When to add cheato

[Hrosik123]

Ladies and gentlemen,
In the process of starting my new 100 gallon IM ext. Aquascape is ready to add along with sand and water.
Was going to use Fritz turbo start900 with a few fish to get the process going.
Question is when should I start the refugium? I would think once algae starts to form but I’ve been wrong before.
Thoughts?

 

[Formulator]

I would wait a while until you notice nitrate levels rising beyond what your water changes can manage in keeping it to 10-20 ppm. Adding too early risks depleting your nutrients too much and inviting dinoflagellates, which is a common nightmare in new reefs. The chaeto also probably won’t do very well in a new setup.