Algae Turf Scrubber

[B]

Is anyone using one of these on thier reef tank?
If so for how long and what sort of results are you
experiencing?

TIA
B

[Simon O'Keeffe]

Yes I've been using an ATS for many years.
Mine is very basic so not as efficient as some of the moving parts style
ATSs but is still the only source of export nutrients in my 1000 litre
system.
I have not had a visable nutrient reading from my test kits (salifert)
since it set up this system many years ago.
The algae growth is pretty much limited to the algae tray by the use of
HID lighting and a large turnover of water through the tray (around
5000l/h). Mine would have cost me about $200 australian ($140US) to
build for myself (this includes a second hand 400w HPS glow light).
If you are thinking of going down the ATS road IMO a must have book is
"Dynamic Aquaria" by Walter Adey and Karen Loveland
I have not run a skimmer for many years and have been happy with the
results from the ATS.
In my system I have one tank that has soft corals and the other is a
dedicated SPS tank that shows great growth (over 25mm per month on some
species).
Oh yeah there is no snails or hermits in the main tanks (the softie tank
has a colector urchin), the ATS is that good that the pods are able to
keep the main tank pretty much algae free.
Give this method a try, I'm so glad I did.

Simon
B wrote:

> Is anyone using one of these on thier reef tank?
>If so for how long and what sort of results are you
>experiencing?
>
>TIA
>B
>
>
>
>

[B]

thanks for the excellent reply. I have ordered that book and
in fact it arrived from amazon.com today.

"Simon O'Keeffe" > wrote in message
...
> Yes I've been using an ATS for many years.
> Mine is very basic so not as efficient as some of the moving parts style
> ATSs but is still the only source of export nutrients in my 1000 litre
> system.
> I have not had a visable nutrient reading from my test kits (salifert)
> since it set up this system many years ago.
> The algae growth is pretty much limited to the algae tray by the use of
> HID lighting and a large turnover of water through the tray (around
> 5000l/h). Mine would have cost me about $200 australian ($140US) to
> build for myself (this includes a second hand 400w HPS glow light).
> If you are thinking of going down the ATS road IMO a must have book is
> "Dynamic Aquaria" by Walter Adey and Karen Loveland
> I have not run a skimmer for many years and have been happy with the
> results from the ATS.
> In my system I have one tank that has soft corals and the other is a
> dedicated SPS tank that shows great growth (over 25mm per month on some
> species).
> Oh yeah there is no snails or hermits in the main tanks (the softie tank
> has a colector urchin), the ATS is that good that the pods are able to
> keep the main tank pretty much algae free.
> Give this method a try, I'm so glad I did.
>
> Simon
> B wrote:
>
> > Is anyone using one of these on thier reef tank?
> >If so for how long and what sort of results are you
> >experiencing?
> >
> >TIA
> >B
> >
> >
> >
> >
>

[Tidepool Geek]

"Simon O'Keeffe" > wrote in message
...
> Yes I've been using an ATS for many years.
[snip]
> Oh yeah there is no snails or hermits in the main tanks (the softie tank
> has a colector urchin), the ATS is that good that the pods are able to
> keep the main tank pretty much algae free.
[snip]

Hi Simon,

I've always liked the idea of the ATS method but that last paragraph raises
some concerns. The aquarium that I'm planning will include a variety of
macro algae species for aesthetics, cover, and food. According to Adey the
turf algae species are far more efficient than the macro species when it
comes to nutrient uptake. That seems to be your experience as well.

So, the question is this: How does one size an ATS to allow for other
plants? OR How does one 'adjust' an installed ATS for the same purpose. For
example; If I've got a system that's running well with X amount of macro how
would I approximate and then fine tune the ATS for 2X macro?

I've read Adey & Loveland (a couple of times) and don't recall seeing this
addressed. Either that or the relevant discussion just went over my poor old
head.

Algally yours,

TG

[B]

http://www.reefs.org/library/talklog/m_lidster_100498.html

link to a very good talk that Morgan Lidster of Inland
Aquatics gave on Algae turf scrubbers.


"B" > wrote in message
.. .
> Is anyone using one of these on thier reef tank?
> If so for how long and what sort of results are you
> experiencing?
>
> TIA
> B
>
>
>