Chaeto issues again! Is there a better way?

[vio]

While both work fine, if your algae scrubber is so effective at removing nitrate, why are you also using a sulfur denitrator?

Right now i use only Sulfur den.
Is much easy to control , steady Nitrate , NO up and down.
According with Triton , i use to have Sulfur deficiency , i try to balance by using sulfur filter (NOT sure may balance)
Less maintenance.
Less space , NO powerful pump, No lights.
I have Scope i check few friends Algae Scrubber and Chaetto , i found Dino ( in special low flow) perfect place to hang.
I use small amount of Rowa to control PO4.
The balance of 2.5 -3 ppm Nitrate and GFO very steady , i have the GFO for 1 1/2 month in reactor , still working well , i feed heavy.
I go by reading the color on my SPS, show me a good response .
Yes, lower the Alk. i increase a bit.
I like Alk. 7.5 dKH no more then 8 dKH.
I dose Kalka also.
I run Calcium Reactor and Vertex Libra to adjust my # and introduce less CO2.
I keep 8.2 PH.
I use to run Ozonizer , i stop , i keep the ORP monitor , ORP is around 400 , everything looks clean and steady for me.
Yes i dose Bacteria in 90 Gal. refuge, full of Pukani Rocks.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

OK, thanks.

 

[Michael Llabona]

I gave up on growing macros. I just couldn't find a balance. I now carbon dose. I dialed in my dose based on my feeding tendency. Quarter size of rods or LRS daily and target feed corals 1 or 2 times a week. I change out my 1/2 cup of HC GFO every month. 10-15% WC every month. I am able to maintain my nitrates below 5 but never undetectable since I have a mixed reef. My phoshate is around 10-15 ppb on Hannah checker. I now use my fuge as a "frag fuge" with Marine pure spheres and an AI prime on a reverse cycle than my display. I've noticed since there is so much micro fauna present corals and nems are able to bounce back and color up very quickly. And my pH stays above 8 even at night.

 

[sghera64]

I was having the same problem, then as a las t measure I changed the light. I bought a squeeze clamp light fixture and bought a combo red and blue led light bulb in it. The chaeto grows like crazy now. I read from BRS that you need a light purple light to grow chaeto. It solved my problem. I also aerate the refugium with a powerhead.

Way to go. Same thing happened with me. Under a cheap terrestrial fluorescent plant bulb, (~6500K) I could grow Ulva, but chaeto barely grew . After I put a 4:1 Red/Blue LED horticulture light in, the Ulva melted and the Chaeto took off.

I can’t grow Ulva in my refugium with the cheato for some reason. I can grow it in my frag tank beneath a 20K Radium with Blue+ T5’s. I simply loop the Ulva through some eggcrate and sink it with reef plugs. The Ulva grows and stays attached to the eggcrate for trimming later.

 

[rosshamsandwich]

While I am not saying it is due to lack of iron, a Triton ICP test is not useful evidence when none is detected. Triton cannot detect the NSW level of iron, and even folks dosing iron (like me) may not see any since it rapidly depletes (I saw zero despite dosing).

what iron do you buy???? can i go to walmart and pick some up?

 

[rosshamsandwich]

i

Way to go. Same thing happened with me. Under a cheap terrestrial fluorescent plant bulb, (~6500K) I could grow Ulva, but chaeto barely grew . After I put a 4:1 Red/Blue LED horticulture light in, the Ulva melted and the Chaeto took off.

I can’t grow Ulva in my refugium with the cheato for some reason. I can grow it in my frag tank beneath a 20K Radium with Blue+ T5’s. I simply loop the Ulva through some eggcrate and sink it with reef plugs. The Ulva grows and stays attached to the eggcrate for trimming later.

look elsewhere..i have a home depot fluorescent daylight bulb and im growing chaeto just fine...it's 1000 lumens it's something else..

 

[Juan Andrés Botero R]

For the second time in 3 months my chaeto is disintegrating and clogging my skimmer and carbon reactor pumps. It’s driving me crazy. I can’t figure out why it’s happening. Grows like crazy, then dies off. The die off is a mess it gets everywhere. I am using Triton for other methods at a very low dose of 5ml per day. My light could be better, it’s a Home Depot floodlight 6500k, but I don’t think it’s the light because it grows great for awhile then stops. I have been reading that dosing iron may help. I saw a post by Randy saying to does iron tablets from a pharmacy in some Ro/Di water. I had an ATI ICP test done about a month ago and I think it showed no measurable iron and low molybdenum. Does the moly effect anything? Is there a better way to keep nitrates down? I like the chaeto for the pH balancing effects since my house is sealed up pretty tight. I’ve looked chaeto reactors, but I don’t think I have enough room for the proper sized unit plus it’s another few hundred and I’d probably still run into the same issue with the disintegration.

Look at your Molybdenum, it's low "Like vanadium, molybdenum is a transition metal, essential and part of the Dynamic Elements as it is needed in many enzymatic processes within the nutrient cycle and within the cell functions. A lack of molybdenum should be avoided, because a nitrate reduction is not possible without molybdenum." - https://www.faunamarin.de/en/knowledge-base/molybdenum/

 

[Fourstars]

I think it’s a normal nutrient cycle at times bottoms out, probably no way to balance in such a small body. I do dose molybdenum and it seems to help.