Fuge: Reverse cycle or 24hrs?

[nanonano]

I can't run mine opposite because I have one of the older Aquafuge 2's and it shines into the tank... I can't grow my chaeto at all and it breaks apart and comes in little pieces into the display.

I have an 18w single bulb 50/50 03 6000k bulb above the fuge. I don't know what else to do.

A rio 400 pump pulls water into the chamber and it runs pretty well I think. :confused2:

 

[jjkeith]

how about some red gracillia (sp?), not a huge calcium dump and if some does get into your tank it'll just be food for tangs, etc. i'm not that familiar with the stuff but it might work in a fuge setting.

 

[ichthyoid]

jjkeith;485710 wrote: how about some red gracillia (sp?), not a huge calcium dump and if some does get into your tank it'll just be food for tangs, etc. i'm not that familiar with the stuff but it might work in a fuge setting.

gracillaria, +1

 

[smoothie]

ichthyoid;485760 wrote: gracillaria, +1

Great to have in there, but it is a slow grower compared to caulerpa and cheato which won't help as much to export nutrients

 

[corigan]

I leave mine on 24/7 and grow calupera. It is supposed to help it from going sexual, but I can't tell you if that is true or not.

 

[nanonano]

AugustaSalty;485864 wrote: i throw away bowling ball size clumps of chaeto every other week, 24 hrs.

I need help then. Mine hasn't grown at all in 6 weeks. I don't know if it's flow or light or both..... :sad:

 

[moebious]

How many watts of light?
Mine was on for 24 hours and now it's on reverse but it is still turning clear or brown.

 

[weaglereefer]

Well, ran this til the tank got broken down recently. I never really had any "growth" but never had any die off, either.

 

[smallblock]

I shoulda looked at the freakin date on this lol. I was all messed up

 

[acroholic]

I run my cheato fuge light 18 on/6 off. That is the recommended interval for algae turf filters. I have good growth in my cheato. I have to harvest half of it ever 3 weeks or so.

 

[jef4y]

sailfish;371176 wrote: People always say cheato needs a time of darkness but mine does not and grows great. I am sure that science can prove that it would do better with darkness. I pull about a 3 qts of cheato out of my fug in 2 to 3 weeks. Now if I had room for another timer that would fit on the strip I would shut it off for 3 hrs but I don't, so it does not.

I have yet to see that having a reverse cycle actually helps with PH. IMO you would need to have a huge fuge to counter act the PH drop I get from my calcium reactor.

Joe

I used to run reverse light cycle and had growth where I had to trim out a bit every other month.

I went to 24x7 lighting, but more importantly, switched the lights out to lights in the 5500k range and the growth literally exploded. I cut out half of it monthly, and that half fills a walmart bag.

 

[thbrewst]

More generically, where can I learn the 'rules' for refugiums?

I just got mine set-up and running. The plumbing is set-up with a T in the drain and part goes into the fuge, but as of now it is definitely low flow (guessing ~25-30 gph). I have cheato (I think) and about a 2"bed of mud/sand. The size is ~1/3 of a 40gal breeder so ~17x12x14. I have a compact florescent fixture over it but not sure of the wattage on the bulb.

- What is the 'right flow'

- What is enough plant matter? What is too much? How do you know when to harvest some?

- Do I need a deeper sand bed?

- Should I add some rock? If so, how much is enough/too much?

- Do I need a clean-up crew? If so, what is good/bad? My baffle has no teeth (if that matters)?

Thanks for the help.

 

[weaglereefer]

The right flow is "enough".

The amount of plant matter is "not too much". You want it to GROW after all, if it takes up all the space, it can't grow...

Yes, try to go to 4" deep.

No, not in the fuge, but you could add some in the other chambers for pods to hide in. All empty space in my sump had rock in it: in baffles, around the skimmer, in the return pump chamber, and all the rocks were covered with sponges and tunicates.

Maybe a snail or two, not much.

 

[markl]

in my fuge I have to holes drilled for overflows and I have a pvc pipe that goes all the way to the bottom of the tank and 1 90 .it works good and keep things moving.I do 18 on 6 off

 

[rolo65]

I have the caulerpa(green feather and red grape)....and cheato...and mangroves....the only thing that happens when the caulerpa gets in the tank my sailfin devoures it....but with cheato you have to keep in on a schedule for lighting....if not it can go sexual....but my trates are >2....

 

[acroholic]

rolo65;564433 wrote: I have the caulerpa(green feather and red grape)....and cheato...and mangroves....the only thing that happens when the caulerpa gets in the tank my sailfin devoures it....but with cheato you have to keep in on a schedule for lighting....if not it can go sexual....but my trates are >2....

Isn't it cheato doesn't go sexual, but caulerpa does? Never heard of cheato going sexual.

 

[rolo65]

Acroholic;564453 wrote: Isn't it cheato doesn't go sexual, but caulerpa does? Never heard of cheato going sexual.

haha......yeah....meant caulerpa there.....was on my phone and driving(i dont actually look at my phone while i type)......dont tell the policia.....yeah cheato doesnt go sexual.....caulerpa does.....my B...

 

[blind1993]

could the growth of the chateo depend on how nutrient rich the water is? adds another variable which makes it almost impossible to determine which one or both affect growth, without a true experiment.

 

[jbadd99]

blind1993;745943 wrote: could the growth of the chateo depend on how nutrient rich the water is? adds another variable which makes it almost impossible to determine which one or both affect growth, without a true experiment.

I can tell you a little more than a year ago I got a nice size ball of the stuff and threw it in my fuge. Most of it withered and died, except for several small bits that were just too much of a pain to fish out so I left them in there. My tank was brand new at the time and I used a 12lb live rock to seed 85 lbs of base rock.

My fuge light stays on all the time since its LED. About a month or so ago, I notice the little specs were gaining in size and are now about the length of spaghetti noodles.

Now, I'm no scientist, but the lighting didn't change, so something else made it grow. I'm sure you can figure out the rest.

 

[johniii]

I have a 5 gallon fuge. Stays on 24/7 with a 6500 corkscrew bulb 13 watt I think. In 2 weeks I have a full fuge and trim back to a softball. Flow is about 50-100 gph

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