Does anyone rinse their chaetomorpha algae?

[jmt]

Hello All

I have a reef tank with a refugium that contains chaeto. Every once in a while I will trim some when it becomes overgrown, and when I do it usually has a lot of "junk" in it that clouds up the water. I know that a lot of pods and other beneficial living things live in the chaeto; however, my question is when does this "junk" become more of a nitrate factory?

Does anyone ever rinse this stuff out from time to time to clean out the detritus?

 

[raz0945]

I don't rinse because the pods breed in the chaeto and that is one of the reasons I want it in my sump. Holley

 

[lifestudent]

The cheato will consume your nitrates so that matter doesn't become a "nitrate factory".

Amphipods will also consume detritus and bacteria so keeping them is very beneficial.

 

[schwaggs]

I don't have "junk" in my chaeto. When I trim it, I don't have a clouding problem...:dunno:

 

[misu]

Schwaggs;694442 wrote: I don't have "junk" in my chaeto. When I trim it, I don't have a clouding problem...:dunno:

same here, plus I'm afraid to do it since I saw some bristleworms in it

 

[smallblock]

I have before, it wont hurt it. IME

 

[kirru]

i dont do it.. 1 main reason is i am already lazy enough.

 

[ralph atl]

Yes, I have.....since I have a ulns it rarely grew...became a nitrate factory, and I ditched the fuge.

 

[hammcd]

when i had cheato i would occasionally put it in another container of saltwater and shake it out a bit to get the crap that had built up in it out (i had more than the usual amlunt of stuff going through it because i had it in the back chamber of a biocube so any matter going through the tank went through it..never seemed to hurt the pod population or bristleworms..theyd hang on prety tight lol