Cant grow macro...

[tidefanjam]

I’ve tried several times, cheato, red ogo, all I can grow is hair algae all over my macro, which is still effective at keeping my nutrients down but is a much bigger pain to clean out, my phosphate is always below .05, nitrate around 5. Any ideas why? There is no hair algae in my display

 

[Conovan]

Gonna follow this myself. My chaeto grows, but slowly. I keep ripping all the GHA out hopping that chaeto gets enough size it will outcompete or at least throw enough shade to keep the GHA at bay. I also have no noticable GHA in my display aside from what I throw in there because my tang loves it.

 

[Robertellis30]

I would try a different light myself. Big fan of the IM chaetomax

 

[fish farmer]

Have you tried more flow?

Maybe try a bulb with a more red spectrum?

I had a 9 watt Feit grow bulb I got from Home Depot over a small area of my sump grow chaeto really well. My nutrients were a lot higher than yours though.

 

[tidefanjam]

Have you tried more flow?

Maybe try a bulb with a more red spectrum?

I had a 9 watt Feit grow bulb I got from Home Depot over a small area of my sump grow chaeto really well. My nutrients were a lot higher than yours though.

There is actually pretty decent flow thru the refugium, I have used a red grow light before and had the same issue, I was using the white light because I was trying to grow red macro which I believe is supposed to do better with white light, but I do have some more cheato on the way and I’ll try the red again

 

[Conovan]

There is actually pretty decent flow thru the refugium, I have used a red grow light before and had the same issue, I was using the white light because I was trying to grow red macro which I believe is supposed to do better with white light, but I do have some more cheato on the way and I’ll try the red again

I am running the Kessil H80 Tuna flora on mine the more red bloom setting seems to grow more GHA for me than the whiter/bluer grow setting.

 

[samthefishman]

if I was you I would clean that fug. Get rid of all of the hair algae. don't put any macro algae until your nitrate and phosphate goes up a bit. obviously keep the light off until you put some macro in there.

 

[RobMcC]

Have you ever used Vibrant?

 

[tidefanjam]

Have you ever used Vibrant?

I have in the past, but not in the past year or so