Bubble algae enthusiast saying hello

[kruti19]

Hi! My name is Kruti and I'm really fascinated by bubble algae. I think it's a really neat little organism and I'd love to hear any stories people have about them. All the information I can find online is about managing them as pests, but I'm interested if anyone has tips on how to grow them larger on purpose.
Glad to be here!

 

[timeconsumer]

Sure I have plenty of stories. Like when you show off your tank to someone who isn't into reefkeeping and it's full of beautiful corals and they go "Oh wow look at those pretty green marbles!" that's always a fun one.

If you want them to grow faster I had the most "luck" under a T5 fixture that was heavy in 6500k GE Starcoat bulbs. I bet if you used only 6500k light you'd see some really strong algae growth.

 

[Steve Burton]

For best survival chances and better growth I recommend don't put it in with a Foxface - Magnificent Foxface at least, not sure about others.

 

[Gabridge83]

Don’t get an emerald crab if you want to keep growing them.

 

[Doberman13]

Welcome! I can't remember who it was but someone in our club had a bubble that was bigger than a golf ball! I think it was posted under the random pic of the day thread

 

[joseayes]

Welcome! I haven’t had an infestation of that “beatiful bubble algae” that you’re talking about, guess I’ve been lucky, but I believe you could make it grow easily even with some fluorescent bulb, if you want to expend a little more there’s some Chinese Black LED boxes that are actually setup for Plant growth, bubble algae should have no problem growing.
Please post some pics!

 

[ActiveAngel]

Bubble algae is an amazing organism, but most of us consider it a pest. The issue is that it is simply too resilient. Once you have it in a tank, im convinced that no reasonable effort can get rid of it. Crabs, tangs, foxfaced, vibrant... it doesnt matter. It will seem to disappear, but once the controlling factor is removed, you will see it grow and spread over everything.

That said, its super cool! I always show it off to new biologist friends. They always love it!