Live sand and rock filtration

[Gills]

Ok, I am tinkering with the idea of setting up a tank using live rock and sand filtration but I really don't know too much about it. My questions are- do I need to run any type of canister or is the sand and rock enough? What about a skimmer, are they recomended? I have been told that a skimmer and a filter are not needed with this kind of filtration. That seems odd to me, I have always used a skimmer and I always put more filter that needed on my tanks. What is your opinion and is any one out there doing it and how is your tank doing? Is there any web sites or links on this subject?
Thanks.

 

[wayne at home]

Wetwebmedia.com is good. I am moving house and when I've done that I'll set up a new tank based on live rock and a skimmer. This is called 'Berlin method'. I will also have a deep sand bed so it will be 'modified berlin'. Most peopke still run skimmers though it is possible to do without, esp in small tanks (< 20 gals) where you can do more frequent water changes. But for your 55 (right?) I'd skim, + live rock. Amount of live rock is hard to calculate, as it depends on quality, rockscape, water flow and sand bed - all of the above reduce the amount needed - the rule used to be 2lbs per gallon, now it's halved if you can do it right.
Use an external for water flow + carbon.
Compared to UG or other setups live rock tanks are easy. Really. Try Palettas New Mrine Aquarium and Fenner and Calfos new book ('Reef Invertebrates?)

 

[sinasster]

The best way to do the rock filtration (in my opinion) is to use a wet/dry filter and use rock instead of the bio-balls, also you can use some in the overflow of your tank to help silence the water as it spills over.

Personally i like using a protein skimmer, i enjoy seeing all the crud it removes. So i agree with wayne on this one, keep using one!

 

[Gills]

Thanks for the info, I will go with the skimmer like I wanted to. Wayne you said you were going to have a deep sand bed- how deep are you going? I was going to set up my 55 gal like this but I have been thinking of setting it up as a small community fish tank and going with a 75 gal for the like rock filtration. I had been thinking of 2lbs. per gal and I think that is a good #. But it will be added in about 10 to 15 lbs. at a time because of cost, then I plan adding corrals. But I think I am going to go get a few books you recomended and read up on the net. After I get my 55 the way I want it I will start on the 75.

 

[wayne at home]

Sounds like you're off to a good start. Sinasster - why are you dumping the rock in effectively a sump? Are you going to bother lighting it? I'll have a nice open rockscape in my main tank with as much live rock surface area as possible as I want to keep an angel and a butterfly , and need natural 'grazing' for them, plus I like the look of the stuff.
Sand bed - I'll try 4 inches - deep enough for anoxic nitrate reduction to nitrogen gas to occur