Is phyto worth is without zoos

[Jake_the_reefer]

So I went to my lfs and wanted to try live pods, the owner talked me into live phyto plankton (6oz for 10$) and said it was super great for a mixed reef tank with a scooter blenny in it. I bought it and did some research. Is phyto even useful if I only have amphipods, i dont have copepods or zooplankton (from what I can tell) should I have dosed zooplankton or copepods before buying this bottle of phyto or will the phyto directly feed my lps and soft corals

 

[Jake_the_reefer]

Heres the brand

 

[shred5]

Coral are carnivorous mostly and they eat very little phytoplankton..

Phytoplankton has been found in the stomach of some corals like gorgonia but it also could be there because they ate something that ate phyto.

With most zoas it really is hard to know what they eat if anything.

Phytoplankton has been added to reef aquariums to feed the other little critters that are food for our corals.

 

[Jake_the_reefer]

Coral are carnivorous mostly and they eat very little phytoplankton..

Phytoplankton has been found in the stomach of some corals like gorgonia but it also could be there because they ate something that ate phyto.

With most zoas it really is hard to know what they eat if anything.

Phytoplankton has been added to reef aquariums to feed the other little critters that are food for our corals.

So it is good to add to my reef? For my pods and corals? The bottle also says to add 20 drops every day (1 per gallon) since my tank isnt heavily stocked should I cut down also since I do reef roids.

 

[BeejReef]

It's good if you feel good about it.. lol.

I can't say for sure. I feel like I see more pods on my glass when I occasionally dose it. Put it this way. It can't be "bad," unless you overdose it consistently.

 

[shred5]

So it is good to add to my reef? For my pods and corals? The bottle also says to add 20 drops every day (1 per gallon) since my tank isnt heavily stocked should I cut down also since I do reef roids.

I do add phyto to my reefs.. I do it for sponges, feather dusters or other critters like copepods etc.
Yea you do not want to over dose for sure because phyto does have nutrients when it breaks down.. Start out slowly...

 

[Jake_the_reefer]

I do add phyto to my reefs.. I do it for sponges, feather dusters or other critters like copepods etc.
Yea you do not want to over dose for sure because phyto does have nutrients when it breaks down.. Start out slowly...

I'll start with half doses.. or whole doses every other day, I should dose copepods also to build a population I currently only have amphipods. I added baby brine shrimp but I feel they arent in there anymore lol or do brine shrimp grow and live in a reef tank easily

 

[ChaosAquaculture]

We started dosing Phyto to the tanks at the farm a lil over a year ago and our tanks have been nothing short of happy. The overall tank heatlh that comes from feeding the "little critters" as someone put it is killer. As long as there is phyto available i will always dose in my tanks.

 

[jp_75]

how often do you feed your tanks with phyto?

 

[Jake_the_reefer]

how often do you feed your tanks with phyto?

I just started yesterday lol so I'm not sure often I should

 

[shred5]

I'll start with half doses.. or whole doses every other day, I should dose copepods also to build a population I currently only have amphipods. I added baby brine shrimp but I feel they arent in there anymore lol or do brine shrimp grow and live in a reef tank easily

I doubt the BBS are alive, something would eat them..

I use also phyto to culture copepods, rotifers and brine shrimp.

 

[ChaosAquaculture]

That bottle he is showing in the beginning is Dead photo I believe. Good for raising nitrate and phosphate, I dose live phyto we culture ourselves twice a day.

 

[shred5]

That bottle he is showing in the beginning is Dead photo I believe. Good for raising nitrate and phosphate, I dose live phyto we culture ourselves twice a day.

Yep that is dead. Reeds does offer a live version.
Actually in the fridge the dead can last longer but not in the tank..
I use that sometime for culturing my rots and copepods.
I do raise my own phyto from time to time. It is the thing I hate most doing so I use Reeds algae pastes I think is called instant algae now. Not as good as live though.

 

[rkpetersen]

The picture he's showing is Phyto Feast Live. You can see the word 'Live' partially covered by his thumb.
This version has a higher ratio of live algae than regular Phyto Feast, but does not have the same long-term stability.
I prefer the Live, and with luck, might get through the whole bottle before the expiration date.

 

[Reef Nutrition]

That bottle he is showing in the beginning is Dead photo I believe. Good for raising nitrate and phosphate, I dose live phyto we culture ourselves twice a day.

The bottle this person is holding is our 6 species blend, Phyto-Feast Live (contains live algae). Our non-viable (dead) Phyto-Feast is also a 6 species blend and isn't "good for raising nitrate and phosphate"; it's good for keeping zooplankton, certain coral types and bivalves alive, long-term. Anything alive or dead that you add to an aquarium brings phosphate and nitrate with it. Overfeeding any food to your aquarium raises phosphates and nitrates. We have a lot of respect for you guys and you do a lot for this hobby, but your comment here is misleading and doesn't convey the right message to hobbyists about our flagship product. Many, many professionals in aquaculture use our non-viable algae without issue.

Best,
Chad

 

[Jake_the_reefer]

That bottle he is showing in the beginning is Dead photo I believe. Good for raising nitrate and phosphate, I dose live phyto we culture ourselves twice a day.

This is the live phyto. Couple bucks more for certified alive

 

[ChaosAquaculture]

The bottle this person is holding is our 6 species blend, Phyto-Feast Live (contains live algae). Our non-viable (dead) Phyto-Feast is also a 6 species blend and isn't "good for raising nitrate and phosphate"; it's good for keeping zooplankton, certain coral types and bivalves alive, long-term. Anything alive or dead that you add to an aquarium brings phosphate and nitrate with it. Overfeeding any food to your aquarium raises phosphates and nitrates. We have a lot of respect for you guys and you do a lot for this hobby, but your comment here is misleading and doesn't convey the right message to hobbyists about our flagship product. Many, many professionals in aquaculture use our non-viable algae without issue.

Best,
Chad

Apologies Chad, as it was not my intent to mislead or insult anyone. I use the product myself as do many others, and its something I have used for some time now and one of the reasons I use it is when I want to raise Nitrate or phosphate as an intended purpose and as gently as I can without the foreign other methods I see people using. My comment wasn't at all to be a Dry underhanded comment toward you in any way shape or form. And Im sorry if you took it that way. Its just always been my go to and because its natural I am both confident in what I am using for, and comfortable because I know its pure coming from you. So once again, I apologize if you took what I said as a form or insult or a direct besmyrchment , as it was not my intent, I am just speaking from my own experience on what I use the product for.

 

[shred5]

The bottle this person is holding is our 6 species blend, Phyto-Feast Live (contains live algae). Our non-viable (dead) Phyto-Feast is also a 6 species blend and isn't "good for raising nitrate and phosphate"; it's good for keeping zooplankton, certain coral types and bivalves alive, long-term. Anything alive or dead that you add to an aquarium brings phosphate and nitrate with it. Overfeeding any food to your aquarium raises phosphates and nitrates. We have a lot of respect for you guys and you do a lot for this hobby, but your comment here is misleading and doesn't convey the right message to hobbyists about our flagship product. Many, many professionals in aquaculture use our non-viable algae without issue.

Best,
Chad

The picture was hard to know it was live unless you looked really close. I completely missed it..

 

[Jake_the_reefer]

The picture was hard to know it was live unless you looked really close. I completely missed it..

Yeah definitely hard to see the bottles are similar my bad!

 

[Jake_the_reefer]

The bottle this person is holding is our 6 species blend, Phyto-Feast Live (contains live algae). Our non-viable (dead) Phyto-Feast is also a 6 species blend and isn't "good for raising nitrate and phosphate"; it's good for keeping zooplankton, certain coral types and bivalves alive, long-term. Anything alive or dead that you add to an aquarium brings phosphate and nitrate with it. Overfeeding any food to your aquarium raises phosphates and nitrates. We have a lot of respect for you guys and you do a lot for this hobby, but your comment here is misleading and doesn't convey the right message to hobbyists about our flagship product. Many, many professionals in aquaculture use our non-viable algae without issue.

Best,
Chad

Thank you for chiming in Chad! I'm liking the products so far and my lfs sells it for super cheap!