Macro alge in the show tank?

[cyn]

I have seen alot of pictures posted and have never seen a tank with macro alge. Any particular reason why? Just sorta dawned on me while I was at a LFS today. They have several types of Macro in some of their tanks and it looks nice. It has me wondering if there is a reason not to put it in mine.
cyn

 

[treble]

Me got my patch in my show tank. Supposidly some can sting corals, so maybe thats why.

 

[colorado_reef]

It spreads fast and if you have tangs they will eat it !!!
I don't know if thats the only reasons but thats what I know

 

[cyn]

Thanks Sammy et al,
I picked some up at the LFS yesterday but was hesitating putting it in my tank. I put it in the return side of my backpac for the time being. I will be adding it to the tank tonight. My yellow tang went nuts when I put the stuff in the return . I guess he knew it was there! I really like the look of the tanks with the macro in them and am looking forward to mine with it as well.
Thanks again,
cyn

 

[kelly]

Cyn,
I try to keep a little in my main tank all the time. I currently have to different varieties and like the additional color that it adds to the tank.
I think the main reason that most people do not have it is that it can grow relatively quick, and can take over a tank if left unchecked.
Every once in a while, I will have a piece just take off and grow like crazy. After it does, I just trim it back, and put it in another tank or take it to the LFS. It is kind of weard though, just 1 piece of it will have this spurt, and none of the others.
I have never heard about the stinging that Treble mentioned, but my yellow polyps burned my leather, it has since recovered.

 

[cyn]

Thanks Kelly, I did put the some of the alge in the main tank today. The tangs are very pleased. The red alge has been eaten to the stems in less than 10 hours. The others are doing well. I will keep an eye out for the growth and prune as necessary. I am hoping to set up a refigum in the near future and will use the pruned stuff to stock that. I really like the way that it looks .
cyn

 

[dfimble]

From my experience I would say definately DO NOT put macro alga in the display tank. (I too like the look) The only exception to this would be if you have several hungry fish. I currently have 3 forms (bubble, Leaf & Feather) growing in my coral tank and I have had to prune it back 4 times in under 2 months. It's so bad that it had actually grown over some of my coral.
Afte the second prunning, I transfered my purple tang to the tank. It nibbles at it, but its so well established that, nothing short of getting rid of all of my rock, will get rid of the stuff.
Hope this doesn't happen to you.
David

 

[cyn]

I will let you know how it goes. Right now, I like it. Only time will tell.
cyn

 

[wrassecal]

What kind of macro-algae did you buy cyn?. Everyone says calerpa goes crazy but I've put it in a couple times and my yellow tang always eats it up even though I feed the tang seaweed selects.

 

[dwarfs]

i have a sailfin tang and a scopes tang my scopes is purple and brownish yellow very pretty,and a foxface, these fish love alage if you need it cleaned up quick..i grow it in a 20 gal. tank and feed it to them when i trim it back. i have read it gives off some type of slime or something to never cut it inside your mane tank??? the best kind of tank for these types of alage is in a seahorse only tank they love to hunt for their food down in the caulerpa pipefish like it to and mandrine's these fish all eat alike very slow.

 

[dwarfs]

i did not mean the mandrien or pipes eat caulerpa, i ment to say they like to hunt in it for live food.

 

[lordofthereef]

i have a couple of things to say about this one.
1) macro algeas will take over your tank!! it will smother out corals just like hair algea would. its better to just keep it in a refugium.
2) it just dosen't look natual! last year i went scuba diving at a place called "dead mans reef" in the bahamas. there was no macro algea growing on the reef at all! it was all in patches along the shallow flats, about 200 yards before the reef itself. there was a lot of triggers and tangs feeding in those areas. but there was none on the reef.
so what i'm saying is, first, i don't want an algea tank for my display(and i don't think others would either). and second, wouldn't you want your money pit to look as natual as possible? i would.

 

[karlas]

i have a couple different kinds growing in my tank but i never put them in there. they just grew off of the lr i've just been pruning it a lot. seems like it hasnt done any harm to anything

 

[fender]

I have been happy with the halimeda in my tank. It has become a nesting ground for mysis shrimp and amphipods - tons of these guys can safely live in there without predation. When I do my monthly glass scrape/water change I prune it back some. Looks nice IMO, keeps trates down and is in in-tank refugium of sorts.
Whenever I get the cash for a sump I'll move most of it down there, but for right now I am happy with it.

 

[cyn]

DAB,
I am not sure of the names of the algae I put in the tank. I only moved a little out of the bac pack into the main tank to see how it goes. I am currently trying to ID the varieties that the LFS gave me, and I will post pictures of them soon so you all can help! Thanks for all of the input and opinions everyone I really appreciate it!
cyn

 

[k.lee]

Originally posted by cyn:
<strong>I have seen alot of pictures posted and have never seen a tank with macro alge. Any particular reason why? Just sorta dawned on me while I was at a LFS today. They have several types of Macro in some of their tanks and it looks nice. It has me wondering if there is a reason not to put it in mine.
cyn</strong><hr></blockquote>
Probably because a tang or TWO is resident, and crop it all back.
Lee

 

[k.lee]

Originally posted by Treble:
<strong>Me got my patch in my show tank. Supposidly some can sting corals, so maybe thats why.</strong><hr></blockquote>
Algae sting corals? nO way!

 

[k.lee]

Originally posted by sammystingray:
<strong>I simply think alot of the tanks you are seeing are new. Mine was destroyed, and I currently am starting in my new reef tank what I call the "macro stage". It takes some time to get good macro growing everywhere without using algaes that may overtake a tank. I agree 100% that a tank without macro intermingled with the corals is incomplete. I have some red and green algae of various types started now.......brown I'll skip.</strong><hr></blockquote>
heh on some of (oneat least) there is a reddish algae growing about 1 inch above the shell of an astrae in my tank. The shells were clean when, I bought them minus some inverts.

.

 

[k.lee]

Originally posted by dwarfs:
<strong>i did not mean the mandrien or pipes eat caulerpa, i ment to say they like to hunt in it for live food.</strong><hr></blockquote>
understood

 

[k.lee]

Originally posted by LORDOFTHEREEF:
<strong>i have a couple of things to say about this one.
1) macro algeas will take over your tank!! it will smother out corals just like hair algea would. its better to just keep it in a refugium.
2) it just dosen't look natual! last year i went scuba diving at a place called "dead mans reef" in the bahamas. there was no macro algea growing on the reef at all! it was all in patches along the shallow flats, about 200 yards before the reef itself. there was a lot of triggers and tangs feeding in those areas. but there was none on the reef.
so what i'm saying is, first, i don't want an algea tank for my display(and i don't think others would either). and second, wouldn't you want your money pit to look as natual as possible? i would.</strong><hr></blockquote>
moneypiot LOL
C'MON
iT'S NOT A MONEY PIT TILL YOUR PUMP BLOWS UP AND YOUR COTRALS DIE. :/
plenty of people in this hobby kjeep corals alive for years. I bought a mumps coral, and the thing fragged itself within twio weeks. So now, I have three mumps coralks in my "new reef" tank. There was originally two growths on one rock (to explain), then, the rock split. I sepparated the rock carefully, leaving the original two mumps on one rock, and the third on a new foundation, or maybe that was vice - versa. Needless to say. We enjoy it.
Lee
ps purchased a bunch of new stock tonight including a mandarin.
Only thing I lost yet in my current endeavor for reefing was a blue linkia .