Cheato Troubles

[Gdel]

Hi All, I know there have been some threads on this but I wanted to get others opinion on my attempts at growing Cheato.

I have a decent amazone light. See below. It's very bright and I think it has plenty of power. I'm running a cycle opposite my display lights so from about 6pm to 3am. I decided to limit the run time to 9 hours until the Cheato takes off. So far the Cheato seems to be dying off. My nitrates test 5-10 ppm regularly and I run my simmer 24/7. Is it possible that I just don't have sufficient Nitrates for Cheato growth? I'm thinking that I should turn my skimmer off at night when the Cheato light is on. Does this seem like a reasonable next step? I'd rather not add nitrates back to my tank with an additive if I can help it.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

LED Grow Light Full Spectrum, 150W Relassy Waterproof COB LED Grow Light with Natural Heat Dissipation and Without Noise Perfect for Outdoor/Indoor Pl

 

[silentdeath5]

In the same boat. I’ll be trying brightwell’s ferrion iron supplement

 

[dball711]

If your nitrates are in line then maybe you don’t need it? I had to remove it in my tank as I was unable to maintain any measurable nitrate levels.

 

[Steve Burton]

+1 on what Dave said. I've never had growing chaeto as a goal, just a tool to export phosphates and nitrates.

 

[gainesvillereef]

I agree with the above. You may be lacking phosphate.

 

[morganatlanta]

CheatoGro is probably what you need. https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/chaetogro-refugium-fertilizer-brightwell-aquatics.html?sku=211663