Let's share experiences

This is my installation's layout. It's a 265 G (1000 lt) system.
Answers:
1.
The skimmer production is closely related to the feeding frequency and the type of food used. It would be interesting to know your feeding frequency and the food's composition. In my system there's only one skimmer, a Bubble King 250 and it works very well. I've had to adjust the feeding interval in to get an efficient skimming.
2.
I totally agree with you. At this time we only can remove sediments manually by siphoning rocks and bottom periodically.
Right now I'm considering to install a deep sand bed in the main tank to host detrivores (without sand it's not possible in a short time).
3.
It's essential to install fuges with lighting in the range of 6500 ºK. Having this fuges working with that settings the presence of nuisance algae in the main tank just disappear. I'm using in the main tank 2 x 250W - HQI 14000ºK, and 9 x T5 6500 ºK (965 CRI) x 24W in the fuges.
I have now 2 fuges with macro algae using interlaced photoperiods with the main tank.
The settings are as follow:
main tank 2 x 250 w HQI... 10 AM to 8 PM
1º fuge 3 x 24 T5 ... 24/7 (always on) and 5 x 24 T5 12 AM to 12 PM
2º fuge 4 x 24 T5... 12 PM to 12 AM
4.
Try to use cyanoacrylate gel with sodium bicarbonate to affix gorgonians.
5.
With a fuge system, you'll only needing a clean-up crew to work on the bottom sediments.
If your system doesn't have sand, siphoning becomes essential. If the system has sand, a bunch of ophiurids and snails and they will maintain it pretty well.
6.
Aipex from Grotech works very well to get rid of aiptasia and majano anemones. Majano can be treated just using the product in the tentacles. Aiptasia needs direct feeding and the product must get into their bodies or they will only look like dead and given some time, they will be back.
7.
This is far more complex and there's not quick answer. A DSB should be conceived as a whole system. In my opinion it has not good use for a non-photo system.
8.
My system has been suffering bryopsis outbreaks for the last 2 years. Right now they are gone. I link this issue with a big bloom of caulerpa racemosa in my fuges and a reduction in chaeto's growth.
9.
Can you elaborate, please?
10.
I don't think there's a way to avoid accummulation of uneaten food. I think it's only possible to try with a system of in-tank recirculation and externally powerful enough to export the excess out of the system to be treated.
11.
Totally agree, feeding sun corals with mysis, artemia, etc will harm gorgonians.
It has been a year since I feed my sun corals with Reef Roids with good results. The size of Reef Roids makes it suitable also for gorgonians. I feed Reef Roids 5 days a week and artemia etc every other day alternatively.
12.
OK
13.
Keeping water clean it's a problem for all non-photo keepers and it remains unsolved.
I don't think it's possible in systems which doesn't have at least a ratio 1/4 : main tank/biological systems for filtration.
14.
I keep my pieces in only one system. It's complex but not impossible, the location of pumps, aquascaping and the location of the corals needs to be planned carefully.
I think we are in a stage where our challenge is achieve a system free of undesirable nutrients. The systems strictly based on biological filtration are almost impossible to maintain because of the volume needed to set them.
At present, I'm experimenting with:
Automatic feeding with slow dosage at frequent intervals. This is only valid for gorgonians and filter feeders as the tubastrea and dendros need direct feeding.
Recirculation main system/sediment's fuges should be as higher as possible to allow the removal of detritus before they pollute the water column. Probably a water vacuum system should be created, which takes water from the bottom and works parallel and independently with the overflow.
Physical/chemical treatment of water The physical treatment is related to external recirculation. All things we be able to export before get into trouble, won't cause a trouble.



.
As per chemical, we started working on a test using lanthanum chloride (LaCl3) to eliminate accumulated phosphate.
I'm also looking for an effective method to denitifying using a carbon source.
I've tried ethanol without good results and I want to try other sources like Calcium gluconate, fructose or acetic acid.