Hair Algae in sump?

tent boy

New member
If hair algae is so good at absorbing phosphates why dont people put some in a mesh bag in the sump? Seems it might work better than the chaeto?
 
If hair algae is so good at absorbing phosphates why dont people put some in a mesh bag in the sump? Seems it might work better than the chaeto?

i could be wrong but i think its because hair algae will spread throughout everything and chaeto wont. you can contain chaeto into one spot but hair algae will spread like wild fire, it will fill your plumbing and so on.

thats my thoughts, i could be wrong.
 
An algae scrubber is a way to grow hair algae in the sump to help remove phosphates and other nutrients. That’s what you were asking above yes? Do a search on Algae scrubbers there is plenty of info out there.
 
not noisy at all and a hell of lot easier than water changes......you just gots to know how to plumb it!

so if this is added water changes are not needed anymore? i could of sworn you always have to do water changes?? but then again its been awhile since ive been back in the hobby
 
Well, I have hair algae in my sump and hair algae in my DT, doesn't discriminate! My Nitrates and Phosphates 'appear' to be 0, and I do 10 - 20 % water changes weekly, and I still have GHA, not epidemic, but I still have it...
 
The original ATS design came about from Walter Adey.They were noisy and had some mechanical issues ,were expensive,and he held exclusive patent rights.Later, Morgan Lidster (Inland Aquatics) obtained the rights to sell the ATS in the 90's.Still expensive though.I'm pretty sure Jeremy @ abcreefs actually got a hold of an original back in the 90's....if I remember right,thats about the only person Ive ever known to have an original design and the only one Ive actually ever seen.
The current ATS as we know it now ,like the threads around here are nothing like the original design.Folks have basically taken the key features that make them work and simplified it.
The reason Adey left out macro's algaes was that they had "leaky structures".He used HA but only cultured "young turfs",and was aganist letting the algae grow and stated young turffs were much more efficient at nutrient uptake.

So basically folks now a days use a simple mesh screen and clean it every 2 weeks or so insump.Personally, if your interested check out a guy named PaulB <---screenname, got something very unique using a 4"pvc pipe cut in half used as a trough.I thought about doing something simialr to use as a full length overflow box.

Sorry for the ramble,
 
If hair algae is so good at absorbing phosphates why dont people put some in a mesh bag in the sump? Seems it might work better than the chaeto?
You probably can't buy the stuff but hair algae is very good for your water, you just don't want it on your corals. I have the stuff growing in a trough (as is mentioned above) I want it growing and it grows on all reefs in the sea. It is a fantastic water purifier, probably better than cheato as it grows faster and easier. An algae trough or refugium if designed correctly should keep hair algae out of your display.
I only have this small tuft of hair algae in my reef growing on a piece of frayed string. I find it interesting so I leave it alone, the rest of it grows only where I want it, outside of the display.
Hairalgae007.jpg
 
NO, I DIDNT SAY IT WOULD ELIMINATE WATER CHANGES IT WOULD MAKE IT EASIER, THIS TANK RIGHT HAS HAD A WATER CHANGE IN 6 MONTHS..............
DOESNT EVEN HAVE A SCRUBBER ON IT........

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