Coralline Algae help!

[Joshsmit56001]

I am having a hard time getting coralline algae to grow in my tank. THe only places that it really thrives is where there is not direct light. I have a lot of dark purple where there are shadows but on top of the rocks where I really want to see coralline there is no coralline or very little. My calcium, alk and PH are at the right levels, calc at 450. I have a 30 gallon with 2 96 watt PC's with 1 10,000k bulb and one 03 actinic. I dose kalk 24/7 using a DIY system. The way I dose is have a 5 gallon container with one tube coming in that is short and another tube that gose down to the bottom. What happenes is an air pump is turned on by a float switch which pumps air into the container making the pressure higher which in turn pushes the kalk out of the longer tube and into the tank. I recently got an order of GARF grunge about a month and a half ago and also got a new set of snails and crabs which helped a lot. I have a lot of coralline growth on the glass and I have scraped it off to seed the rock but it never helps. Please someone tell me what I can do? I want the beautiful pink and purple coralline all over my rock and not just the spots that you can't see. Thanks in advanced.

Josh

 

[electrikat]

I have been set up appx 18months and have just started to get coralline on the equipment. Your ca and alk sound good. I can only think that maybe some of your crabs/snails may be eating it. I have read that some crabs definatly eat coralline algae. Don't know exactly which ones though. It appears to grow faster on the plastics of the equipment and pumps in my tank, not so fast on the glass or substrate. I did however get 20,000k bulbs today and noticed that it really brings out the colors of the coralline I didn't even know we had.

 

[vertex]

I have a similar concern with the coraline growth in my tank. Also a small tank (33g) with 2x96W lighting (same setup as above) and have very little coraline spreading. A few specific questions other than what I have read and what Johnsmit tried above to help "seed" the rock...

1. Does the coraline algae spread best anywhere in the water or only to nearby rocks and nearby objects. In other words, should I put my rocks all together to help them spread faster or leave space where I want it so its more appealling as a tank. Any difference?

2. Are different rocks able to grow coraline algae faster than others? It seems one or two of mine grows well and next to nothing on all the others?

3. Will a bit of hair algae prevent coraline algae from growing. The rocks I have the least growth on, do have just a little bit of hair algae that I can't seem to get rid of. Hardly any though, I doubt it would affect it but can this?

4. Is it possible to have too much light for good coraline growth? I have read in a few places now that the most growth seems to occur in the darker areas? Should I switch to only one light on instead of both 96W bulbs? Which bulb should I use if so, 10000K white or actinic?


Thanks..

 

[Joshsmit56001]

bump

 

[indy]

1. It will grow anywhere given time. To spread it out a little faster you can scrub a coraline encrusted rock with a toothbrush in front of a ph. It should distribute it and help it grow.

2. no

3. generally no

4. Yes. Many people have said they got a lot less growth under intense lighting than they did with lesser lighting. This doesn't happen in every tank so it's not a die hard rule. Seeing that you are getting good growth in lower light areas would suggest your tank may do better with a little less light as far as the coraline goes. You could try using 1 50/50 bulb for a while and see if you get the results you want.

Remember tho' that coraline grows slowly and it will take some time for it go get going in ways that are noticeable.