Negatives to Chaeto

[less than bread]

I’m thinking of setting up a chaeto fuge for my 20 gallon mixed reef attempt. Are there any negatives to having one? Such as is there a risk of them dropping nutrients too far and you should only have one if your nutrients are too high?

[SillyReef]

Sometimes it can be hard to grow and dies off.

[Tamberav]

Can break apart and seem to die for no reason. Macro can strip nutrients, sure. It’s something you have to monitor. 
 

I use a fuge and love it but I don’t use cheato. I just don’t like how messy cheato can be. 

[less than bread]

16 minutes ago, Tamberav said:

Can break apart and seem to die for no reason. Macro can strip nutrients, sure. It’s something you have to monitor. 
 

I use a fuge and love it but I don’t use cheato. I just don’t like how messy cheato can be. 

Thanks. What is in your fuge? I’m open to anything, doesn’t necessarily have to be chaeto, that’s just what I was thinking

[Tamberav]

It have a mix of the red display macros and some Caulerpa. 
 

Is it a sump or an AIO?

[less than bread]

44 minutes ago, Tamberav said:

It have a mix of the red display macros and some Caulerpa. 
 

Is it a sump or an AIO?

AIO

[PeterU]

I'm using chaeto in my sump and it seems to have very little affect in lowering my nitrates which are running consistently around 20.

[mcarroll]

18 hours ago, less than bread said:

I’m thinking of setting up a chaeto fuge for my 20 gallon mixed reef.

Why?

 

18 hours ago, less than bread said:

Are there any negatives to having one?

Were you intending on growing corals when you set up the tank?  ...or corals and plants?

 

Corals and algae compete against each other.  So "Yes" to your question.

 

For comparison, algae and fish are complimentary.  Coral and fish are complimentary.

 

18 hours ago, less than bread said:

Such as is there a risk of them dropping nutrients too far and you should only have one if your nutrients are too high?

Very likely.  And yes.  Correct.  The whole concept of "nutrients too high" in a reef tank has had a lot of holes poked in it over the last 5-10 years.

 

If I didn't mention it already, my tank runs at 2.0+ ppm PO4 as measured on Salifert.  Nitrates were pegging the meter too at around 50+ ppm.  

 

Not saying that so you will target those numbers.  (For the most part, there are no magic numbers except "zero"...which is magically bad.)

 

I'm saying that to let you know that "nutrients too high" doesn't mean what we in the hobby have all been told that it means.  🙂  Check out the range of journal articles I've indexed on my blog under the Nutrients section.

 

What we all should know about "high" and "low" nutrients is told best (IMO) by the picture and accompanies the article: "Phosphate deficiency promotes coral bleaching and is reflected by the ultrastructure of symbiotic dinoflagellates"

 

Look at the difference in these Euphillias that were grown in all variations of high- and low- nitrates and phosphates and see which look healthy and which don't:

(click for larger size image...which is also in the main article linked above)

[Tamberav]

1 hour ago, less than bread said:

AIO

I wouldn't bother in an AIO. I have done it in the past and don't feel it is worth the extra effort.

 

When corals grow they also use nutrients.