No luck with coraline algae

[saltyweeds]

Tank has been set up for 8 months and I still am not seeing a boom in coraline algae growth in fact it has receded . I started up with Tap water up until 2 months ago switched over to RO/DI. My regime is 20% water change every week. Parameters:
PH = 8.6 (Aquarium Pharm)
Nitrates = 0 (Aquarium Pharm)
KH = 10.4 (Salifert)
ALK = 3.55 (Salifert)
CAL = 430 (Salifert)
Salinity = 1.024
Temp = 80.3
I don't have any Magnesium test kits and have been using Oceanic salt. Considering I do 20% water changes no additional additives are dumped in the tank. This is a 20gal tank BTW. I'm thinking about purchasing some purple up to boost my system but I don't want to add anything without consulting the experts.

 

[Quang]

do you have a some rocks with coraline to seed it? I have the same issue with my tank...but I'm starting to see spots of coraline here and there now. Ask Deep about it...it took him forever to get coraline until he swtiched to Tropic Marin Salt.

 

[noodleman]

I say forget about the coralline and just fill it up with corals:p :party:

 

[nanoreefer22]

Whats your lighting and flow in the tank?

 

[saltyweeds]

Yup, I still have some coraline algae but it's not spreading it kinda dying off or getting taken over by various tufts of green algae. I have some huge valonia here and there. I need to pop and vac them soon before they burst on there own.

 

[nanoreefer22]

Salty,
Are your tufts of green algae, hair algae?
-Kris

 

[saltyweeds]

4 x 25 watt VHO t-5 (2 blues and 2 10k) for 8-10 hours a day. Flow is 2 Mj1200 with HOB Aquaclear 500. I have tufts of green algae slowly taking over the coraline. I have some hair algae but I'm not too concerned with them. I also have cyno but that's another story =P. I have just purchased AquaC Remora and it has just finished breaking in.

 

[nanoreefer22]

Give it some time, maybe the tanks still trying to fight off the effects of using tap water. Seeing that you have cyano, hair algae, and "tuft algae"(Do you have a pic?, I'd just give it some time. See if things change with the addition of the remora.

As for purple up, maybe someone on here who has tried it could comment on how good it is.

Try to get rid of the nuisance algaes first .
-Kris

 

[Quang]

btw i think your lightinig is on quite a bit...I started seeing more coraline spots and less of the green algae when I lowered my lighting from 10 to 6 hours. But best bet to get rid of the nuisance algae first (dependent on high nutrient levels...phosphate especially). But when I lowered my lighting hours, I saw a decline in green algae. Just my 2 cents. Try whatever works for you.

 

[herman]

Your problem is quite a simple one. Your parameters in your tank seem fine but there is one test kit that you dont have. Phosphate levels. You have to remember that phosphates incibit calcification. Being that coraline is a calcerous algae, nothing will grow until you get your phosphate levels down. I know you have high levels because you have other algae growing oin your rocks as you have indicated.
HTH,
Herman

 

[nycfatcow]

i had the same prob as you...i started dosing with bionic and over a time period of 2 months i see a lot of coraline growth

 

[Manny]

i had the same prob as you...i started dosing with bionic and over a time period of 2 months i see a lot of coraline growth

B-ionic is awesome:approve:

 

[weenjoyx]

b-ionic

when i started dosing with B-ionic I saw improved coraline growth-

My vote is start using it

 

[nanoreefer22]

Your problem is quite a simple one. Your parameters in your tank seem fine but there is one test kit that you dont have. Phosphate levels. You have to remember that phosphates incibit calcification. Being that coraline is a calcerous algae, nothing will grow until you get your phosphate levels down. I know you have high levels because you have other algae growing oin your rocks as you have indicated.
HTH,
Herman

Hope this piece of advice won't get looked over .

I've used kalk, sea chem products, kent products, and some others including using nothing at all. I still had coraline grow no matter how little, once everything is ok parameter wise it'll come.

 

[Chris5]

as far as purple up i used it religiously on my 30g bow and i saw huge amounts of coraline pop up everywhere in my tank very fast, but that was a small tank so everything happened very fast when it did, now with the 65g i havent seen any, maybe trace here and there but i am having the same problem....but i wont use the purple up at this point bc i am afraid it might cause unecessary probs again....so i am willing to wait it out.....

 

[herman]

Hope this piece of advice won't get looked over .

I've used kalk, sea chem products, kent products, and some others including using nothing at all. I still had coraline grow no matter how little, once everything is ok parameter wise it'll come.

It always does because experts always have other advice. Bionic is not going to do anything to his setup cause his parameters are fine. Oh well..... what can you do other than drink right?

 

[spykes]

get a bigger skimmer! coraline likes very clean water to start the sporing process, i use my coraline's color to observe my water's parameter.

 

[R32Brightliner]

Test for phosphates. That might be what's inhibiting your coraline growth.
I didn't start seeing coraline growth until my phosphate was near zero then the growth started to boom. Just my opinion and observation.

 

[DRZL]

lol....purple up is more like green (as in cash) down.

just one of those great BS (marc weiss I believe) products that does nothing at all.

Dont fall for false advertising, what Herman and Kris said is spot on.

But in all reality coralline sucks, it takes over your glass and you end up w/ a neck ache trying to remove it from the glass, consider it a blessing in disguise, get some coral and cover the bald spots. Again Params permitting

oh and one more thing upgrade those first 2 test kits salifert as well, AP has always been too sketchy IMO

 

[griMReefer]

dosing KALKWASSER is the easy secret to growing coralline. i know its oldfashion and messy, but if you do it, coralline WILL grow