Disturbed22 Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 My cheato that I bought to put in my modded AC70 was about the size of a softball when I got it and now its down to a half dollar size. I have a reverse lighting schedule for my fuge. It has 6500k lighting. So why is my cheato shrinking rather than growing? Link to comment
altolamprologus Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 Check your phosphates and nitrates. Chaeto dies quickly if it doesn't have a constant source of nutrients. Link to comment
Disturbed22 Posted April 11, 2012 Author Share Posted April 11, 2012 Check your phosphates and nitrates. Chaeto dies quickly if it doesn't have a constant source of nutrients. I don't have a test kit. But what can I do to have more nutrients Link to comment
M&C Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 I don't have a test kit. But what can I do to have more nutrients Feed your fish/corals more. Or add another fish. You have to be careful though--it's all about getting the right balance of nutrient import vs. export. But yes, it does sound like your water is too "clean" for chaeto the way it is now. Link to comment
Disturbed22 Posted April 11, 2012 Author Share Posted April 11, 2012 Feed your fish/corals more. Or add another fish. You have to be careful though--it's all about getting the right balance of nutrient import vs. export. But yes, it does sound like your water is too "clean" for chaeto the way it is now. Ahh makes sense. I filter the #### out of my tank that could be why. I have a modded AC70 with chaeto and a AC50 with mechanical filtration. I just added a scooter blenny today and peppermint shrimp. Also tommorow I'm getting a good amount of coral in the mail Link to comment
altolamprologus Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 This is the one time it's actually a good thing when something is dying I would just run the AC70 without any chaeto for now and put some back in once you start to notice a bit of algae in the display. Then you'll know there's enough nutrients and you won't waste your money on chaeto just to have it die again. Link to comment
nolongerusing Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 my chaeto keeps dying as well. i have cyano bacteria so im assuming i have enough nitrates for maco algae to grow. its kinda demoralizing haha i have a green thumb with potted plants but i cant keep aquatic plants to save my life. Link to comment
do_0b Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 i miss the days when chaeto would die... now i have chaeto growing like crazy... Link to comment
altolamprologus Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 my chaeto keeps dying as well. i have cyano bacteria so im assuming i have enough nitrates for maco algae to grow. its kinda demoralizing haha i have a green thumb with potted plants but i cant keep aquatic plants to save my life. Actually in your case the cyano may be why the chaeto is dying. Cyano competes for nutrients incredibly well so it may be pulling out the nutrients before the chaeto has a chance to get any. Link to comment
SoFit Posted April 19, 2012 Share Posted April 19, 2012 i had chaeto in my AC70.. i have a love hate relationship with it... it grows crazy but sometimes they like to go into my tank.. i decided to give them to a new owner Link to comment
mxpro32 Posted April 19, 2012 Share Posted April 19, 2012 Same here. My chaeto llooks like crap and doesn't grow. Link to comment
Cnebo Posted April 19, 2012 Share Posted April 19, 2012 I think it's pretty simple, chaeto needs light, nitrates, and phosphates to grow (nutrient export = growth of macro algae). If it lacks some of the above, then it will not grow properly. In a case of no growth with lighting, then I would assume that your water is pretty clean. If you have Cyano, which needs the same as chaeto to grow, I would assume the cyano is consuming most of it, which robs from the chaeto. Try to have a decent flow through your chamber if it isn't already receiving it. Link to comment
duoc9119 Posted April 19, 2012 Share Posted April 19, 2012 I haven't had much luck with chaeto in the past. Always ended up in a rotting mush ball in the fuge. Link to comment
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