[Pomme]

phytoplankton, how much?

i have just been in to my local maidenhead and realised that they sell phytoplankton in there.

i was thinking of adding this to my tank but was wondering if i could grow it myself from a small amount from them?

my idea was to get around 500ml from them and put it in a glass jug and fill the rest up with tank water and place a marine white light next to the jug. and then dose throughout the night using a peripump, and then in the mornings top up the jug with tank water? would this work or not or have i missunrerstood the stuff i have read?

and what sort of amount should i add to my 100 gal sps tank?

all help appreciated,

thanx
andrew

[scubadude]

Yes you can start your own culture from "Live Phytoplankton" however I have heard that DT's phyto (the most popular brand) is a mixture of diff. strains of phtyo which is hard to culture mainy strains in one system. They grow each diff. strain in seperate systems and then mix them together before they ship out for sale (i believe) Maybe we can get Ninong in here on this thread....I think he has the scoop on this. There is some threads in the DIY forum for starting your own culture station though and its very inexpensive and fairly easy once you understand it. Here is some links you might enjoy

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issu...02/breeder.htm

http://www.sjwilson.net/reef/phytosteps.html

As far as amounts to dose your SPS tank...I personally wouldnt dose the tank phyto (unless you have some small clams maybe, and even then maybe target dose) It is believed that most SPS uptake more zooplankton then phytoplankton. Which if you get into phyto culturing then you might as well do zoo culturing too....the most common being rotifiers. Then dosing the rotifers cannot be measured in Teaspoons or tablespoons because that does not tell you the density of life....its basically a balance you will have to find for your tank on your own (trial and error) start small and work your way up...if you start notice levels get out of whack or algae blooms cut back and reanalyze.

Rocky


Rocky