Something to help with Nitrate in ep-15

medion · 10-30-2005, 08:31 PM

During the show, at about the 1 hour mark, Matt mentioned he had something growing in his tank that feeds off Nitrates.

What what it again? It was a little difficult to catch.

Thanks for answering my question on the show!

Thanks in advance.
Dion

***Rob*** · 10-30-2005, 10:26 PM

what Matt was referring to was a type of macro algae called caulerpa

More infomation can be found here

http://www.wetwebmedia.com/caulerpaalg.htm

this stuff is usually kept in a fuge, but can be kept in the main tank also, however, if you have any herbivore inhabitants, they will eat it. that is why it is kept in a refugium.

let em know if you have any further questions.

thanks
Rob

***Rob*** · 10-30-2005, 10:28 PM

i should also metion that you should not use this to "fix" a nitrate problem. in fact, if you are not familiar with your tank, it may hide a nitrate problem. just a bit of advice, if you are having nitrate issues, make sure you are addressign the cause, then you can use the caulpera to help remove the excess from the water. macro algae is great filtration for many type of things, so you can keep them even with out nitrate "problems"

medion · 10-30-2005, 10:33 PM

Thanks for the info.

I thought it was an interesting fact. My nitrates are very very minimal/ if any.

Thanks.
Dion

***Rob*** · 10-30-2005, 10:35 PM

great to hear...

yeah there are many awesome things about macros.. there good to have

bubbletip · 08-25-2006, 01:47 PM

So Rob, it is possible to have caulerpa in your main display tank? I want a nitrate reducer(obviously eliminating all other nitrate producers) and figured adding Red or Green Grape Caulerpa directly to the tank would assist. I have heard of the Caulerpa species going asesxual in the tank and was wondering what is the best way to prevent this from happening in the display tank. Obviously we are not running our tank lights 24/7 so that option is out. I have heard that regularly pruning the Caulerpa will help in preventing these spawning events. Any help here would be greatly appreciated.

***Rob*** · 08-26-2006, 04:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bubbletip

So Rob, it is possible to have caulerpa in your main display tank?

yes, its possible, but there can be problems with this. Caulepa is a rather invasive species, it will grow and attache to everything if given the chance. the opposite end of the spectrum is most any type of herbivorous animal will quickly eat it.

Quote:

I want a nitrate reducer(obviously eliminating all other nitrate producers) and figured adding Red or Green Grape Caulerpa directly to the tank would assist. I have heard of the Caulerpa species going asesxual in the tank and was wondering what is the best way to prevent this from happening in the display tank.

its actually going sexual, asexual is a process of cloning, or non sexual reproduction. and again, like everything else in our tanks, proper maintenance and pruning is the best defense against this

Quote:

Obviously we are not running our tank lights 24/7 so that option is out. I have heard that regularly pruning the Caulerpa will help in preventing these spawning events. Any help here would be greatly appreciated.

yep, by suggestion would be to look into setting up a refugium as they provide a much better home for such macro algaes

Reefbaby · 08-26-2006, 05:26 PM

Wow...I'm getting behind on meeting the newcomers!!

Welcome to TR both medion and bubbletip! It's great to have you hear and for you to jump right in to the questions. Please feel free to come back with any questions. I'm sure we can learn from you too!

**Amphibious** · 08-26-2006, 08:03 PM

to Talking Reef Community and Podcast, medion and bubbletip.

You will like this group of reefers, very helpful. It's good that you are already taking part in asking questions. Don't hesitate to respond to posts, too. We all learn from each other.

Dick

bubbletip · 08-26-2006, 09:33 PM

Thanks for the kind welcome, Christi and Richard and Rob of course. I had already decided about 15 minutes after my post that I was not adding any caulerpa to the tank. I will find other means and I know that a refugium would suffice, however I am very limited in space and have not yet decided how I would be able to add a refugium to this existing tank. I am still doing my research and hopefully I can get some help from the talking reef and its forums. The tank is a 30 Gallon cube and the closed loop has taken plenty of space on the back of the tank. I still have one drilled hole at the top of the tank in case I need one. The space underneath the tank in the stand is 18" across which does not leave much room for a sump.

**CarmieJo** · 08-26-2006, 10:14 PM

CPR has those HOB fuges that could probably hang on the side but I don't know how that might look. Maybe some sort of a Rubbermaid container? Or DIY acrylic?

***Rob*** · 08-26-2006, 10:16 PM

dont worry RB, your not late, this thread was started by Medion almost a year ago, its an OLD thread..

**Amphibious** · 08-26-2006, 10:34 PM

Holy moly, I didn't even notice that.