new to refugium

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Prdedas

Ok I have set up my refugium .. got plenty of cheato in it and live rock. Now two questions. What kind of critters should be in the refugium and where can I get them. I am new at this part really not very a lot of expereince on salt water at all. Have had my tank a few years but made more mistakes than anything. Trying to get things set up correctly for the first time.

Thanks
 
Depends on what function you want the refugium to serve.

Is it just a place to grow 'pods? Then you don't want to add any carnivores or omnivores. Is it a place to grow algae for nitrate export? Then you don't want any herbivores- at least not ones that would eat the algae you intend to harvest. If the refugium is a place for detritus to settle in your tank, you might want to consider a detrivore like a tiger tail cucumber. You'll likely have other detrivores / filter feeders naturally, in time (feather dusters, spaghetti worms, etc.)

You can always boost the diversity of the micro- and meiofauna in your fuge by getting a cup of sand and a bit of chaeto from someone else's established fuge.
 
THe main thing I want is for it to get rid of nitrates. I didnt knwo if having some critters in there woudl help it or not as I said I never had one before I am learning as I go. I have a lot of cheato in there now .. which is for getting rid of the nitrates or so I understand
 
Well, if you're growing chaeto to remove nitrates, then you want to give the chaeto room to grow- the goal is to remove a portion of the chaeto on a regular basis as it grows and sucks up nitrates.

There's really no critter that you can intentionally add to help speed up that process. A good light over the fuge, enough flow to keep the detritus from settling in the chaeto (optimally you'd want it to tumble, but an occasional shake is fine), and you should be set.
 
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