Tigahboy's Macroalgae Tank(s)

Tigahboy · Feb 27, 2023

enlighten said:
what are your thoughts on adding some macroalgae to a reef tank? Are parameters too different? Too much competition?

I think it can be tricky balancing both. Corals actually utilize a lot of the same major and minor elements that macroalgae need, so there could be competition for those. Also, if you are keeping the faster grower macroalgae like caulerpa or ulva in a mixed reef, they could easily take over the tank and cover up coral. If you want to add in macroalgae into a reef tank display, consider some of the red macroalgae (gracilaria hayi, dragon's breath) which won't stick to everything as easily or slower growing green (e.g., halimeda, pencil cap, mermaid's fan) or brown macroalgae. Having said all that, I know of other hobbyists that keep both just fine. I've tried it myself with mixed results given I like to keep nutrients pretty high for macroalgae and they often will overgrow coral very easily without regular trimming (so I've shifted away from putting coral in my tanks).

saltnut · Feb 27, 2023

I haven't followed Instagram. I hope you have included some of your reef tanks over there.
Your tanks on nano-reef were always entertaining as well beautiful. From mars to a volcanic paradise.

Tigahboy · Feb 27, 2023

saltnut said:
I haven't followed Instagram. I hope you have included some of your reef tanks over there.
Your tanks on nano-reef were always entertaining as well beautiful. From mars to a volcanic paradise.

My Insta is definitely macroalgae focused at this point. But definitely open to doing a more traditional reef again at some point.

saltnut · Feb 28, 2023

That would be great to follow. No pressure from me. Setting up new tanks are fun. Then you have to maintain it.

Tigahboy said:
I think it can be tricky balancing both.

So true. Beyond my capabilities.

BASEDVXO · Mar 21, 2023

Tigahboy said:
Happy Monday! Hope y'all in the US had a nice Thanksgiving break. I spent a big chunk of it working on my UNS 90U project. Finally got all the plumbing done and did a successful leak test the other day. The stand is a UNS stand that goes with the 90U tank and the sump and overflow are Fiji Cube. Using a ReefBreeders Nautilus 900 DC pump for the return.

Also working on this tiny 1 gallon OceanBoxDesigns Micro-Tank. The projects never end!

Kinda wild I was thinking of pulling the trigger on the uns 90u and doing the same thing , just found your post googling if anyone made it into a reef & it looks great How hard was it to drill into it ?

Ober_Reef · Mar 21, 2023

Awesome !

Tigahboy · Mar 22, 2023

Reefvxo said:
Kinda wild I was thinking of pulling the trigger on the uns 90u and doing the same thing , just found your post googling if anyone made it into a reef & it looks great How hard was it to drill into it ?

Not bad actually! I think it's a little easier with the thicker glass versus thinner. Just have to go slow.

Tigahboy · Mar 24, 2023

Some updates.

Picked up this beautiful 8 lb. piece of Australian branching live rock from @uniquecorals a couple weeks ago. It's so beautiful. I cycled it in a separate bin and recently moved it into my UNS 90U. Will take photos soon and post those up.

I rarely ever ship macroalgae. I rather just sell locally to fellow hobbyists. But when I do ship, it's to trade for more macroalgae, and just did a solid trade with @WitheredMantis as shown below with these new pieces that I just got yesterday.

Also took some cool shots of my Gold Spot Goby fry that I got from Seahorse Savvy who currently resides in my 1g OceanBoxDesigns MicroTank. Will move him into a bigger tank when ready. He's a teeny tiny cute lil' bugger.

Tigahboy · Mar 24, 2023

Here's the latest FTS for the UNS 90U (68 g) with the new branching live rock. Let me know what you think.

Recent additions include a ton of macroalgae from Seahorse Savvy and some from my 30g macro tank as well as a robust CUC (and yes, I'm including the sailfin mollies as part of the CUC).

saltnut · Mar 25, 2023

I think the new rock is a nice addition.

liddojunior · Mar 29, 2023

I live in Los Angeles, and wondering how to get my hands on macroalgae. It seems like its impossible to get macroalgae shipped to CA. Not sure if you're still in Socal and could give suggestions

Gumbies R Us · Mar 29, 2023

Tigahboy said:
Here's the latest FTS for the UNS 90U (68 g) with the new branching live rock. Let me know what you think.

Recent additions include a ton of macroalgae from Seahorse Savvy and some from my 30g macro tank as well as a robust CUC (and yes, I'm including the sailfin mollies as part of the CUC).

Love that new live rock you have!!!

Diastro · Mar 29, 2023

liddojunior said:
I live in Los Angeles, and wondering how to get my hands on macroalgae. It seems like its impossible to get macroalgae shipped to CA. Not sure if you're still in Socal and could give suggestions

I have a bunch here in the inland empire. I never tried to ship before though.

Tigahboy · Mar 30, 2023

liddojunior said:
I live in Los Angeles, and wondering how to get my hands on macroalgae. It seems like its impossible to get macroalgae shipped to CA. Not sure if you're still in Socal and could give suggestions

Caulerpa is probably the hardest but you should be able to get other types of macroalgae (though not every species of caulerpa is banned tho most that are sold in the hobby is). I don’t live in SoCal anymore, but I was able to get various macroalgae from various websites and local hobbyists. Even CoralsAnonymous in the OC has a bunch (with some rarer varieties as well) and is local to you.

Tigahboy · Mar 31, 2023

Some shots from my 70g macroalgae tank.

Tigahboy · Apr 2, 2023

Another shot of the UNS 90U (70g display with 20g sump/fuge). Just took this photo today.

Ryebreadiest · Apr 7, 2023

What a stunning set of displays! I’m thinking of turning a UNS 60s into a rock flower anemone lagoon style tank and this is major inspiration! Any specific challenges with that size tank?

Tigahboy · Apr 10, 2023

Ryebreadiest said:
What a stunning set of displays! I’m thinking of turning a UNS 60s into a rock flower anemone lagoon style tank and this is major inspiration! Any specific challenges with that size tank?

That sounds perfect for an RFA tank! I really like the UNS 60S, but it was super shallow (only 7" tall) so it was somewhat challenging for me in terms of keeping macroalgae that could easily grow taller than that, but those RFA shorties shouldn't have the same issue.