0pius Posted October 9, 2005 Report Share Posted October 9, 2005 This may seem a stupid question but I will ask it anyway. I have a fish only tank with some coral rock which I am still aquascaping but the main thing I want to know is, is it possible to get some coralline algae growing in a fish only tank as I like the colour of it but I am not really interested in corals due to my fish being Puffers. If it is possible how would I go about either getting some coralline algae or if live rock is needed where do you get this from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pies Posted October 9, 2005 Report Share Posted October 9, 2005 Yes its possible. Not sure you will have to do anything, it will just grow. Some say get a rock or a scraping from someone elses rock to get it seeded but I don't think you need to. Coraline will grow best in medium/low light. Other than that, it just happens. Good luck with the puffers. Pie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wasp Posted October 9, 2005 Report Share Posted October 9, 2005 How old is your tank Opius? If there is absolutely no coraline in the tank, you will have to get it from somewhere. One possibility is to turn over a few rocks in some rock pools at low tide, you will find some with a good amount of coraline on the underneath. Put it in your tank and point a powerhead straight at the coraline. Have other powerheads pointing straight at rock where you want coraline to grow. There are some water parameters you need for coraline to do well, low phosphate is a must or it simply will not grow. After that, correct levels of calcium, alkalinty, magnesium, and strontium, are all good to have, although even if these are out of whack it can still grow provided phosphate is low. About all else you need is moderate light, it will not do well under strong Metal Halide lighting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
0pius Posted October 9, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 9, 2005 I didn't realise I could get it from a rockpool I thought it was something only warmer waters had, I will try the rockpools but other than that my tank has been going for around 3 years now, I have puffers so I am somewhat limited in my choices of cohabitants. but after seeing your guys tanks with the algae I decided I wanted a bit of colour. Thanks for the help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wasp Posted October 9, 2005 Report Share Posted October 9, 2005 Opius if your tank is 3 years old and no coraline, it is highly likely your water paramenters are out, especially phosphate. Not sure if you have a test kit, but if not you should get one. At least it will cost you nothing to get some coralline from a rock pool and try it. If the coraline you put in your tank kind of sugars over and eventually dies, that is normally a sign of excess phosphate, which is a good possibility in a 3 year old fish only tank. There are things you can do to solve that, ask here if it is an issue. Anyhow, keep us updated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted October 10, 2005 Report Share Posted October 10, 2005 aye carumba, a shrine to coralline algae! http://www.saltyzoo.com/CorallineGrowth.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
0pius Posted October 10, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 10, 2005 Cheers for that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
0pius Posted October 10, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 10, 2005 Wasp, This is the first time I am trying to grow coralline algae so this isn't a case of I can't I just never have, mainly due to the fact I thought that only the people who have corals in there tank could have the coralline algae Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted October 10, 2005 Report Share Posted October 10, 2005 i find coralline grows exponentially. the more there is, the faster it grows. i also found by personal experience (and now backed up by the faq above) that replacement or addition of bulbs causes a die off. i added a new 150W to the centre and the MASSIVE amounts (as in about a dozen layers thick!) of bright pink coralline that was under it died off, turning a whiteish colour. imo its just a matter of time for it to adjust to the new lighting conditions and start growing again. however, i think i definately need to get rid of the light covering of hair algae that took its place on some of the rocks (outcompeted the coralline in growth!) i attribute this to a number of changes (new bulb, starting zeovit, infrequent water changes and overfeeding) im not overly worried though, as I know (once i get back on-top of the unwanted nutrient addition) its just a matter of time before the tank adjusts and coralline grows back. if you see some signs of coralline growth, just be patient and it will take off over the next few months (so long as you keep up your regular maintenance) if not, try seeding the tank, get your calcium levels right, dont make any major changes and in time you will see the cool colours of coralline growing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
0pius Posted January 11, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2006 Update: Thanks to Reef I now have some lovely rock with the corralline algae on it to help kick start this little expedition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reef Posted January 11, 2006 Report Share Posted January 11, 2006 dose kaltwasser daily as this will help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cracker Posted January 11, 2006 Report Share Posted January 11, 2006 Strontium also makes coralline grow rapidly as long as phosphates are low like WASP has already said. If you run just one product..."Seacham reef builder" you will get good coralline. It contains the perfect amount of the coralline growing bits. But its not cheap!! magnesium, strontium and calcium etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
0pius Posted January 11, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 11, 2006 Currently I use salifert all in one and corraline amino acids additives. This was recommended to me by the guys at hollywoods Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cracker Posted January 11, 2006 Report Share Posted January 11, 2006 Ask "Drifty" about Reef builder. His coralline is off the charts! Ive seen it. I can supply you with PURE chemicals individually if needed. Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reef Posted January 11, 2006 Report Share Posted January 11, 2006 dosing all sorts of supplements does not work well as you put the ionic balance of the tank out. Best is to get the water quality correct and it will just happen. Mine has gone nuts recently by only adding a buffer and a small amount of strontium Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cracker Posted January 11, 2006 Report Share Posted January 11, 2006 If you put the right amounts in, the ionic balance is fine. Ive been doing it for over a year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Holiday Posted January 11, 2006 Report Share Posted January 11, 2006 aye carumba, a shrine to coralline algae! http://www.saltyzoo.com/CorallineGrowth.html Thats pretty interesting, I was wondering why I had such good Coralline growth and now I know why. I have only one fish and a handful of corals, My PH is constant on 8.4 and alkalinity is always high on about 10 - 12 dkh and I also have a strong water flow, this seems to all contribute to an enviroment prevered by coraline algae. I do not know how much phosphates have do with it but I can gaurantee you that mine are not at altra low levels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted January 12, 2006 Report Share Posted January 12, 2006 I have great coraline growth too, and I bet I have heaps of phosphates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wasp Posted January 12, 2006 Report Share Posted January 12, 2006 Tested it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
0pius Posted January 26, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 26, 2006 Well the coralline algae seems to be growing very well I have some nice patches of purple through the tank. The funny thing is my phosphates are currently at 0.5 which I was under the impression was high. I am still only dosing salifert all in one and coralline aminoacids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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