Mechanical Filtration?

[bigbris1]

I've got a problem; at any given time I can blow the rocks in my tank with a turkey baster & all of this crap lifts off into the water column. I know I need to do it when my Flame Angel or Regal Tang dart thru the rocks & leave behind "dust".

Right now I have a Remora with overflow/prefilter box & 2 powerheads.

The tank can be crystal clear, then BAM! one of the fish darts & dust starts flying. Has anyone had a similar problem? How did you solve it?

Right now I'm running a sumpless (hardly no space under stand) 55 gallon reef. I ran a Fluval on my 29 gallon & didn't have this problem. Should I try to squeeze a sump in there or just get a mechanical filter?

Thanks!

 

[Paul B]

That is not a problem, it is a normal function of a healthy reef. There are and should be tiny rock boring inverts in your reef along with the other fauna and you have found the products of their mining along with their waste products. My reef is very old and I can make a storm when ever I want. If there were no life at all you would not get anything when you blow off the rocks.
I diatom my rocks every few months which removes anything up to about a milimeter. Even bacteria are removed. The stuff is not harmful but as you said, it distracts from the view.
Paul

 

[bigbris1]

Cool, thanks for the reassurance, Paul.

I have a couple of Whisper HOFs that I'll put to use every once in a while.