Poll: Chaetomorpha Techniques for AWESOME growth [How did you do it?]

[fantastic4]

Have spend the last few hours going over all the Chaetomorpha posts since the begining of this "Marine Plants & Macroagae" forumn.

It seems people have success and failure across the board. NO lights, PC lights, Metal Halide Lights, Mud Refugiums, 24 hour lighting, 12/12 lighting, 51k spectrum, 10k spectrum, calcium, c02 additives, 13 watt, 80 watt, 110 watt... I have read success and failure stories and still have not come up with formula for a winning strategy.

For those of us that are struggling to get Chaetomorpha to grow. It would be ideal if everyone that has AWESOME success growing Chaetomorpha, please posts how you did it?

Light Specs?
Photo Period?
Characteristics of good growth?
Water movement?
What worked for you?
What did not work for you?
Spaghitti Vs. Vermiili Chaetomorpha?
Tips for success?
Bio Load?
Refugium Setup?

Thank you

 

[Samala]

I dont know if any of my approach will work for anyone else because I cheat a bit by adding nutrients but, here's what the Chaeto tank runs on:

Light: 20watt screw in CF
Photoperiod: 16/8 light:dark

Characteristics: Doubles in size every four days, needs 'fluffing' every few days to expand the size of the mass so that light can reach most of the strands. Bright green in color. Does not break up into teeny segments when you touch it.

Water movement: In a 5gallon tank a powerhead turning over the water around 20x an hour.

What worked for me: Add water, add light, add shrimp, pods, dose nutrients of nitrate and iron accordingly. Presto, Chaeto!

Not work: Not dosing nitrates or iron. If I had more of a bioload I bet I wouldnt need to add nitrates.

Tips: Iron dosing seems to help. As does good lighting, and enough water movement to keep detritus and cyano from forming on the Chaeto mass.

Not a refugium setup and bioload already noted.

HTH
>Sarah

 

[fantastic4]

Thank you Sarah,

Can you also note which iron supplements and other additives you use? Make/brand dosage amount?

Thank you so much

 

[reefnewbie54321]

Heres some tips I picked up from Anthony Calfo

-create a tumbling flow for the chaeto so it rolls in a ball utilizing the most possible light

-light in the 4800-5100k is best for algae growth

-a dark cycle, during the dark cycle is when respiration occurs so a dark cycle is defiantly needed. He suggests a 12/12 cycle others suggest a smaller dark cycle.

-20x turnover is a good amount of flow (20x volume of refugium not display) ... I like to use slow flow through refugium and provide chaeto with high flow via PH's and Surges.

-Anthony suggests lights as strong as MH ... there are a lot of threads about melting chaeto and Randy is advocating the use of incandescent lights and a lot of people have seen successes from these.

-Bigger bioload the more will grow ... fish poo is fertilizer for it but I'm not sure any tank wants a high bioload so I don't suggest creating a large bola just for chaeto growth

 

[fantastic4]

Thank you reefnewbie54321,

do you also dose iron?

 

[fantastic4]

Results so far...

Started with outstanding Chaeto from a RC seller. Very thick spaghetti like stuff. Added to nano tank with cured live rock and 80 watt power compact 10k and actinic. The chaeto started to break apart and turn white.

After your help...

I dosed with everything I have... strotium, iodine, calcium (just ordered iron and waiting for delivery) and water from my main tank for nitrates, nitrites and other nutitrients daily. Removed half the chaeto to my main tank refugium with Melvs Home Depot light (just purchased).

results so far... nano tank chaeto is holding steady, ball has stopped shrinking and for the most part stopped falling apart. Growth is hard to tell at only a few days in to this new routine. As for the 65 gallon with melv's bulb, it's holding tight, but looks like it is breaking apart more or less, however, much slower in disentegration.

Hoping my iron gets here soon... will post pictures if I can get this to work.

Thanks reefnewbie54321 and Samala for your posts and help.

 

[reefnewbie54321]

Iron helps out alot ... waiting for some update pictures

 

[fantastic4]

Thank you everyone, it looks like my chaeto is doing fine.

Here are a few before and after photos.


In this picture I placed two chaeto balls in my new nano. The ball on the left was taken out a few days later. The ball on the right was left in. Note: The ball on the right is half a gallon size bag (the other half being in my 65 gallon). A few days after this picture was taken, my chaeto was falling part into small pieces and disentegrating. Photo taken 05-19

This next image shows the chaeto previously on the right side after dosing idoine, strotium and molybendum? for a few days and finaly my iron arrived today (05-27-2006 and dosed for 10 hours). The ball has lifted toward the surface and stopped breaking apart. The small pieces of break-up that were on the sand have started to grow as well. The ball is not tight and seems to be a lose mass. The chaeto reacted almost immediately to my dosings of chemicals I had at hand after reading your posts to this thread. I am assuming the chemicals -- although not iron on the label -- must of had some traces of iron, as the chaeto seems to be thriving now. (Note the chaeto on the left side within the picture above was removed, so you are seeing the aftermath of the chaeto on the right). Photo taken 05-27

The lights are on 12 hours a day. A brown algae has formed on the live rock. 10 hermits have been added to help control the outbreak.


thank you, thank you, thank you for your help!

Will posts more update pictures as this ball grows.

 

[reefnewbie54321]

what are ou using for flow? This is one of the most important things to get healthy chaeto

 

[fantastic4]

In the nano, I have a mini rio (seen on the left side) blowing directly at the chaeto. The chaeto seems to be clear of dirt. I'm very curious as to how the chaeto will respond to the iron dose. Will post in five days.

The chaeto in my 65 gallon refugium has a ultra slow flow, however, I shake up the chaeto daily to rid the dirt.

 

[fantastic4]

Some update pictures for those of you curious to see the results after adding Iron.

05-29-2006 Two Days of Iron dosing

06-01-2006 Five Days of Iron dosing. The chaeto has grown to twich the size. Hard to see, but the chaeto is spreading toward the back as well. Characteristic: Light in color. Does not break apart into pieces by itself. Has tiny air bubles all along the vines. Tiny clear pigments all over the vines (cell growth?). Seems to like the light a lot, as it reaches toward the surface. Note: This is the original smaller ball -- on the right corner -- from the first image last week.