4 weeks into new set up from freshwater to saltwater

at about the 4 week point of new setup, has cycled etc. have 2 yellowtail damsels , two red legged hermit crabs. seemed to have picked up a mushroom coral and a kenya tree coral also a bristle star from live rock purchased at LFS . have lots of different pods in tank along with tube worms with white fans also some very tiny green worms with light bands on them and I am sure tiny bristles but can never seem to get a good look. all parameters are good, nitrates are at 10 mg and holding after cycling. I would like to get something that will start moving substrate around as the diatoms seem to be multiplying fairly fast.
any suggestions on what I should get next? also still waiting on my new LED light for reef from store as it has been back ordered for a month.

 

Nice tank, I like the background, it gives an almost 3D effect
Hope one of our salty members can help answer your question

 

How about a sump.

 

There are snails that'll sift through the sand, but there are several sand sifting gobies. A diamond watchmen goby goes through a lot of sand.

 

I recently bought a 30 gal tank thinking about a refugium

 

yes I would like a larger snail, there are a bunch of minI turbo snails maybe,my LFS is not very large and sometimes the selection is not great until he goes to the city to pick up things you need .

 

The diatoms should go away soon. It took my setup about a month to get past that and the "spaghettI algae" (at least that's what I call it. It looks like pasta. And grows all over the glass.)

You'd need snails to cover everything, not just the sand. I have three conches, six trochus snails, and a sea hare. Also, you could get an algae blenny, which is an adorable little fish who likes to munch algae off of surfaces. My blenny is the only thing keeping most of my tank clean now, as my snails don't seem to touch the new wave of algae I have.

 

thanks jim

 

A refugium may not even be necessary in a setup that size, but if you really want to set one up, there are HOB refugiums available (and you can also make one yourself using an AquaClear filter.)

 

I would definitely go the route of adding a sump with refugium to that aquarium. Increased water volume and better nutrient export really do make a big difference in the water parameters. Not to mention you also get to hide a lot of the equipment down in the sump, making the display look much nicer.

 

thanks again

 

I appreciate your advice