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Scott's Reef Aquarium Home Page
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Scott's Reef Aquarium Home Page
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I got this email from a fellow inquiring about macroalagae keeping. I thought I'd post the correspondence for the benefit of others who may wish to know the same information.
Aug 09 07:37:00 1996
To: 'xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.att.net' (INTERNET)
From: Scott Harris :1M21 (BNR) ATP BNR
Subject: re:Macro-algea
In message "Macro-algea", you write:
>Hello,
>First of all, I'd like to say you have one of the NICEST aquariums I've
>seen to date (trust me, I've seen alot). I'd also like to commend you on
>your page, its one of the few that grace my bookmark list.
>Anyways, I'm currently constructing a 55 gallon reef. Once I've completed
>the task, I'd like to transfer all the livestock from my 20 gallon reef,
>and put them in the new 55. I then plan on converting the 20 into a
>macro-algea reef (similar to what you have).
>The only problem is, I have, and can find, little info on the macro's.
>So, I figured, you'd be the man to ask. I'd really just like to know how
>to keep the healthy, when to cut them back, how much to use, and where to
>get them.
>Your help would really be appreciated.
>
>Hope to hear from you soon,
>
>Phil
>
Phil,
Thanks very much for the comments!
I'm glad to see someone else getting into the area of macroalgae growing. It
can be quite rewarding! And it's quite different from raising corals, as you
could probably guess.
First of all, for information, check the bibliography at the end of my home
page. Most of the books are your standard coral-reef fare, but one in
particular is good for identifying macroalgaes (when they start to grow).
It's the one called "Macroalgae Reef Identification" or something like that.
It's really a diver's guide but I find it extremely useful and comprehensive.
It can be bought from That Fish Place and Pet Warehouse (among others).
So running a macroalgae tank is similar to running a coral reef, with a few
exceptions. First, I got live rock that was more "macroalgaed"; that is, I
asked for rock that has lots of macroalgae growth on it when I bought it
(From Exotic Aquaria in Florida). This isn't strictly necessary, since all
live rock will have macroalgae on it... I just wanted to speed up the process.
You'll need good lighting, a great skimmer, and all the same equipment as in a
regular reef, but there are a couple of differences. You're essentially
running a tight-wire act between growing lush macroalgae and growing hair
algae. In this respect, the lighting is a little less. I used two Tritons
and two Actinics (all normal output). When I started out, I used VHO, but the
darn hair algae wouldn't go away.
I also don't use a chiller, which keeps my water at about 82F in the summer.
This is when I have more trouble with hair algae. In the winter, at 76F, it's
almost never a problem... so heat probably is a factor in its growth.
I use the Tap Water Purifier to take out the crud in my water, and I use
Kalkwasser to precipitate phosphates (more important than it's use as a
Calcium suppliment). I also have a live sand bed to keep nitrates down.
So essentially, you can see that I'm still striving to keep clean water, like
one would do for a reef. Another difference is that I dose Iron, Iodine, and
Strontium. The Iron, of course, is for the macroalgaes. Don't use too much,
or you'll see hair algae take off. The Iodine helps the crustaceans and brown
algaes. The Strontium is for the coralline algaes.
I do keep my calcium levels above 400ppm to help encourage the crustacean
growth and the Halimeda macroalgaes, which are high in Calcium. So in this
respect, it's similar to keeping corals. All other chemical statistics are as
they would be for a coral tank.
Then, finally, I crop them about once a week, when the growth gets visually
unappealling. The Caulerpa and brown algaes grow amazingly fast. Others,
like Halimeda and corralline grow much slower. I just use my hands or tongs
to pluck out the excessive macroalgae. This harvesting will also remove
excessive nitrogen and phosphorus (in the macroalgae tissue) from your system.
Sometimes, believe it or not, I remove about 5 pounds of macroalgae from my
tank. FIVE POUNDS! That's a family sized package of hamburger, by weight!
This occurs maybe once a month, when I really clean it out. Like I said, the
stuff grows fast!
Also, I am VERY sensitive to what critters and fish I introduce. I only add
animals that will help out my system in some way. So the blennies, dragon
gobies, and six-line wrasses are all top choices for their various functions
of eating algae, bristleworms, etc. I've got about 30 astrea snails and lots
of limpets (which aren't a nuisance in a non-coral tank) which do a fabulous
job of keeping microalgae in check.
Here's one last MAJOR difference. I only did water changes twice a year. I
used to do them every month or two, very faithfully. But I noticed that the
hair algae would bloom after each water change. (Probably because of residual
phosphorus in my water.. enough that I couldn't detect it, but in the
quantities of a water change, probably enough to bloom the algae.) So I cut
back the water changes. Then, you're basically removing macroalgae to remove
excessive chemicals. I still felt the need to do some kind of water change,
since it's been reported that excessive levels of hormones excreted by the
fish can inhibit their growth when these hormones build up in the water.
So in summary, you'll basically be trying to grow macroalgae in a system void
of microalgae. This isn't easy, but it is really nice when you've gotten it
right. It took some trial and error, and about 2 years, on my part to get it
looking good.
Good luck,
Scott
=============================================================================
Scott E. Harris
NORTEL, Northern Telecom
705 Westech Drive
Norcross, Georgia 30092
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