Who has solved a chaeto no grow problem?

[Icewing726]

What are your nutrient levels (nitrate/phosphate?)
What light are you using?

What is the reason you want to grow chaeto?

Sorry for the delay, forgot to subscribe.

Nitrates are around 50 ppm right now, phosphates test 0 but I don't have a test that shows between 0 and .25 all that well.

Edit: I'm dosing potassium and phosphorous along with Iron directly on the chaeto in the sump.

 

[Icewing726]

It's been working for me almost a year now.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thank you for this, I'll stop with the seachem stuff and make some of my own. Fingers Crossed

 

[Icewing726]

On the money. If you want to grow macro algae you need a different approach.
This might not be beneficial to your reef tank.
Light is the most limiting factor for algal growth, followed by nitrogen and phosphorus limitations. Algal productivity is often correlated to levels of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) (N ratio). Other nutrients are required including carbon, silica, and other micro nutrients. You can dose some nutrients into the water but they must be dissolving forms. There are fertilizers avail for planted tanks. In a high nutrient tank, you dose a nitrogen source such as ammonia for growth. If the result is too much micro algae (hair) you add Co2 to combat that. I dont think this is what we want in our in home coral reefs.
Let me add :
For some reason certain types of algae will not grow in certain tanks. Why? I dont know, but it is prob chemistry related. Since you have a prob with chaeto growing maybe try a red macro.

So if I does CO2, will that help the chaeto out compete the hair algae? I added a strong PAR 38 Flood to this area and the fuge is growing a lot of algae on the sides of the tank.

 

[nereefpat]

Both of these seem to have it (if looking at the ingredients picture), So they will work just fine?

http://a.co/9cOnC7i

http://a.co/9LU2i99

I like door number 2 better, although the peppermint oil is a strange ingredient.

Sorry for the delay, forgot to subscribe.

Nitrates are around 50 ppm right now, phosphates test 0 but I don't have a test that shows between 0 and .25 all that well.

Edit: I'm dosing potassium and phosphorous along with Iron directly on the chaeto in the sump.

50ppm? Whoa. Big water changes with 0 TDS source water are needed. I wouldn't dose phosphorous.

 

[lapin]

So if I does CO2, will that help the chaeto out compete the hair algae? I added a strong PAR 38 Flood to this area and the fuge is growing a lot of algae on the sides of the tank.

It will at the expense of your coral. The lower pH will dissolve your coral and reef rock. Over time the hair will go away this way, but is that really what you want. I would first try water changes for nitrate reduction. I would then try a red or ulva macro algae in place of the chaeto in your sump. If the hair is a problem (like growing on your macro algae) you can try a bunch of dwarf cerith snails after trimming the hair down.
Macro algae are not as quick to grow as micro (hair in your case) That why the first algae you see in new reef tanks is micro strains. They do go away in time if you keep the tank parameters in line.

 

[csb123]

Added iron and iodide worked great for me.

 

[Icewing726]

I'll do my best to remember to update on the long term win/loss here but the I think I see a few new blades of chaeto growing towards the Flood light I added.

 

[mcgyvr]

Your nutrient levels should suppport chaeto just fine..
So IMO light was your problem..

I've run plenty of macro algaes through the years and never needed to add iron to get it to grow..

 

[Icewing726]

So the cheap light is growing my chaeto (though I continue throwing iron on it randomly). Figured I'd follow up in case others are having issues.

For the longest time I thought how could it be light, I bought a special light just for growing. I mean the lights name is ChaetoMax... with a name like that surely I was covered... forget those guys.