Macro lagoon

[Subsea]

120G new build at one month old in 2 days.  Lights on 60 seconds.

[jbb]

Looks awesome. 

 

 Ive been wanting to add macros, but haven't had success in the past . I think my water my be too nutrient deficient.  

[tarunteam]

How fast do they end up growing? Do you have issues with them spreading all over your tank?

[Subsea]

I do operate with elevated nutrients.  Both coral and algae require the same thing, nutrients & sunlight.  Without herbivores, the reefs of the world would be algae dominated.   When people say that the reefs are nutrient deserts, it means that the inhabitants of the reef, the biofilter if you will, are that efficient at capturing and recycling nutrients.

 

Ken Felderman has conducted exhaustive analysis on carbon dosed reef tanks which are peer reviewed.  Many articles listed at Advanced Aquaria.    He describes the efficiency of DOC removal in a modern reef.

Protein skimming removes 35%, at best, of DOC.

GAC removes 65% of DOC

Biological filter removes 75% of DOC.

 

Note:  Truely, the nutrients are not removed until you frag and sell coral.  The nutrients are sequested  into, hopefully, desirable biomass, which is your biofilter.

 

 

[Subsea]

Fast growing macros should be confined to substrate and pruned for nutrient export or feed to fish for nutrient recycling.  This feather caulerpa is an exception to being invasive on rock.  Unless it has been attached for years, the holdfast of Caulerpa Paspoidies are easily separated from rock.  Not so with Caulerpa Prolifera.  Keep Prolifera in the substrate. I like Prolifera because it looks like Oar Grass which is a true marine plant.

 

If you want to get the facts on macro, I suggest you go to professionals, not bloggers.  Check this link out.

 

https://www.marineplantbook.com/

 

 

 

[Subsea]

Thank you for the compliments.  

 

For water that is “too clean” for fast growing macro that will go sexual, if deprived of nutrients,  I suggest “pulse growing” macro which grow very slowly when nutrients are available and exist in good health when nutrients are not available.  This is described at reef cleaners.  While I am not familiar with most of Mahoney’s pulse macros, I disagree with how he categorized Bortacladia.  I consider it a pulse grower.

 

https://www.reefcleaners.org/stocking-the-sump-refugium

 

1 hour ago, jbb_00 said:

Looks awesome. 

 

 Ive been wanting to add macros, but haven't had success in the past . I think my water my be too nutrient deficient.  

 

[tarunteam]

I'll definitely be looking into that book. I wa thinking of keeping a small 5 gallon pest tank for work. A macro + pest tank would be pretty cool. What does your weekly/daily maintenance routine look like? Do you end up chasing params or is it pretty much when the water looks dirty it gets replaced. 

[Subsea]

Interesting/coincidental.  

 

I have a 10G tank with HOB and heater.  Biological filter consist of 1” aroggonite substrate and sponge filter on suction of HOB.  

If water is dirty, I replace GAC in HOB.  In this tank, the top of the food chain is pods and snails.  Because some Aptasia got in with Chaetomorphy, I added three Peppermint Shrimp.  Two out of three are eating Aptasia with a weird looking pumpkin color that has darkened more than gut cavity.  The tank is at 5’ level.  My first cup of coffee in the morning is in front of this tank, about 6” from the glass, like a “Peeping Tom”.  When I add the food, tank world comes alive.  Carnivorous snails pop up out the gravel as well as an army of bristle worms.  From the matrix of the ball of chaeto, amphipods bigger than mollie hatchlings emerged for the food fest.

 

yes, I am an addicted reefer of 45 years.

 

I have not regularly tested water parameters in 30 years.

[Subsea]

6 hours ago, tarunteam said:

I'll definitely be looking into that book. I wa thinking of keeping a small 5 gallon pest tank for work. A macro + pest tank would be pretty cool. What does your weekly/daily maintenance routine look like? Do you end up chasing params or is it pretty much when the water looks dirty it gets replaced. 

It is a free on line link at Gulf Coast EcoSystems or live-plants.com.  Russ Kronwetter has provided the most comprehensive and pragmatic article on the care of macro algae in reef tanks, with a comprehensive list of macros in GOM & Caribbean.

[tarunteam]

Nice. I'll go grab it. Looking forward to how your tank progresses. 

[Subsea]

21 hours ago, jbb_00 said:

Looks awesome. 

 

 Ive been wanting to add macros, but haven't had success in the past . I think my water my be too nutrient deficient.  

https://www.marineplantbook.com/marinebookbotryo.htm

 

This is a good choice if you don’t have Tangs and rabbits.  It is collected from 30’ - 130’.  When I get it from the divers it is a dark burgundy.  Under reef tank lighting, it will photo shock turning orange and losing flotation balls.  In one of my growout tanks, two years ago, the Bortacladia that went sexual has sprigs growing everywhere.  Some growing in darkened HOB filter box and some in bright light.  When receiving this macro, you will be well served to adjust light intensity gradually.  

 

 

[vlangel]

Your lagoon is a beauty!  That dominant rock on the left looks like a gnarled, stately old oak tree and is just so attractive.  Its hard to believe your tank is only 2 months old, because it looks so mature already.  

[jbb]

1 hour ago, Subsea said:

https://www.marineplantbook.com/marinebookbotryo.htm

 

This is a good choice if you don’t have Tangs and rabbits.  It is collected from 30’ - 130’.  When I get it from the divers it is a dark burgundy.  Under reef tank lighting, it will photo shock turning orange and losing flotation balls.  In one of my growout tanks, two years ago, the Bortacladia that went sexual has sprigs growing everywhere.  Some growing in darkened HOB filter box and some in bright light.  When receiving this macro, you will be well served to adjust light intensity gradually.  

 

 

I do have a yellow tang, but no plans to add others

[Subsea]

Tank is one month old, shy one day.  When you have a  30 yr mature 75G tank and four 55G  eight year old growout tanks and three 150G Rubbermade tanks for a resource, seeding a tank to look good in a month is not a big problem.  Controlling the new tank algae growth is the real issue.  Twenty days ago, I added 1000 copepods of three differrent species.  Ten days ago, I added 300 Golden Astrae Snails, 100 CerithSnails, 50 Emerald Crabs to this 120G tank.  The snails and crabs are cleaning everything.  When snails go to top of tank, I transfer  to other tanks.

[Subsea]

7 hours ago, jbb_00 said:

I do have a yellow tang, but no plans to add others

My first experience with growing Red Grapes was 20 years ago using NO Floresent tubes.  I used two 40W tubes of 6500K & actinic for a nice color spectrum.  Two tubes were used over a 55G tank with one yellow tang.  The Bortacladia grew five years in that tank.  It was 16” tall and filled 1/3 of the tank.   One weekend while away, the yellow tang destroyed this gorgeous ornamental macro.  For me, I would rather the macro than the Tangs.  Snails and Emerald Crabs are my algae janitors.

[jbb]

1 minute ago, Subsea said:

My first experience with growing Red Grapes was 20 years ago using NO Floresent tubes.  I used two 40W tubes of 6500K & actinic for a nice color spectrum.  Two tubes were used over a 55G tank with one yellow tang.  The Bortacladia grew five years in that tank.  It was 16tall and filled 1/3 of the tank.   One weekend while away, the yellow tang destroyed this gorgeous ornamental macro.  For me, I would rather the macro than the Tangs.  Snails and Emerald Crabs are my algae janitors.

Yeah, I would be pretty upset if that happened. I have looked at some of the more calcified macro to start with until I decide on if I will keep the tang or not. I read that fish are less attracted to the calcified variety (hoping that holds true) 

[Subsea]

I recently received 100 lbs of live rock from GOM.  With heavy algae grazers, only Sargassum and Halimeda were evident on rock.  However, after a few weeks more decorative macros emerged.  I would also suggest that you try the Sargassum.  It needs more light than I can supply it with.

 

https://www.live-plants.com/sargassum.htm

 

 

https://www.live-plants.com/halimedasampler.htm

 

 

[jbb]

I actually have that halimeda pack sitting in my cart right now.

[Subsea]

First light. When I see polyps extended at night, I know I got my coral live food production up and running.  GSP and Green Sinularia with feathers flying.  First picture shows Sargassum Bush in left background.

[Subsea]

3 hours ago, jbb_00 said:

Yeah, I would be pretty upset if that happened. I have looked at some of the more calcified macro to start with until I decide on if I will keep the tang or not. I read that fish are less attracted to the calcified variety (hoping that holds true) 

When I receive GOM live rock, Sargassum and Halmedia are the only macro evident after heavy grazing on the reef.  Both should work for you.

[Subsea]

Bortacladia on this bracket was grown from spores when Red Grapes went sexual 2 years ago.  It is definitely photo adaptable.  Like most Red Macro, under subdued lighting it is burgundy and under intense lighting it is orange, notice almost yellow closest to the surface.

 

Sorry about no picture.  I have operator error problems.