Sps are growing but coraline needs improvement.

[mmotown]

Guys just wanted to ask a question about my coraline algae. I have a calc reactor on my tank. I have a 150 with 3 400w 12k Reeflux bulbs. My coaline isn't as purple as other peoples. It's more like a dull gray/purple, My parameters are:

KH/ALK 9/3.2
CA 465
No2 0
Mg 1230
Amonia 0
Ph 8
Nitrate 0
SG 1.025

Could my bulbs just be too bright?

 

[SPStoner]

It's posible your lights are too bright for the darker purple coralline.

I don't know why everyone wants to grow coralline so badly.....If you have thriving coralline in your tank, it is entirely posible that the coralline will cosnume as much calcium and buffer as your corals! I hate the stuff and am constantly scraping it off of the glass , the pumps, etc.


just my .02

 

[Znut Reefer]

Agree with SPStoner. As long as the corals are growing who needs coralline. Also a 400 MH user here.

 

[RokleM]

I would agree. Coraline is cool, but it's not a huge deal.

I do think you have too much light though. A few weeks back I had to scrape the 9-11 month old coraline off of my 58 gallon. It was almost 1/8 thick and a dark purple/pink. That tank however is lit by T5's. My sump as well, which has my macro in it, is also covered heavy. It is also lit but just a few low intensity T5's. My frag tank and 180 lit by high wattage MH grows coraline, but not near as fast, as thick, or as dark.

 

[CeeGee]

my coraline is the same and my tank is lit by HO T5's. In my sump where the light is nowhere near as intense the coraline is very bright purple and pink.

 

[Aqua Keepers]

Someone told me that there were products to help eliminate coralline. Is this true? I'm planning a starboard tank and would like all the help I could get to keep it white.

 

[Serioussnaps]

im same as Ceegee...i had a small softie system a while back lit by pcs that grew coralline like crazy...but on my acro set up under the t5's it just doesnt grow as much...some but not much

the sump grows like crazy...lit by the pcs from the old softie system...so it may have something to do with light intensity


i also think it is easier to keep up with CA/alk reqs without coralline booming....hey it could be a blessing in disguise(it costs me money the more CA/alk i have to replace because right now i do it strictly on kalk)

hey stoner by the way i am gonna shoot you a pm by the way..im looking for a couple of certain frags want to see if you have them available at all

 

[mmotown]

I just thought coraline adds color to the tank. I guess what really matters is the growth of my corals...

 

[xtm]

I have an acrylic tank and scraping coralline is not even an option. My used-to-be black background is now pure purple.
Coralline sucks... it grows where you can't reach them

I dose a combination of B-Ionic and Kalk. At one point, my Ca is at 620 ppm (Salifert Test)

 

[Leonardo_]

I read coralline algae do better if the alk. is high. So maybe set the alk. to 10 might help.

Coralline algae also don't like bright MH, as said before.

Coralline in fact is a concurent of your corals; it uses up strontium, calcium and magnesium. I'm always scraping it for that reason.

-Leonardo

 

[Aqua Keepers]

Maybe one of you DIY guys could design a scrapper for the bottom of BB tanks. I'm gonna go ask in the DIY forum.

 

[Dansin]

XTM Cal 620. Have you ever had any problems at 620? Mine is 500 and im a little fricked.