no Cheato better than bad cheato ?

[mling]

This spring, I started cheato in my fudge from a fellow member.  My NA was almost 100 ppm then. The Cheato grew likey crazy back then.  Now my NA is under 10 and the Cheato has shrunk to just a think 1in layer and looks real bad.  Not rotten but a far cry from what it was.  Since the water is no longer optimal for Cheato, should it be better for remove all the Cheato ?

 

I am wondering if my cheato may actually be bad for the tank since it is rather sad looking, that the lack of NA is making it go bad.

Oh the other hand, I have seen many members with 0 ppm NA have great Cheato.

[smallreef]

I would pull it out and see what your numbers really are...

I grow feather calurpa much easier than cheato..because you can have as little as one blade...

[mr.x-ray]

What kind of light cycle are you running?(24/7, reverse, same)

What lights are you using on the fuge?

What brand test kit are you using?

What is your Phosphate at?

Have you ever harvested the cheato?

[PK3]

Maybe you just have too much.  Why not try continually trimming it down (especially the "bad" looking parts) so that you have an optimal amount of chaeto.

[mling]

What kind of light cycle are you running?(24/7, reverse, same)

What lights are you using on the fuge?

What brand test kit are you using?

What is your Phosphate at?

Have you ever harvested the cheato?

Fudge has compact flor about 12 hrs a day, same timer as DT lights.

Harvested, no.   removed because it looked bad, yes

[Mattiejay6]

I prefer my fudge with just chocolate... Hold the chaeto

[mling]

Maybe you just have too much.  Why not try continually trimming it down (especially the "bad" looking parts) so that you have an optimal amount of chaeto.

 

I used to have too much, now I only have about 2 hand full.    Every 2 weeks about 50% seem to look bad and I would remove that; so soon I will only have 1 hand full.  This is why I am thinking of just removing it totally.

[Origami]

If it's dying off and dissolving, then I'd remove most all of it except, say, for about a loose golf ball or baseball size. I assume that it's getting adequate light? I've found chaeto likes "warmer" colors of light - like from red through about 5,000K. What kind of light do you have over it?

[Djplus1]

If it's dying off and dissolving, then I'd remove most all of it except, say, for about a loose golf ball or baseball size. I assume that it's getting adequate light? I've found chaeto likes "warmer" colors of light - like from red through about 5,000K. What kind of light do you have over it?

What does dying off or dissolving chaeto look like? I have what appears to be white, dead bits of chaeto mixed in with my ball. I tried rinsing it out, but that didnt really work. Should I just chuck it and put some fresh stuff in?

[YHSublime]

What does dying off or dissolving chaeto look like? I have what appears to be white, dead bits of chaeto mixed in with my ball. I tried rinsing it out, but that didnt really work. Should I just chuck it and put some fresh stuff in?

That's dead cheeto I think. Chuck it and let the rest of it grow, thin as needed. Dying cheeto defeats the purpose of growing cheeto, IMO. If you have to add to it instead if getting rid of it, it defeats the purpose. Again, jmo.

[Djplus1]

That's dead cheeto I think. Chuck it and let the rest of it grow, thin as needed. Dying cheeto defeats the purpose of growing cheeto, IMO. If you have to add to it instead if getting rid of it, it defeats the purpose. Again, jmo.

I can't chuck it without chucking all of it. It's so intermixed. Honestly, its growing. It just has a bunch of "white" stuff mixed in. Looks like salt and pepper hair.

[epleeds]

so just for clarification, how much cheato is too much?  is there a certain amount that you should get rid of once it grows to a certain size?

[PK3]

I think it all depends on the size/bioload of your tank.  All things being equal, I would think there should theoretically be some equilibrium point (i.e. the point at which the chaeto stops growing and starts dying).

[YHSublime]

I think it all depends on the size/bioload of your tank.  All things being equal, I would think there should theoretically be some equilibrium point (i.e. the point at which the chaeto stops growing and starts dying).

 

So enough to get the job done.

 

I could be completly off base, but I grow it because I was under the impression it was a nutrient export. As it grows, you trim it, and it continues to do the job it's there for. It's an added bonus that my pods thrive in it. If it's dying, then you're potentially releasing all those nutrients and then some back into the water, which is counter productive.

 

If your cheato is dying, I would examing lighting, like Tom suggested. I killed cheeto constantly running on a reverse light cycle for about 4 months, until somebody recomended a part 38 bulb with mostly reds, and I think 2 blues. I now run the light 24/7 and since the switch have not had any issues, other than having to go into my sump and thin it out.

[mling]

So it looks like my Cheato is dying.  I think I will dump it all and start fresh.  Any one near by with too much Cheato ?

 

I don't think my lighting is the problem since I have not changed it and it was doing great for about 2 months.  Under the same light it more than doubled in size in just a few weeks.  Have made any change to the system.