Success stories w/ Udotea, Penicilus, Rhipocephalus, Cymopolia?
- Thread starter kmk2307
- Start date
jer77
Phish Lover
5 Penicilus plants
Planted 3 inches into deep sand bed in year old tank
Powerhead blows at 200gph above the hairs on 15 minute intervals.
Total flow rate is app. 750 gph in a 55 gal tank
Top of plants are 15 inches from the water surface
4x65W PC's, 2 actinic, 2 10000K; 1 of each are over the plants
Ammonia=0
NO2=0
NO3<2.5ppm
PO4<0.1ppm, usually 0
Temp=81F evening, 79F morning
pH=8.4 evening, 8.1 morning
Ca=420mg/l
Alk=8dKH
Salinity=1.024@80F=app. 37ppt
3 of the 5 Penicilus plants began to grow new algae in about a week. There are about 5 new spouts from each one that grew up from under the sand encircling the parent. They grow about an inch a day, while new ones sprout up everyday. The parent Penicilus algae sheads many hairs, and dies in about 2-3 weeks, so it makes a mess of the tank. They are cool if they are planted in a deep sand bed with lots of light in a shallow lagoon or refugium type tank where some nutrients are ok.
Planted 3 inches into deep sand bed in year old tank
Powerhead blows at 200gph above the hairs on 15 minute intervals.
Total flow rate is app. 750 gph in a 55 gal tank
Top of plants are 15 inches from the water surface
4x65W PC's, 2 actinic, 2 10000K; 1 of each are over the plants
Ammonia=0
NO2=0
NO3<2.5ppm
PO4<0.1ppm, usually 0
Temp=81F evening, 79F morning
pH=8.4 evening, 8.1 morning
Ca=420mg/l
Alk=8dKH
Salinity=1.024@80F=app. 37ppt
3 of the 5 Penicilus plants began to grow new algae in about a week. There are about 5 new spouts from each one that grew up from under the sand encircling the parent. They grow about an inch a day, while new ones sprout up everyday. The parent Penicilus algae sheads many hairs, and dies in about 2-3 weeks, so it makes a mess of the tank. They are cool if they are planted in a deep sand bed with lots of light in a shallow lagoon or refugium type tank where some nutrients are ok.
piercho
New member
Kevin I've been keeping Penicilus and Udotea for about 9 months. The shaving brush just holds its own, producing 1 or 2 new shoots for each head that dies. The fan algae does better, and has survived despite being shaved down to nubbins by urchins when it was first introduced.
I have 5 inches of silica sand in a AGA 65G (36X18X25). The brace is removed and it is lit by a single 250W EYE daylight and a single 96W blue PC. The tank is about 3.5 years old. I have flow from an Iwaki 40RLT returned from a vegetative sump, and from a 20GPM external air lift that also has a 6.5G reverse carlson surge. I supplement chelated iron nearly daily. I use limewater for makeup. I use a 6' X 4" CC air skimmer with the output forced through a GAC filter with 3/4 cup of GAC changed weekly.
Both the brush and the fan algae migrated forward to the front glass where the sand is thinner and the current is stronger. As a comparason, the seagrass in the tank grows towards deeper sand at the back.
I recently switched to a turf scrubber in the sump for primary filtering. This seems to have but the brakes on most of the algae growth in the tank, including the sand alga. The seagrass, on the other hand, has been growing faster.
I have 5 inches of silica sand in a AGA 65G (36X18X25). The brace is removed and it is lit by a single 250W EYE daylight and a single 96W blue PC. The tank is about 3.5 years old. I have flow from an Iwaki 40RLT returned from a vegetative sump, and from a 20GPM external air lift that also has a 6.5G reverse carlson surge. I supplement chelated iron nearly daily. I use limewater for makeup. I use a 6' X 4" CC air skimmer with the output forced through a GAC filter with 3/4 cup of GAC changed weekly.
Both the brush and the fan algae migrated forward to the front glass where the sand is thinner and the current is stronger. As a comparason, the seagrass in the tank grows towards deeper sand at the back.
I recently switched to a turf scrubber in the sump for primary filtering. This seems to have but the brakes on most of the algae growth in the tank, including the sand alga. The seagrass, on the other hand, has been growing faster.
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