Need help from the Macro Algae experts

[DK_Reef]

Hey everyone I need some help.

 

in my BC 29 I removed the two false floors in chamber two I would say the space is fairly big, the paint is already removed for a fuge light I was thinking of a JBJ LED one for $60.

 

Now here is the plan, chamber 1 Aquatic life Mini 115, chamber 2 fuge, chamber 3 return pump and a bag of chemi pure elite.

 

Now in chamber 2 there is nothing in there right now, nothing. I was wondering if I can put down some sand in there maybe 1-2 inches or so and have a nice little fuge going on.

 

However here is where the problem lies chaeto is illegal here. Here is the macro algae I can get.

 

Now I was thinking of Halimeda discoidea or Ulva expansa?

 

what is the best macro algae beside chaeto that won't be hard to trim in the back chamber ??

 

thanks

[tako]

First, you don't need sand or rock back there unless you want a type of algae that uses holdfasts, such as halimeda and caulerpa.

 

If the goal of this fuge is nutrient uptake then I'd say caulerpta is the best -- racemosa, taxifolia, and sertularoides to be specific. It has a risk of going sexual and if it spreads to your display then you'll have to struggle to keep it at bay. It would also be a pain to clean out.

 

Ulva is good, but in my tank it just seems to get shredded and ends up everywhere. You'd probably have better luck because the water flow won't be as strong. It's also fairly transparent, so It could grow pretty thick before you'd have to harvest it.

 

You should also look at halymenia. In my tank it's the fastest growing after chaeto and caulerpa. Certain species of it are also very pretty and you could find people to buy your excess.

 

Gracilaria is another option that grows quickly for some people. I haven't tried growing it myself, though.

[NinjaBum]

Ulva will be a good one if it's just going to tumble and float around. As mentioned already, I tried securing mine using rubber bands and the flow dominated it and it wound up sucked up next to a powerhead.

 

It grows decently quick and you just tear it off when you want to trim. Pretty easy.

[DK_Reef]

Ulva will be a good one if it's just going to tumble and float around. As mentioned already, I tried securing mine using rubber bands and the flow dominated it and it wound up sucked up next to a powerhead.

 

It grows decently quick and you just tear it off when you want to trim. Pretty easy.

 

hello thanks, I can't plant it in the sand or attach to LR rubble?

[NinjaBum]

hello thanks, I can't plant it in the sand or attach to LR rubble?

 

You can wedge it between rocks, but it wont develop a holdfast or anything like that if that's what you're asking. You could push it down into the sand, but the portion under the sand would die and the rest would float around. Something that would stay secure would be the caulerpa family since they develop strong holdfasts on whatever they can. They do run the risk of going sexual. Maintaining enough nutrients or keeping them under 24hr light while in a refugium reduces the risk of that happening. You should think about Caulerpa in terms of their life cycle. As a species in the wild, it will start growing somewhere that has abundant resources. If it uses all of those up, it serves no purpose for it to stay there. In order for the species to survive, it sends out its reproductive material out floating in the current to find somewhere else with more resources again and start a new colony up.

 

This in general is how a great majority of the life in the ocean works. Once the food is gone, so goes the vibrant populations of filter feeders and fish in search of new places to colonize.

[keydiver]

I say ulva as well, it's easy, and there's no risk of it going sexual like caulerpa, which in fact just happened to me and it's a pretty nasty thing.