no sump, what filtration?

I would not class a sump as special really. A sump is there purely to give you extra water volume, added filtration and nutrient removal with macro alage, a place to have all the equipment so its not in the tank.

The extra water volume aids in keeping the main eco-system stable..The extra filtration area ( refugium ) is where we can have a nutrient rich sand bed and grow macro algae like chaeto or caulerpra. The idea behind having macro algae in there is that it out-compete's algae in the display tank thus removing unsightly algae growth on rock and sand...

Niko
 
I've never had a sump...I use a lot of live rock and a deep sand bed and lots of circulation, I have a heavy fish load and yet my nitrates never rise over 5.
 
One of the reasons your nitrates never go over 5 is because of how your tank is..The live rock and the deep sand bed helps all that. When we setup a fuge / sump, that is how it is usully setup, with deep bed and live rock rubble...

But, the beauty of the sump is that you dont have to waste so much space in the display tank with all the sand and can get away with an inch or two instead of about 5 or 6 inches....

Niko
 
When I didn't have a sump, I used LR, LS, lots of current and a hang on back refugium with lots of caulerpa. Worked o.k.

Tom
 
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