Cheato Question

[Jack22]

I ordered some Cheato online. When it came it was all green and looked alive, but it was very thin. As it tumbled around in my refugium a lot of small peices were breaking off and either sinking to the bottom or getting cought in the baffles. After a week I still have a good size ball floating, but I also have a ton of little prices on the bottom of my fuge and I’m still pulling it out of the baffle every day. I’ve never run a refugium before. Is this normal with Cheato? Will it thicken up as it grows? Do I need to clean out all the little peices on the bottom?

Thanks for your help.

 

[Crabs McJones]

I ordered some Cheato online. When it came it was all green and looked alive, but it was very thin. As it tumbled around in my refugium a lot of small peices were breaking off and either sinking to the bottom or getting cought in the baffles. After a week I still have a good size ball floating, but I also have a ton of little prices on the bottom of my fuge and I’m still pulling it out of the baffle every day. I’ve never run a refugium before. Is this normal with Cheato? Will it thicken up as it grows? Do I need to clean out all the little peices on the bottom?

Thanks for your help.

That's pretty typical. You can leave the little pieces on the bottom, they're not hurting anything. But definitely clean out the baffles. It'll thicken up and intertwine in of itself more as it grows.

 

[Jack22]

Thanks for the help. LFS said I may need to increase the flow in the refugium, it will help the Cheato grow. I have an Eshopps R-300 advanced series sump. Wasn’t what I really wanted, but I was able to get it at a really good price so went with it. My only complaint is the refugium chamber doesn’t get a lot of flow.

 

[PatW]

Bulk Reef Supply has a series of you tube videos on running chaeto in a refugium. They are pretty well done. You might want to check them out.

 

[mtraylor]

you want low flow in the refugium.

 

[Miguel50]

I have been struggleing with my refiugium and cheato.all the videos i see cheato is tumbleing and floating.mine just sinks to the bottom.i have coral rubble and good flow.i think

 

[Crabs McJones]

I have been struggleing with my refiugium and cheato.all the videos i see cheato is tumbleing and floating.mine just sinks to the bottom.i have coral rubble and good flow.i think

There are one of three possibilities. One is your lighting isn't strong enough, two is your nutrient levels aren't high enough to sustain the chaeto, and three your iron levels may not be high enough and have to be supplemented.

 

[mtraylor]

I have been struggleing with my refiugium and cheato.all the videos i see cheato is tumbleing and floating.mine just sinks to the bottom.i have coral rubble and good flow.i think

Chaeto does not need to tumble first off. So you can forget about that. If you are watching videos of tumbling chaeto that is most likely a video of a new sump build and someone that just added a hand full or ball of chaeto to their system. This will not exist on a mature refuge. Chaeto quickly grows like a weed and will quickly fill up the area its in and there is no tumbling. Its like a brick in the sump unless you are trimming it every couple days to keep it real small. IF you do that, you will not have enough for nutrient export, so what would be the purpose.

A simple inexpensive light is all you need to grow chaeto. Its pretty easy to grow. Get yourself a 6500K CFL bulb from home depot and buy a clamp on light fixture for a total of 18bucks or so and you will not look back. You will be growing chaeto and coralline algae in no time.

happy reefing.

 

[Jack22]

Miguel, I have the same thing going on. I watched the BRS tv series on Cheato, which really helped. I think I may have just added too much Cheato and don’t have enough nutrients to support it. I only have 5 small fish in a 120 and feed small amounts. I just keep pulling out the small peices as they get caught in the baffle. Hopefully it will balance out eventually.