Melting Chaeto

[onux20]

In the last two weeks I have had one clump of Chaeto melt to about half the original size. So I got another clump and it too is starting to melt. First the strands turn brown, then opaque, then a mushy mess. I have a PC strip light over the fuge area, on from 10pm to 8am. Do you think it is a lack of nutrients? Thoughts please.

Ron

[CHUBAKAH]

Do you think it is a lack of nutrients? Thoughts please.

Ron

If this is a new system, yes. Need a few more details to be sure.

[zygote2k]

turn off your skimmer for a week and see if the chaeto rebounds.

[bbyatv]

I had a similar situation and found that mi lights were too close. I backed them up and the macro stop turning to mush. I have also found that as my nutrient levels have gone down, so too has my macro growth.

[zygote2k]

In my tank, I have a 42w 6500k pc light about 6" from the top of the chaeto. I've never seen it 'melt' from too much light. My system produces about a pound every 2 weeks.

[davelin315]

Turning brown and to mush doesn't sound like problems with light and nutrients to me, sounds like there's something else out of whack with your water or it wasn't acclimated properly (but since your original chaeto ball didn't do this, I don't think that's what it is). Either that, or something is attacking it. I have my chaeto, which has been outcompeted by other things in the system lately and shrunk down to nothing, in very shallow water that grows to the top and it's under 400W MH. When mine shrank down to almost nothing, it never turned brown and to mush, it simply stopped growing and it took months for it to get down to almost nothing. It never turned brown or mushy at any point in time (heck, a wad that I stuck in the dark took a year to get down to nothing, and the whole time it even held it's coloration).

 

Is anything else suffering in your system?

[onux20]

If this is a new system, yes. Need a few more details to be sure.

Yes is a new system. Fish for about a month now. I was thinking about this on my way in to work. Maybe there is just not enough to sustain that size colony. I will give it some time and see if it stops melting when it gets to some sustainable size for the nutrients available.

Ron

[davelin315]

Yes is a new system. Fish for about a month now. I was thinking about this on my way in to work. Maybe there is just not enough to sustain that size colony. I will give it some time and see if it stops melting when it gets to some sustainable size for the nutrients available.

Ron

Still wouldn't turn brown and to mush, though. It would simply not grow.

[onux20]

I had a similar situation and found that mi lights were too close. I backed them up and the macro stop turning to mush. I have also found that as my nutrient levels have gone down, so too has my macro growth.

I will look in to this.

Ron

[jason the filter freak]

could be the lights i had the same issue on my CPR fuge , it might also be thats its floating and being constantly exposed to air, that created/creates and issue in xtinas sump

[treesprite]

I was having a problem with chaeto until I changed the light to a couple of 67k household PC bulbs.

[sen5241b]

Last weekend I took my chaeto out of my fuge and some of its was dead-white and some was a mushy black. This was because the underside of the chaeto ball did not get enough light. Last summer, my chaeto light broke while I was away and the chaeto died back and caused a mini-spike. Now I have 2 strong lights on my fuge. Also, check the timer on your fuge lighting.