I tested the water again today and everything is at zero..... But for some reason i am still getting major algae blooms. I understand the grow bulb being a factor but the algae blooms are just in the main tank not the refugium. I am using two 24 inch T12 20watt 2700 Kelvin Bulbs from panasonic. I might switch to 5700's they are a little less red. The mangrove im using was in full sun on the beach....so i want to replicate it as much as possible. I know they can live 6 months without any light at all but I like it well lit. :) My mangrove hasnt been pruned at all.....it has a few branches and quite a few leaves....I agree with snowboss about the beach...but when i got to thinking about it, if you look at the galapagos islands all the crap that comes up on the beach, gets washed right back down or gets sucked up by mangroves with the tides. Thats where the idea came from, a discovery channel special on the galapogos islands. The reef in the galapagos is supposed to be one of the most prestine in the planet as well. I turned my skimmer on today for about 2 hours.........runs exactly as it did when i had it going 24/7, except no skimmate.........the water coming to the top of the tube is clear....its still running now, just to see if the mangrove is really working. If the mangrove is working, i shouldnt get any skimmate at all.....or very little. Only time will tell. My gas exchange is happening with the overflow and the water falling into my refugium, it doesnt exactly infuse the water with air, but it helps. so far my corals are still in full bloom and show no harm at all. My ricordia is about to split and my zoos are growing like weeds. My paly has sprouted 5 new heads in the last week and my zenia is getting a deep pink instead of the off white it used to be. Like I said all my parameters were tested twice today......both times they were 0 nitrates and 0 phosphates. I will be running my skimmer for the next 24 hours to see if i can get some skimmate.....surely 3 days without the skimmer at all will show if it is really pulling out more than the tree.

This is the actual refugium picture

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h247/ ... D_0101.jpg

This is a close up of inside. Notice the growth coming up on the mangrove in about 6 places besides the main stock, Im surprised I could get it in my refugium.

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h247/ ... D_0100.jpg

This is where I got my mangrove, I am a photographer part time....I do weddings but more than anything I enjoy wild life. This picture is at Big Talbot Island in Jacksonville when you see drift wood on the shore..........this is one of the places it comes from. Absolutly gorgeous. about a 30 minute drive from my house.

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h247/ ... bot129.jpg

Hey boss, as the skimmer runs right now, it hasnt really pulled any more skimmate than what was in that picture. That picture was taken when I posted it and its still pulling a little gunk but not much. Maybe with more mangroves or a larger sump the protein skimmer could be completley obsolete. The protein skimmer is trying its hardest to pull some stuff out........but it hasnt been succesful but for what was in the picture. If you guys have any suggestions on another way I could test this shoot them at me. Im going to keep a journal of what happens to test this. Maybe I can write a book on the Berlin Sump method modified to the extreme. I could call it (Nature takes its course) :) haha I dont know. I will update some time soon or ill bring the forum back up if anything fun happens.

I have looked into the UV filter, but no matter where I put it, I run the risk of frying copepods. I dont think my scooter would be too happy with me. I have thought about one though. Does it kill copepods? I just ordered 50 dollars of copepods to feed my scooter. Damn picky fish, but hes fun to watch.

UV sterilization won't kill or harm any of your livestock, including copepods.