Recommend corals for Macroalgae tank?

[KenRexford]

My office tank is being set up as a Macroalgae display tank. AI prime freshwater as lighting. I have abundant overgrowth of corals in my home tank as a source for possible inclusion into the Macroalgae tank.

For example, my home tank has loads of green star polyps. I don’t really like caulerpa for green, so I am thinking of adding gsp for green. Gsp next to red Pom Pom Gracilaria seems like a recipe for beauty.

Would gsp thrive under AI prime freshwater? If so, any recommendations as far as spectrum settings for the ai prime freshwater when growing soft corals like gsp? If no, any alternative corals to recommend for a Macroalgae tank under that lighting?

 

[Stealthreefer]

Most stuff will "thrive" under fresh water type lighting but everything ends up a shade of brown in my experience.
Used to be that color spectrum of light was the only way to have bright lights and we all kept light brown to dark brown corals.
Stuff won't "pop" under orange/yellow light.

 

[Subsea]

All soft corals do nicely in a macro tank. Consider some mixed invertebrate.

I use 5000-6500 Kevin color spectrum. With that color spectrum you will highlight greens, yellows & reds. At present, this 30G tank has many amphipods & copepods.

In my experiences, green macroalgae grows too fast and is quickest to go sexual when nutrients bottom out.
Some red macroalgae like Bortacladia prefer more subdued lighting as it is collected in 30’-130’ of water.

Macro Algae : Your Source For Quality Marine Plants and Macroalgae

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www.marineplantbook.com

Check out what Russ Kronwetter, diver/owner of GulfCoast EcoSystems, says about macro algae in
aquariums.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR​ My interest with keeping tropical fish began at an early age growing up near the Florida Everglades in South Florida. With a bucket and net in hand, I would often spend entire afternoons with my brother, wading through alligator and snake infested waters in search of freshwater tropical fish for our small aquarium at home. As I grew older, my attention gravitated to the marine aquarium hobby. The fish were more colorful than freshwater varieties and the amount of invertebrates available were interesting and fascinating to me. I began exploring the shallow coastal tidal pools and protected shorelines of the Atlantic Ocean , collecting marine tropicals for our home aquarium. About the time when reef aquariums and live rock began to gain in popularity, I was now living on the Gulf Coast of Florida. The fish weren’t as colorful; the water not as clear, but something else was abundant. Marine macro algae were growing everywhere! The warm tropical waters of the Gulf of Mexico in Florida are full of a wide array of fascinating and colorful marine algae. Like many other hobbyists in the early 80’s, most of my interest was with growing various species of hardy Caulerpa. I soon however, began experimenting with growing other more colorful and challenging varieties including both brown and red algae. My first attempts at culturing marine macro algae were marked with some frustration and failure, but I continued learning and experimenting until I was able to successfully maintain several species in the home aquarium. I was once told by a reputable pet store owner that macro algae couldn’t be grown. He had tried it and was unable to keep it alive for any great period of time. This was years before the “refugium” made its appearance, so keeping marine algae in captivity long term was a relatively new idea and its needs largely unknown. Most of the information contained in this publication is related to both my personal experience and observation. I was originally hesitant to publish the book, as there are others that are much more qualified to do so, but still to date, there remain very few resources for the marine hobbyist. Let me first say that I am not a biologist, but an avid aquarist with many years of experience maintaining saltwater aquariums. Most literature available on marine plants today is technical and often requires advanced knowledge to understand. In addition, the majority of books on the subject are mostly field guides for students and lack detailed information on aquarium use. The purpose of this publication is to offer a simplified guide for the identification, use and culture of marine macro algae and plants in the aquarium. Russ is the owner of Gulf Coast Ecosystems, a wholesale and retail supplier of collected and aquacultured ornamental marine algae. He is an avid scuba diver and experienced marine life collector, with over 25 years experience in the marine aquarium industry. ​ ​ ​

​

 

[Ichtha_yo Stuff]

I think gorgonians look good in a macro algae tank. Some soft coral species like a fiji yellow leather look good if you can find one, best think to do is when shopping for coral ask the store to turn on the lights to the spectrum you are running to see what it will look like in your tank. With controllabe lighting its really easy for a shop to do that.

 

[vlangel]

I have both soft and a few LPS with my macroalgae. I keep my fish well fed to produce high nutrients for the macros and the coral.

 

[doogen3421]

I have both soft and a few LPS with my macroalgae. I keep my fish well fed to produce high nutrients for the macros and the coral.

What lighting do you recommend?

 

[vlangel]

What lighting do you recommend?

I love my ReefBreeder Photon and I was a diehard T5 gal. However it became impossible to find 30" bulbs for my fixture and so I switched to LEDs. That was the best thing I ever did because both my coral and macroalgae have flourished ever since. Compared to the high end LEDs the ReefBreeder is a lot more affordable. I like that it should be hung 14" above the water, which allows me to work in the tank with the lights on and in place so I can see what I am doing. They are reasonably low profile. I used the hanging kit but they come with legs too and none of that costs extra. It all comes with the light fixture.