Two-faced plants: What types of algae have you found to be both good and bad?

[Peace River]

Two-faced plants: What types of algae have you found to be both good and bad?

Coralline is a good thing and diatoms are bad, right? But what about when coralline takes over a pump or when diatoms help the new tank owner balance nitrates and silicates? Caulerpa can be attractive and, if left unchecked, can overwhelm your tank and become a pest. Phyto is a great source of food but too much can turn the water green. Invasive macro algae can be beautiful in the tank but can be harmful if it finds its way into a natural marine environment where it doesn’t belong. Similarly, chaetomorpha can be beneficial and problematic. What is your experience dealing with these algae that can be both good and bad? Can you think of other algae that fit this category? Tell us your stories about two-faced marine plants and algae!

Macroalgae at its best! Photo by @Tigaboy

 

[John Bolden]

I've used phytoplankton to boost my pod population for my six line.

 

[Tanglover1]

Both coralline and phyto. Because when coralline dies,it leave a white calcium structure which looks ugly and phyto turns water greenish in colour when present in excess.

 

[brandon429]

I voted other = turf scrubber algae

we know it works well for the most part and usually stays isolated

but any plants in a system can reproduce via fragmentation it’s not unheard of

we just had to rip clean an entire display tank in private message completely taken over by turf scrubber algae that wasn’t in the display before the scrubber, looks identical to the growths on the scrubber, and once we removed the scrubber the ripped system is still using the same sourcewater the original used and now there’s no invasion. Farming plants within a reef display is subject to variation for sure/hindsight

 

[Wasabiroot]

Chaeto in my experience turns into a detritus magnet if insufficient flow in the sump is provided. Mine would collect debris and then float and turn into muck. I prefer larger macroalgae like Gracilaria for this reason. I have since upgraded flow in my sump. I've heard Ulva can be a pain because it grows so quickly also.

 

[vlangel]

I have a high nutrient tank by design so almost all macroalgae are my friend. Not only do they take up nutrients for my 56 gallon display tank with 10 fish plus inverts, but they beautify the scape adding color and texture. In this pic you can see codium, ulva,cheato, caulerpa cupressoides, red moss ball and red titan. I have a small amount of Coraline algae but use less calcium and alkalinity to limit it's growth on my gyre and pumps. I also feed phyto to help increase the pod population.

 

[vlangel]

Chaeto in my experience turns into a detritus magnet if insufficient flow in the sump is provided. Mine would collect debris and then float and turn into muck. I prefer larger macroalgae like Gracilaria for this reason. I have since upgraded flow in my sump. I've heard Ulva can be a pain because it grows so quickly also.

Yes, ulva will strip the nutrients out of the water column quickly if not watched carefully.

 

[Wasabiroot]

@WheatToast @Subsea @Macrochick

 

[Murica]

GHA

 

[Surskit]

coraline looks pretty on rocks, but to be honest i always thought it looked bad on glass. plus there was some that grew real thick where i work and i cut myself on it the other day lol

 

[Dburr1014]

Coraline, some people can't get it to grow and I can't get it to stop growing. Constantly scraping the glass and I hate it. But it's also a sign of a healthy reef tank.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Ive seen caulerpa go crazy wild as well as chaeto which seems to end up in the least suspected areas

 

[agoode3]

I think we can all agree that green hair algae is amongst the worst, but I think it's an excellent teacher for the new hobbyist.

When you experience it for the first time you go down a rabbit hole of figuring out how to eradicate it from your system, but this process teaches you about quarantining, nutrient management, proper water change scheduling, proper tank stocking, and the necessity for filtration (either mechanical or natural).

It helps teach balance, which is such an important concept in this hobby. While a nuisance, it's also one of the greatest teachers.

 

[Jessefishes]

Both coralline and phyto. Because when coralline dies,it leave a white calcium structure which looks ugly and phyto turns water greenish in colour when present in excess.

I did those 2 but for different reasons. Dosing phytoplankton is great for nutrient control if done properly but bottoms out phosphates if overdosed. coralline is great to stop certain algae’s from getting a good grip on the rocks but cost too much in 2 part

 

[Nemo&Friends]

I have a125G FWLRO and one 40G with macro algae. So far none has started to be a problem. The cadmium grows very fast, and I have started feeding it to my big tank, to the delight of my foxface, hyppo tang and Eibli angel. It will cut into my buying Nori, and I am sure they will prefer fresh veggie.
I was not successful with Uva nor with Chaeto. I do not like the look and feel of Chaeto, so I do not mind. I might try Uva again now that my other algae are doing well.

 

[Fish Styx]

Phyto because too much will tint your water column, and some species of Caulerpa because they can spread like wildfire.

 

[sfin52]

Ive seen caulerpa go crazy wild as well as chaeto which seems to end up in the least suspected areas

My bosses tank has cheato take hold in rocks and now growing all over the tank. Just added a urchin to hopefully mow it.

 

[vetteguy53081]

My bosses tank has cheato take hold in rocks and now growing all over the tank. Just added a urchin to hopefully mow it.

Isnt it pretty. . LOL.
Its the reason I went with algae scrubber as I was tired of finding strands in weird places and my scrubber does not release algae into the tank. One thing I did was placed the return line from scrubber into a filter sock as a measure to catch any loose strands but it is often empty

 

[sfin52]

Tbats

Isnt it pretty. . LOL.
Its the reason I went with algae scrubber as I was tired of finding strands in weird places and my scrubber does not release algae into the tank. One thing I did was placed the return line from scrubber into a filter sock as a measure to catch any loose strands but it is often empty

Thats an awesome idea

 

[TWYOUNG]

Chaeto in my experience turns into a detritus magnet if insufficient flow in the sump is provided. Mine would collect debris and then float and turn into muck. I prefer larger macroalgae like Gracilaria for this reason. I have since upgraded flow in my sump. I've heard Ulva can be a pain because it grows so quickly also.

Just trashed my Chaeto today bc it stopped growing and kept getting smothered by GHA. Anyone else encounter this? For now I've decided to go with the GHA in my fuge. After about two weeks mesh becomes overgrown and I power wash it.