Green water?

[Crows Ridge]

I see people raising green water in bottles in front of a light. I have read where people just keep a container in the back yard. Is gw the same algae bloom that happens in the spring in our koi pond before the plant life is up to speed to consume it?

Is that the same thing as phyto? I dont think I could ever get myself to put any pond water in my tanks, but I could brew some serarately if thats all it is. Seems too simple though.

Thanks, Chris

 

[Wink]

Greenwater is Phytoplankton... single celled algae. "Pond scum" would also be algae but not sure if it's single celled, and I know it's not a saltwater variety. Some people do put tubs of saltwater outside to grow phyto (weather depending).
Most phyto can be grown in lower salt than tanks.. around 1.014 salinity. There are several species used in marine aquaculture - different size cells, different nutritional profiles.

It's real easy to grow... until it crashes. One day bright green.. next day it's all on the bottom and the water is clear. I haven't yet tried using fertilizer (you can use houseplant fertilizer or buy special stuff - I understand the best is the stuff they call F2) I do pretty good without it. If you use fertilizer, be sure all the nutrients are used up by the algae before adding to a tank, lots of phosphates, nitrates, etc. in the fertilizer.

Reef Central has an excellent article about growing it - it's the first topic in the Fish Breeding Forum - all about culturing phyto, rotifers, copepods, etc.

HTH

Vicky

 

[NaH2O]

I thought the thread Is Phytoplankton a necessity was a good thread. One question you should ask yourself before attempting to culture phyto....why do you want to use it? What benefits do you expect to see?

 

[Crows Ridge]

I thought several posted to feed the BBS phyto. ???

 

[NaH2O]

Corals feed mainly on detritus/fish waste and also they receive energy through their symbiotic algae. IMO, the majority of tanks already have plenty of fish waste and detritus, so why not make this more available to the corals to feed? What about when algae is cleaned off of the glass? Do you think this would provide the same effect, but without the added fertilizers (assuming the phyto being used was grown using fertilizers)?

 

[Wink]

I don't own any corals, but I have lots of uses for phyto! My biggest use is for feeding the food, which is what Chris is interested in. IMO, it is the best food/enrichment for rotifers, copepods, brine shrimp, etc. The HUFA content makes it an excellent enrichment. It's live so it won't degrade culture water. Particle size is correct for small filter feeding organisms.
If you are breeding fish (mine are seahorses), it has many, many benefits.
I agree, don't just dump it in your tank by the gallons, but still... it does have it's uses.

Vicky

 

[uwscotch]

I feel greenwater is a great addition to a tank, mainly to increase the survival of zooplankton. These are natural foods for numerous reef inhabitants. As far as growing it yourself, you need fertilizer, otherwise the algae is nutritously useless. Now is the concern of adding the nutrients (phospates, copper, etc.) to the tank. This is where I feel the idea of an individual growing their own greenwater breaks down. Unless you do not have access to a centrifuge or another means of concentrating your cultures, the costs of polluting your water I feel is not worth it. I personally centrifuge my greenwater at 3000 G, a force that will not damage the live cells. I then resuspend it in sterile saltwater. This completely removes all traces of elements that are undesirable in the tank. Reading commercially available water, there cultures leave residual amount of the fertilizer behind. I am unsure of the benefit of this process. By the way, all reagents should be sterile. This includes water, containers and f2 media. I feel the use of f2 media is the best for culturing greenwater. It is what most scientific research laboratories use. What it comes down too, I would not recommend using greenwater unless it is cultured properly.