Consistent Algae Scrubbing (or other nutrient export methods)

[KleineVampir]

Because I have no algae lol

Fair enough! But are you doing water changes or any other nutrient export method?

 

[40g Nano]

Fair enough! But are you doing water changes or any other nutrient export method?

No water changes and a little bit of dying chaeto

 

[Ratherbeflyen]

Although I greatly appreciate that you've struck a balance and your tank looks great, I don't think I'm gonna follow in your footsteps! I'm not somebody who just wants a nice display. I'm in this to prove something, and to learn along the way. There are undoubtedly methods that do work involving water changes but that would not be worth it to me.

The combination of scrubber and chaeto is interesting, and it probably does work. The scrubber can handle the big spikes but the chaeto can keep the nutrient level down in general.

A plastic screen with water flowing over it has no filtration ability. What makes it a filter is the lighting and that lighting is absolutely adjustable. You can tune the filter by adjusting the light intensity and duration. A scrubber, or a fuge, will obviously uptake more nitrate and phosphate if the lights are on for 20 hours as opposed to 4 hours. Unless you have a new scrubber, then 20 hours may nuke the algae. If you dim the lights, or shade the light, there is also an effect. There is a spot where the lighting and stocking/feeding will be in balance and you can also balance that lighting running two types of algae. Currently trial and error is really the only method to find that balance.

It may be a little more complicated, but having two algae types does have redundancy. When my scrubber was growing slower than normal, a brief inspection showed one of the 4 lights on my scrubber was shorting out and not making full power. In another instance I added too much light to my fuge and the cheato started bleaching and dying off. In both cases the waste nutrients were kept in check by the other. That's why I plan to keep both for the foreseeable future.

I'm curious, what is your goal if it's not a nice display tank?

 

[KleineVampir]

A plastic screen with water flowing over it has no filtration ability. What makes it a filter is the lighting and that lighting is absolutely adjustable. You can tune the filter by adjusting the light intensity and duration. A scrubber, or a fuge, will obviously uptake more nitrate and phosphate if the lights are on for 20 hours as opposed to 4 hours. Unless you have a new scrubber, then 20 hours may nuke the algae. If you dim the lights, or shade the light, there is also an effect. There is a spot where the lighting and stocking/feeding will be in balance and you can also balance that lighting running two types of algae. Currently trial and error is really the only method to find that balance.

It may be a little more complicated, but having two algae types does have redundancy. When my scrubber was growing slower than normal, a brief inspection showed one of the 4 lights on my scrubber was shorting out and not making full power. In another instance I added too much light to my fuge and the cheato started bleaching and dying off. In both cases the waste nutrients were kept in check by the other. That's why I plan to keep both for the foreseeable future.

I'm curious, what is your goal if it's not a nice display tank?

Right I agree that having both could have its advantages. I guess I just figured on focusing on the scrubber and letting it have all the nutrients to give it the best chance of working and getting going.

My goal is to eliminate water changes. If I succeed there's no telling whether I'll even stay in the hobby or not. I've already succeeded in no water changes with freshwater, and that tank is long gone!