Macro Algae Dosing-what additives?

[~LadyBug~]

I'm looking to promote growth in my macro algae tank, and am looking for suggestions on additives. I'm already dosing iodine. From my research, I've heard mention of using treated tap water(it's been so long since I've used anything but RO/DI, how is it treated?) instead of RO/DI for the trace elements, and magnesium; I'd love some input on those two ideas and other suggestions.

 

 

I have:

Dragons Breath-Halymenia

Red Titan-Titanophora sp.

Red Grape-Botryocladia sp.

Green Grape-Caulerpa sp.

Red Feather-Heterosiphonia gibbesii

Green Feather-Caulerpa sp.

Blade Algae-Caulerpa prolifera

[grmoore]

Lugols will help promote growth in the reds. Iron will help the greens. Feeding with Calcium Nitrate for overall growth. Be cautious of promoting GHA growth. Proper lighting, water flow and temperature will have much more of an effect on growth than dosing. Do you have fish in tank?

[hypostatic]

I dose iron + manganese
http://www.kentmarine.com/products/kent-iron-manganese.htm

 

I actually do it for my goniopora, but it's made for plants. I'd imagine magnesium would be helpful to dose, since it's the active part that makes up chlorophyll.

 

But i agree with the above that the most important aspects are flow and lighting.

[metrokat]

I dose iron + manganese

http://www.kentmarine.com/products/kent-iron-manganese.htm'>http://www.kentmarine.com/products/kent-iron-manganese.htm

 

I actually do it for my goniopora, but it's made for plants. I'd imagine magnesium would be helpful to dose, since it's the active part that makes up chlorophyll.

 

But i agree with the above that the most important aspects are flow and lighting.

 

Question. Raising magnesium has been suggested as a cure for bryopsis. If magnesium makes up chlorophyll, how can raising magnesium. Help rid a tank of bryopsis?

[grmoore]

Question. Raising magnesium has been suggested as a cure for bryopsis. If magnesium makes up chlorophyll, how can raising magnesium. Help rid a tank of bryopsis?

In my experience, a magnesium dip to around 1200ppm will cause most macros to begin a die off. Excessive magnesium supposedly will kill off bryopsis, but I've never had any to test that theory on (knock on wood).

[yoshii]

Kat,

I believe why Kent Tech M kills bryopsis is not because of the high Mg levels, (or maybe it helps too) but some impurity in the solution that bryopsis doesn't like. I'm pretty sure that's why the Kent brand is recommended over more expensive, "purer" brands.

[metrokat]

Thanks Yoshii. On a side note, the excess magnesium makes inverts lethargic (according to John Maloney). I haven't seen my mexican turbo snails in a while.

[hypostatic]

Sorry, I should have mentioned also that the magnesium is pure conjecture of mine. But here's the basis:

 

Here's your friendly chlorophyll A:

 

When leaves turn brown in the fall, this is what the chlorophyll molecules end up looking like this:

Notice the absence of Mg.

 

So, my personal idea is that having good magnesium levels facilitates chlorophyll production, and more chlorophyll means more energy, and more energy means better/faster growth. And in theory, this should also apply to most photosynthetic corals.

 

And while I have no real proof to back my idea, it seems to be well studied that magnesium is helpful in building coral skeletons and calcium deposition. Here's an article on the subject:

 

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-07/rhf/

 

Question. Raising magnesium has been suggested as a cure for bryopsis. If magnesium makes up chlorophyll, how can raising magnesium. Help rid a tank of bryopsis?

 

Although the article is a bit old, this AA article on Mg says that there's no real good data on too much/little Mg in the saltwater aquarium

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2003/10/chemistry#section-2

 

But I should also note that it seems most salt mixes have appropriate Mg levels, and unless you're constantly dosing for other depleted elements like Ca, you probably don't need to dose Mg

[~LadyBug~]

Lugols will help promote growth in the reds. Iron will help the greens. Feeding with Calcium Nitrate for overall growth. Be cautious of promoting GHA growth. Proper lighting, water flow and temperature will have much more of an effect on growth than dosing. Do you have fish in tank?

Thanks so much! I do have fish, a clown and a citron goby. There's plenty of light and flow, I started with that, I just thought I'd see what else I could do

 

I dose iron + manganese

http://www.kentmarine.com/products/kent-iron-manganese.htm

 

I actually do it for my goniopora, but it's made for plants. I'd imagine magnesium would be helpful to dose, since it's the active part that makes up chlorophyll.

 

But i agree with the above that the most important aspects are flow and lighting.

That looks really cool!

 

And is there a difference between magnesium and manganese? Would you want to dose both if so?

[hypostatic]

Oh yes, they are very different. They are both different elements on the periodic table

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnesium

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manganese

 

As far as their differences in reefing applications, I can't find much on them

[grmoore]

Thanks so much! I do have fish, a clown and a citron goby. There's plenty of light and flow, I started with that, I just thought I'd see what else I could do

 

Remember, don't dose anything you don't test for. If you are doing regular water changes, you probably don't really need to dose anything. I used to dose my macro tank because I never did water changes.

 

If you feed your fish daily, you are probably generating enough nutrients for the plants that you don't really need to dose nitrates.

[Subsea]

I have been using well water for 40 years. It never made cents to me to remove minerals with RO/DI and then add major and minor minerals later. For the last five years, the water well here in Texas Hill Country is very high is dissolved solids as well as iron and sulphur bacteria. It goes straight into the reef tanks. It is the equivalent of limewater.

 

It would be difficult to dose too much iron. A good bioindicator iron test would be to note the color of your green macros before dosing with iron. If they are iron deprived, they will green up within 48 hours of adding iron.

 

Macros are large consumers of both calcium and magnesium. I would not fertilize with calcium nitrate unless I was monitoring magnesium. You could dose with Epsom salt if your magnesium was getting low.

Enjoy the hobby,

Patrick