Refugium Question

[hegi]

My fuge is bursting with grape caulerpa and chaeto atm, the fuge is literally packed with it. Two questions 1: is this harmful to my tank/not optimal for the fuges function as a nutrient export 2: is the layer of sediment/detritus that is on top of the fuge sand and under the first layer of macro dangerous. Thanks in advance, I haven't trimmed it yet b/c I don't have anyone to give it to atm so I was going to save it to give to people at the frag swap who needed some.

 

[Ashlar]

If it's so packed that not all areas are getting good light penetration, it's not going to grow as fast as it could. If you let it go too long, the light starved stuff can start to wither and eventually melt, releasing nastiness back into the tank.

Re the sediment on top of the sand.. I keep mine stirred up pretty good so that not a lot of it settles there. In your case, I probably wouldn't disturb all of it at once.. just a little at a time.

 

[melev]

The idea is to cull your macro algae from time to time to export nutrients from the system. If you can remove 25 to 50%, the rest should grow quickly and absorb more nutrients.

If you have cheatomorpha, what is still in the refugium should be tugged apart slightly to encourage growth and allow flow through the plant.