too little light and about a refugium

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Sep 16, 2004
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I have a 46 gal. that I bought used, it came with only a basic strip light with one 36" bulb. I have been researching and plan to get nice lighting for a semi reef setup when I get the money. But for now I just have some fish and live rock. Tank's been up for almost 4 months, but not much coraline algea, just diatom. Is the one bulb I have too little light for anything.

Also.
When I bought the setup it came with a AquaClear 500 supposedly set up for a refugium with some rock and sand in it. I switched it back to a filter with sponge and carbon. I'm having problems getting Nitates below 30 - 40 range with water changes. Should I try to convert it back to a refugium and how.

Thanks
 
The single striplight won't provide enough light for photosynthetic plants and animals. You should be getting some coralline, though, if your calcium and alkalinity are at decent levels.

I like refugia, so I'd vote for converting it back. A little playsand, some live sand from the main tank, and some rock rubble would be a good start. Getting a little PC light (or incandescent, see ChicoRaton's thread), and adding macroalgae would be good too. It may not reduce your nitrate that much if you have a substantial fish load.
 
What kind of corals are you going to keep? superfishstore.com has some lights for cheap. I'm ordering a JEBO 110watt pc lights for only $75 (including shipping) for my 20L. Thats pretty cheap. LFS $110.
 
I just have the one bulb that came with it now, don't know what it is. I plan to upgrade when I have the money, I figure about $200.
Fish are a marron clown, firefish, six line, plus a common urchin, couple hermits and snails.

Could simply having the AquaClear 500 be adding to my nitrates because of the sponge. Is it doing more harm than good?
 
I doubt if the sponge is causing the problem. It is important to clean it regularly, so that it doesn't collect detritus and become a source of nitrate and phosphate.

The biggest source of nitrate is food. How much do you feed the tank?

How much live rock have you got? It may not be enough to handle the fish load.
 
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