Mildly off topic: Macroalgae

OK. This is SLIGHTLY off topic but I find better advice here (usually) then
anywhere else about odd marine aquarium questions. So bear with me.

I have an unused 35 gallon aquarium and everything I need to set it up as a
salt water tank. I already have a reef and want to try something a little
different. I am lucky enough to live about eight miles from the Atlantic
Ocean in South Carolina. The only place I can put the tank is in an unheated
(and unairconditioned) room in the basement of the house. While I COULD come
up with a heating system, it would have to be rather powerful. It does get
cold here and that room easily gets into the low to mid fifties in the
winter months. So, that would make corals difficult. It occured to me,
though, that I might create a tank using local macroalgae species rather
then coral as a background. It sure would be cheaper and not something many
others do; certainly no one I know of anyway. The temperature in the tank
would vary with the season just like the waters here do. So that wouldn't be
a problem. I would also add other local inverts as I find them. Crabs,
snails, starfish, anemones, barnicles, oysters, clams, etc. With so many new
excellent planktonic foods available, I think I can at least TRY some of
these creatures. Fish? Well, we'll see what I can find. Menhaden perhaps?
Puffers? Have to see what I can catch.

I will be using a deep sand bed that I will stock using sand harvested from
the beach or the local estuary. I doubt that the handful of sand I use will
contain so much pollutant that it will kill off everything, although I
suppose there is some risk in that. I also wouldn't add any fish for a long
while to assure that any fish parasites are long gone first. I'll use some
live rock I have placed in my reef tank's sump to get the cycle started. I
also plan to use "dead live rock" to set up a rock structure. That should
provide for some denitrification in addition to the deep sand bed once it is
colonized and established.

But, I have some questions....

1. What wavelength lighting would be best for temperate macroalgae? I
suspect it would be the same as that used in a freshwater planted tank. Or
can I just use the reef lighting I already have available?

2. Anyone ever done this? Any recommendations about types of macroalgae that
do, and do not, do well in an aquarium environment?

3. Any organisms you would NOT include? I have ruled out urchins because
they would devestate any macroalgae. Fortunately, if something doesn't work
out, I can just toss it out the back window into the marsh. So that is a
plus.

4. Finally, anyone know of any websites with information specific to raising
marine macroalgae in aquariums (And I am NOT referring to the numerous sites
discussing caulerpa, halimeda, etc that we grow in our reef systems.)?

Any help and advice appreciated.

Doug

"Doug and Lois" wrote in message ...
I will be using a deep sand bed that I will stock using sand harvested from
the beach or the local estuary. I doubt that the handful of sand I use will
contain so much pollutant that it will kill off everything, although I
suppose there is some risk in that.

I used sand from Florida Keys beach to seed sand bed and it was ok.

1. What wavelength lighting would be best for temperate macroalgae? I
suspect it would be the same as that used in a freshwater planted tank.
Or can I just use the reef lighting I already have available?

I would use reef lighting if available. It would make a nice blue color.

2. Anyone ever done this? Any recommendations about types of macroalgae
that do, and do not, do well in an aquarium environment?

I have 10 gallons macro-algae tank not plumbed to my main system.
I grow some algae there, mainly to feed my tang, but I find this
tank to be flurish with zoo-plankton creatures benefiting from
no large predators like plankton-eating fish or corals...
I have tons of copepods, amphipods, some micro cube medusas.
Lots of worms which come with a some sand from the Frorida Keys beach.

3. Any organisms you would NOT include? I have ruled out urchins because
they would devestate any macroalgae. Fortunately, if something doesn't work
out, I can just toss it out the back window into the marsh. So that is a
plus.

Right. Do not put anything back into the ocean because you risk
mixing some Pacific species into Altantic ocean...

4. Finally, anyone know of any websites with information specific to raising
marine macroalgae in aquariums (And I am NOT referring to the numerous sites
discussing caulerpa, halimeda, etc that we grow in our reef systems.)?

Do not know the site dedicated to this subject, but from my experience:
Growing algae in a separated setup requires a lot of discipline which
I lack of, so my tank crashed recently killing almost everything in it.
The reason for the crash is there is not enough nutrients in the water
to support algae growth. If you do not use plant fertilizers, you MUST
use your main tank old water to replenish nutrients in the algae tank.
Or - you just feed heavily your sand bed creatures to produce a lot
of animal-type waste to feed your plants. I had another problem in my tank:
too low water circulation. A lot of algae with strong light produce
so much oxygen that water becomes saturated with it and oxygen escapes
water as bubbles. When large bubbles are closed in plants leaves plants
are drawn to the surface and sometimes stick out of the water to dry out.
So avoid stale water with foamy surface - it will support growth of
cyanobacteria and film or hair algae and it will turn to be ugly...

If you want, please ask more specific question and if I know the
answer I will be glad to write about it here.