is the intake section has the charcoal filter pad, wouldnt that catch the copepods and the center section flows into the return section but goes thru a pad as well. its already on order so what do u guys think? or do i throw it into the tank directly maybe near the back of the live rock and see what happens. i have heard it will take over the tank if not monitored. give me some tips.

steve

[glampka]

Fishhead,
Dump those bioballs. In the chamber where the balls are you can do 1 of 2 things - 1. Fill with LR rubble or 2. set it up as your refugium. Problem you'll have is trying to light it for the caulerpa. You're going to have to watch the caulerpa though - it can release spores that will turn your water into a green soup. Chaeto is a better choice.

[kolokefalo]

I Agree with glampka. Caulerpa is a great choice for a refugium when you run the refugium light 24 hours a day. When you don't Caulerpa goes asexual and releases spores and it will overgrow your tank, not to mention the spores release a mild toxin which can deplete available oxygen. Chaeto is the way to go here.

[Fishhead Junkie]

hmmmm...can i at least put some of the cualepra into my tank just for looks and for the fish to snack on?? its pretty cool looking and i dont have very much plant life in my tank. what plants i do have, the crabs and other inverts chew away at it all the time so it hasnt really spread or grown the way i had hoped.

as for the bio-balls, do i just purchase a piece of live rock, smash it up with a hammer into small pieces and just dump it back in the section and remove the bio-balls? think it will make that much of a difference? why are bio-balls so bad and pieces of LR so much better??

any other ideas on what to do with the cualepra??
steve

[Six-line Wrasse]

Remove the bio-balls slowly. More than likely they're covered with colonies of denitrifying bacteria which could cause ammonia problems if removed to quickly. Take a handful of bio-balls out each week until you have no more bio-balls. Then, add live rock rubble at about a handful at a time until you've got the chamber about 2/3 full.

Also, 20 nassarius snails are a bit too much for a 29 gal. You only need maybe 5 or 6. 20 will just cause them all to starve.

[fishguy]

he can remove them all at once if he has live rock in his main tank
and 20 snails is just the right number i he wants is to be