How do I grow MORE algae?

[Tired]

I want to place a ReefCleaners order in October, once it's cooled off, and quarantine everything for a couple months to prevent any fish disease getting into my system. I know you can feed algae pellets and/or nori to snails, but I'd like to get some algae going for them in the quarantine tank. I can seed it easily enough with a piece of live rock from my tank.

What's the best way to make algae go absolutely nuts? I have some microalgae fertilizer that's meant to be used for cultures, should I just pop that in there, provide plenty of white light, and hope for the best? I want mostly green algae- coraline doesn't matter.

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

Raise your nutrients and white/red light intensity.

To the best of my knowledge, Reef cleaners cuc are kept in fish-less system so your quarantine plan is completely unnecessary.

 

[czoolander]

Dose Phosphates that should do the trick LOL

I know a bunch of urchin farmers and they grow algea they dose heavy amounts of phosphates into the water.

We always joke about it because we are trying for opposite ends of the spectrum . I want barely any phosphate and they are dumping it in by the gallon LOL

 

[Tired]

Oh, that's good to remember about the systems. I'll have to ask how long they're in those tanks, since some fish diseases can last a couple of months on snails and the like.

 

[AydenLincoln]

12+ hours of strong lighting will help too.

 

[Tamberav]

A par bulb from Home Depot or whatever and nutrients will do it.

 

[Lavey29]

I am pretty sure reef cleaners are invert only systems so the chance of disease getting in is basically zero.

 

[tehmadreefer]

I want to place a ReefCleaners order in October, once it's cooled off, and quarantine everything for a couple months to prevent any fish disease getting into my system. I know you can feed algae pellets and/or nori to snails, but I'd like to get some algae going for them in the quarantine tank. I can seed it easily enough with a piece of live rock from my tank.

What's the best way to make algae go absolutely nuts? I have some microalgae fertilizer that's meant to be used for cultures, should I just pop that in there, provide plenty of white light, and hope for the best? I want mostly green algae- coraline doesn't matter.

Disregard your tank for a month or so, but feed heavily!

 

[Tired]

I am pretty sure reef cleaners are invert only systems so the chance of disease getting in is basically zero.

Depends how long the snails are held. If a snail with ich cysts on its shell is collected and held for two months, the ich dies off. If it's held for a week, the ich is still there. I'm aware that the chances of ich being on snails that haven't been through a wholesaler's disease soup are pretty dang low, but I may as well quarantine these, just in case. As long as I can feed the snails adequately during quarantine, it won't hurt anything.

 

[Lavey29]

Depends how long the snails are held. If a snail with ich cysts on its shell is collected and held for two months, the ich dies off. If it's held for a week, the ich is still there. I'm aware that the chances of ich being on snails that haven't been through a wholesaler's disease soup are pretty dang low, but I may as well quarantine these, just in case. As long as I can feed the snails adequately during quarantine, it won't hurt anything.

Whatever works for you. I'm not worried about snails in my tank.

 

[Tired]

I figure, at worst, it's a waste of my time. At best, it stops something nasty getting in. Even if that best is pretty unlikely, it's not /that/ much of a waste of time. But I can see how someone wouldn't want to deal with all that for what must be an incredibly low chance of any risk.

(And snails from a pet store are definitely a risk, if I was getting 'em from there. They've been through a wholesaler's tanks and then sat in a LFS display, so there's plenty of opportunities for all sorts of stuff to land on them. They're moving hardscape, after all.)