Loading ...Sunday was a great day for inspired thought. ’Twas so easy when the day was miserable, rainy, and colder than usual. Perfect for a sit-down think session.
So what did I come up with that was so thought provoking? Well, how about the notion of how to test your tank’s ability to withstand your bio-load? It is actually quite simple to do, but harder to correct. All you need to do is…… turn your skimmer off. Let the natural biological filtration do the work for about 2-3 weeks. The results could be either devastating or incredible.
Lets look at the incredible result first. You leave your tank/system skimerless for 2-3 weeks. Your oxygen levels stay intact because you are employing amazing powerheads that allow for substantial gas exchange. Your fish seem to graze at the algae that keeps appearing, but doesn’t have a chance to expand with vigor. Corals look happy because they have more N and P to uptake but are not overwhelmed by them thanks to your denitrifying bacteria. You deem it a success and turn on the skimmer again. You see that your bio-load can be sustained by your natural filtration.
The devastating result? How about a massive algae outbreak that your fish cannot come to grips with. Hair algae, bryopsis, valona, and caulerpa! It adds oxygen to your tank yes, but it starts to suffocate the corals. Most corals at this point are turning or already turned brown. Coral growth is stunned due to the inability of your bacteria to process N. You realize that you cannot sustain your bioload and decide to turn on your skimmer, while unhappy that you came to this conclusion in the first place!
Too scared to try this out? Give it a go for 3-4 days. If you develop a heavy algae film, you may have reached our bioload limitation and may need to increase the biological flitration in your systm. For those in serious need for a challenge, increase that span to 2-3 weeks.
Come back and tell us how you’d managed with this simple test! It is really good to know if your system can be self sustaining without mechanical filtration methods.
Trained by the thirteenth ring master of the Sian Xiuang Coral Temple. Currently is apprenticing the art of Acropora shaping in the ancient tradition of Ninja Fragging. Known as the SPS hero!