Poll: Most important factor in getting Coralline Algae to grow?

[Ash321]

Lack of Urchins should be an option. I never really had great coralline in my tank at work, but when the urchin i had in there died, it really took off. Granted that also coincided with when I decided to start paying better attention to the tank, but I am sure it was a factor...

i have a very busy urchin and lots coraline growing having to scrape it off the glass!

Also i believe mine has took off after dosing kh blend 2 or 3 times a week before that nothing.

 

[Rakie]

Lighting. Put on white lighting and watch it grow out of control. Switching in a single ATI Aquablue Special made my coraline growth explode. Removing my T5 for LED made coraline non-existant. Turning up the white on my radion brings some coraline back.

Seeing that my display struggles to grow coraline, but my sump with a single white LED light grows way too much coraline -- self contained experiment. It's lighting.

 

[ZoWhat]

Who wants coraline algae?

"Not I" ....said the blindnan....it gets everywhere.

You want LR covered with corals....not coralline algae.

Unless you love razorblading all internal areas of your tank

 

[carbene]

my quoyi parrotfishes wont let my coraline "explode".

 

[vlangel]

I never had any coraline algae when I used just the plain IO salt. I changed nothing else except I switched to IO reef crystals and immediately coraline algae began to grow. That's why I think calcium is a big contributor.

 

[WVfishguy]

Until this year I did not believe you could have a reef tank without coralline algae. All the previous reef tanks I've seen/owned/set up - all of them - had pink coralline. But when I finally set up a reef FOR ME (bucket list, older guy) I used naked white live rock from the 55 gal refugium of a 75 gal quarantine tank. No coralline introduced, none has grown, despite very rapid coral growth. And that's something else I was unprepared for; having a tank of thriving SPS corals after only four months. You can almost watch the montiporas, scrolls, etc., grow. Thumbnail-sizes frags have grown to be six - seven inches across since February. I've seen rapid growth with leathers, etc. but not SPS. Weird.

 

[rockskimmerflow]

other - phosphate

 

[Ash321]

other - phosphate

My tank has 0 phosphate on the salifert test and the coralline is growing fast so doubt that is a major factor

 

[ramona]

Good thread David, I'm learning too ;Bookworm

 

[rockskimmerflow]

My tank has 0 phosphate on the salifert test and the coralline is growing fast so doubt that is a major factor

Hahaha ok. I guess if the salifert test says so, you must be at absolute zero phosphate.

 

[Ash321]

Hahaha ok. I guess if the salifert test says so, you must be at absolute zero phosphate.

No but id say it is pretty low so u saying phospate is more than likely the cause of growth unlikely. My phos is so low nopox wouldnt even work!

 

[rockskimmerflow]

No but id say it is pretty low so u saying phospate is more than likely the cause of growth unlikely. My phos is so low nopox wouldnt even work!

yeah nvm you're right. I don't know science, you know science

 

[Ash321]

yeah nvm you're right. I don't know science, you know science

Ok no need to be a sarcy

 

[Rython]

At first I was really excited to get corraline algae growing all over my rocks. But now i'm with @skimjim and I just wish it didn't grow in my tank at all. I'm tired of cleaning it off of everything. I don't know if it actually grows faster on glass and plastic than anywhere else, but it sure feels that way when i'm cleaning.

 

[Ryanbrs Verified Sponsor]

my experience

High Ph tanks seem to grow a ton more
LED only tanks very often seem to be less likely to grow coralline. Whereas hybrid, halide or t5 tanks have no issue.
Well maintained alkalinity. Any tank where the alkalinity is allowed to drop frequently seems to have real issues.

Anecdotally I will say kalkwasser tanks aways seem to have solid coralline coverage.

 

[Saltyanimals]

+1 on keeping urchin out of the tank

I have steady C.A growth and fairly neutral to my desire vs hate for it. I don't mind scraping glass and the color is nice in places, but not seeking it out. I will share that I didn't realize how much C.A. an urchin can consume. For me it was a plus bc my CA went down and thus demand for ALK. My Alk started rising with the same dose which tells me my consumption is going down... = urchin eating up CA? Maybe.. But now saving money on ALK lol

 

[Joshuafisher]

IME coralline is about 1st, lower nutrients - specifically dissolved organic matter which I primarily gauge with bioload and other elevated nutrients along with hair algae outbreaks. Particularly elevated phosphate seems to inhibit coralline in my experience although I am sure there are exceptions. 2nd, lower light. The old days of PC lights or even just indirect fluorescent lighting coralline was crazy. My LFS is letting a tank sit plumbed up, empty (rock but no fish or coral) and just under overhead store lighting, no lights on the tank, and months later the coralline is so thick they had to sand the acrylic. With my tanks that have intense lighting the coralline mostly grows in the shade. 3rd, high alk - I have noticed in my systems that alk in the 10 to 11 range to really fuel growth.

I 100% agree. My old salt mix was 11.5alk and after about 6 months I started to get specks everywhere. I got few more corals got new salt which is 8.0 alk then added sump and I haven’t seen any since it’s been about a year now. Parameters are good some hair algae still exists on one rock and no coralline. I lean to higher alkalinity.

 

[John in Duluth]

My Calcium is a little over 600 in a FOWLR with snails tank. I am wondering if by seeding coraline algae, will it lower my calcium levels back down to normal. Also, I have a lobster tank - its Calcium level is also a little over 600. Thoughts?