Quote:
Originally Posted by Reefer40b
I find it more of a balance thing, dial back your lamp hrs on the cheato or use smaller amounts and pull out more growth more often until you find what your tank balance is...
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Agreed 100% - not sure pulling works unless you really reduce the quantity of cheato, but reducing photoperiod will certainly reduce its efficiency.
Quote:
Originally Posted by gregkn73
I have experienced more than once chaeto growth stagnation but never died chaeto. IMO when chaeto die the cause is not the lack of nutrients but the lack of something I can not determine. I have a 20g plastic drum full with chaeto ,just a 6w lamp above it and sparingly fed, for amphipods propagation, and surprisingly chaeto is not dying, just not growing.
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Agreed also.. I don’t think it’s the nutrients (alone) that have an effect in cheato. Cheato, like zoox or any other plant (freshwater or marine or terrestrial need a group of nutrients/minerals to be happy- ones that I can think of: iron, zinc, manganese, potassium, iodine as well as n and p.. You’ll find these in almost all plant fertilizers...
Maybe plants from different environments have different requirements but I think some are universal..
Quote:
Originally Posted by Scorpius
Just another parameter to worry about. To each their own. Chaeto is a ticking parameter time bomb imo. I'd rather test for nitrate/phosphate and run some gfo and control my fish feedings and water changes.
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To each their own, for sure.. I have never had success with carbon dosing. Or gfo usage for that matter.. And I’d say that Carbon/gfo usage is as much of a ticking time bomb and/or parameter swinger as any nutrient method, when not properly managed.. and I’d go further to say that cheato moves nutrients in a more gradual manner than gfo and Carbon. An like everything in reefing, once the balance is reached, easier to monitor/maintain.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Alex Costa
I think that sometimes it's the best call.
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Yes.. I will observe this time and watch for a while when n drops out. I won’t immediately reach for the nitrate bottles..