rich_tilbury
18-10-08, 11:26
Hi been distracted and forgot to add my voice to this! I have a MM system with a small skimmer. Params are pretty good considering I feed the tank. I think I'd like a bigger MM/DSB sump, but that isn't going to happen without an upgrade! :)
OK mangroves - yes I have two in the weir of my tank. They get light from the MH light and actinics and seem to be doing well.
I come from a FW planted tank background into marines. My FW tanks are run using Walstad style set ups, basically an unskimmed Berlin system, but plants do the job of the LR. The plants that work best are those "stemmed plants" that grow fast and use up nutrients and can then be harvested.
Mangroves are cool, but grow way too slowly to have enough impact on the nitrates IMO. If you could grow a lot of them, or a big one, that would be better, but you do need actual growth. Mine don't do much - a leaf ever now and then. What works are fast growing algaes and xenia. I think that salt water tolerant reeds would work brilliantly, if you could grow them hydroponically, but this is strictly hypothetical - reed beds are used to process waste water in a lot of countries and produce very clean water.
I am currently trying (in a very non-scientific way) the plant Samphire (aka glasswort) in my sump. It is a UK plant, but can tolerate high temps. It grows in tidal muds, so will grow under sea water!
I've tried growing it planted into the substrate and underwater but it seem that it tasted good and was eaten by something!
It is a human food plant and tastes something like asparagus but salty - the other reason for me trying to grow it!
I have some growing floating on the surface now and it is doing OK but nothing special. It really needs to be planted in soil and be exposed to the air for best results as it can access atmospheric CO2. Apparently though the best samphire grows where it is covered by the sea at high tide, so in my "upgrade" I am planning a tidal tank for mangroves, samphire and anything else that would like that sort of environment.
Would love to try sea grasses in a system like that! :) Just need to build an extension first to fit it all in! :) ;)
OK mangroves - yes I have two in the weir of my tank. They get light from the MH light and actinics and seem to be doing well.
I come from a FW planted tank background into marines. My FW tanks are run using Walstad style set ups, basically an unskimmed Berlin system, but plants do the job of the LR. The plants that work best are those "stemmed plants" that grow fast and use up nutrients and can then be harvested.
Mangroves are cool, but grow way too slowly to have enough impact on the nitrates IMO. If you could grow a lot of them, or a big one, that would be better, but you do need actual growth. Mine don't do much - a leaf ever now and then. What works are fast growing algaes and xenia. I think that salt water tolerant reeds would work brilliantly, if you could grow them hydroponically, but this is strictly hypothetical - reed beds are used to process waste water in a lot of countries and produce very clean water.
I am currently trying (in a very non-scientific way) the plant Samphire (aka glasswort) in my sump. It is a UK plant, but can tolerate high temps. It grows in tidal muds, so will grow under sea water!
I've tried growing it planted into the substrate and underwater but it seem that it tasted good and was eaten by something!
It is a human food plant and tastes something like asparagus but salty - the other reason for me trying to grow it!
I have some growing floating on the surface now and it is doing OK but nothing special. It really needs to be planted in soil and be exposed to the air for best results as it can access atmospheric CO2. Apparently though the best samphire grows where it is covered by the sea at high tide, so in my "upgrade" I am planning a tidal tank for mangroves, samphire and anything else that would like that sort of environment.
Would love to try sea grasses in a system like that! :) Just need to build an extension first to fit it all in! :) ;)