yellowwatchmen
In Memoriam
Thats a crap lload of chaeto.
chaeto vs caulerpa
- Thread starter ganjero
- Start date
sirjohn
Feeding Frenzied
After many years of using Caleurpa in my fuge (not grape), I'm beginning to think the possibility of Caleurpa going asexual and wiping out an entire tank is overblown. I'm sure it does happen, but I think if you prune it regularly and keep an eye on it, the possibilities are remote. IME, it certainly grows much faster than chaeto.
Hey Carlso63,
If I send enough money for shipping can I get a hand full of that super cheato??
Rick, Upstate NY
If I send enough money for shipping can I get a hand full of that super cheato??
Rick, Upstate NY
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10851705#post10851705 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by carlso63
I had cheato, caulerpa, and (red) grancilaria in my fuge...
6 months later the cheato "outcompeted" everything else and flat out 'killed' the red off...
There are different "strains" (species?) of cheato... this one I have now is the fastest growing cheato I have ever had and absorbs nO3 / pO4 like a sponge!
goldmaniac
New member
I've always been curious about cheato, never used it
I use Caulerpa prolifera in my refugium, works great. I have no skimmer and no carbon, nitrates are currently around 1-4 and have been for a while, ever since my tangs jumped out and I stopped overfeeding.
I've never had the Caulerpa go sexual, and 24/7 lighting isn't necessary, in my opinion. What I do is set my timer to turn on the lights for about an hour during 'off' time, while the refugium is on the 'night' period. That cures anything from going sexual.
Basically, there's a point where a certain length of constant darkness triggers a sexual period. If you interrupt the darkness with at least 20- 30 minutes of light, it keeps the algae cells from being told to go sexual.
At least, this is how it works for plants, keeping them on a vegetative, growing stage (asexual) vs a flowering stage (sexual), and I applied it to Caulerpa prolifera, and it's worked for about 4 years.
I do, however, have that slight yellowing of the water due to caulerpa. But I run 20k halides, and the blueish light seems to counteract the coloring for the most part. If we're having company or a party or something, a bag of carbon usually clears it up.
From what I've read hear, it sounds like Caulerpa grows faster than the chaeto, with the only caveat people have is the fear of going sexual and blooming. I can state that Caulerpa Prolifera has never done this for me, and I credit my 30-60 minutes of light in the middle of the night period on my macroalgae.
no skimmer, no carbon, no UV, no nothin'. Just a refugium and 100 micron socks before the 'fuge in my sump. Works great. truly low-maintenance. and I can poke the sand in my refugium and I get lots of nitrate bubbles, too. added bonus.
G.
I use Caulerpa prolifera in my refugium, works great. I have no skimmer and no carbon, nitrates are currently around 1-4 and have been for a while, ever since my tangs jumped out and I stopped overfeeding.
I've never had the Caulerpa go sexual, and 24/7 lighting isn't necessary, in my opinion. What I do is set my timer to turn on the lights for about an hour during 'off' time, while the refugium is on the 'night' period. That cures anything from going sexual.
Basically, there's a point where a certain length of constant darkness triggers a sexual period. If you interrupt the darkness with at least 20- 30 minutes of light, it keeps the algae cells from being told to go sexual.
At least, this is how it works for plants, keeping them on a vegetative, growing stage (asexual) vs a flowering stage (sexual), and I applied it to Caulerpa prolifera, and it's worked for about 4 years.
I do, however, have that slight yellowing of the water due to caulerpa. But I run 20k halides, and the blueish light seems to counteract the coloring for the most part. If we're having company or a party or something, a bag of carbon usually clears it up.
From what I've read hear, it sounds like Caulerpa grows faster than the chaeto, with the only caveat people have is the fear of going sexual and blooming. I can state that Caulerpa Prolifera has never done this for me, and I credit my 30-60 minutes of light in the middle of the night period on my macroalgae.
no skimmer, no carbon, no UV, no nothin'. Just a refugium and 100 micron socks before the 'fuge in my sump. Works great. truly low-maintenance. and I can poke the sand in my refugium and I get lots of nitrate bubbles, too. added bonus.
G.
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