[jcjohnsons]

Well I've been wanting to start a fuge, but just haven't got the chance to do lack of funds with the hoildays and all...
I was talking to a friend about cheato and turning a HO into a fuge (I need to buy a bigger filter in order to do so).
Today, he bought come cheato for his fuge and gave me the rest.. Right now, I have it chilling in a low to no flow spot in the corner of my tank.. Will it do ok there? It's a 10g. Or should I go buy a bigger HO to prevent it from over growing and killing my corals?

What is it's purpose to begin with?
thanks in advance!

 

[slapshot]

It will not grow and kill your corals. It will grow but it is easy to control. It does like flow however so I would look at any kind of a fuge. A simple one can be made from a pump and a plastic storage tub. It really helps with the tank balance and I would not run an aquarium without it. Once you see the improvement you will never either.

The purpose is to remove nutrients. As it grows it consumes nitrates and when you pull it out and discard some you are removing them from your system. A fuge also adds a place for bugs and things to grow without being eaten before they can reproduce. Some always end up in the tank so it becomes a continuous live food source. I hope that helps.

 

[Mr.Bob]

Macroalgae play an important role in closed marine systems. They utilize nutrients, such as Nitrate and phosphate, which are found in abundance in most aquariums. As they grow, they take up required nutrients from the water column.

The use of Macroalgae in marine aquariums is a matter of personal preference, but can provide the hobbyist with an affordable, natural means of exporting excess nutrients from the aquarium. Many hobbyists grow and harvest “purposeful” Macroalgae, such as Chaetomorpha, Gracilaria, Halimeda, and Caulerpa somewhere in their systems in order to assist in the control and export of excess nutrients. By carefully cultivating and harvesting the Macroalgae on a regular basis, you are literally removing excess nutrients from the aquarium. The Macroalgae may be grown either in a separate section of a sump, algal turf scrubber, or even a refugium, depending upon the hobbyist’s preferences.

The degree of nutrient export provided by Macroalgae is largely dependent upon the growth rate, density, and quantity of the Macroalgae harvested. Under optimal conditions, some species of Macroalgae can achieve tremendous growth rates, providing the hobbyist with a wonderful means to export nutrients from his or her system.

-Brandon

 

[Guest]

I agree even though having it in your main tank isn't pritty it still will help greatly with the nitrates

now keep in mind that if it grows and starts to touch corals or things it may iritate them just by beeing somthign touching the corals but it wont kill or sting them in any way just prune it back

I kept mine in a ball in the back corner of my tank for quite some time the bigest thing is to make shure it has decent light to make it grow and consume the extra nutrients in the tank

the extra nutrients if not consumed by the macro algae IE chatoe will cause nuicence algae to grow

 

[jcjohnsons]

thank you guys.. you have answered my question. I think I will invest in a larger HO to make into a fuge so that I don't have a ball of cheato siting in the corner of my tank