coraline

[craig_will2513]

hi all i was wondering if there is anything i can do to encourages and speed up the growth of the nice coraline algea that grows. iv heard that purple up is a waste of money so just wanted your thoughts.

 

[joy13]

My friend swears by purple up and I don't both of us have coraline in our tanks and it has progressed about the same. I do watch my calcium. To me I think water changes will help just as much as the purple up. Purple up also clouds the water which I don't like.

 

[zacheyp]

just get a piece of live rock that has coraline on it. Thats what i did and like 3 moths later i had coraline

 

[Gregcoyote]

The purple up is a waste of time IMO. Just keep calcium levels high with Kalkwasser and maintain them with a two part Ca/Alk supplement, along with water changes using a good reef mix. You will be cursing the calcareous algae soon enough as it is really hard to remove from everything it coats.

 

[craig_will2513]

ok what is Kalkwasser and i use red sea salt mix is this good

 

[bighabeeb]

Kalkwasser is a dosing additive used to raise calcium/ph and keep them at a proper level. Generally speaking, you won't need it until you start really having a lot of algae and calcium dependent corals. (I currently have a tank with 3 corals, a bunch of live rock, and a moderate amount of coraline, and I don't need to dose at this point)

 

[Gregcoyote]

I am a old timer...so I use Kalkwasser. Most brands of sea salts don't provide enough calcium for heavily loaded stoney coral tanks. And some cheaper salts are really low in calcium. Use a reef mix and you will be okay, but if you want coralline algae growth, keep calcium levels high, forget the purple up.

 

[craig_will2513]

thanks i use the red sae salt mix