macro in display?

[blueboy]

who here keeps macros in your display? i had about a dozen different varieties before my recent lighting upgrade. i have since removed several of the more aggresive ones to keep maintainance down a little. i have had pretty good success with this, nitrates always undetectable, most corals showing steady growth(exept a few polyps over run by some of the aforementioned aggresive macros), and i would consider the fish load a little high. i have had macro in the tank almost since it was set up, never saw much undesirable algae, once let a patch of bryopsis get pretty big(about 2-3" across) because my GF thought it looked pretty, but when i saw it start popping up elswere, i pulled the rock, srubbed it with a toothbrush, and put it back. i had to repeat this a couple times, but i think over a couple months it basically got out competed. i am also using crushed coral for substrate(about 3/4") on the idea that it provides more spaces for mirofauna, it's full of pods, worms, and starfish. kind of a "refugium in the tank" idea. i have two spaces behind the rockscape where i keep a big wad of chaeto on one side, and a big patch of ogo on the other. they are both full of baby snails. i just thought i'd mention all this because i relize it's pretty unconventional, and it appears to be working out pretty well. thought i'd fish for some feedback on these ideas.

[cpreefguy]

I have some dragons breath in my display

[FSU]

I had some grape caulerpa in my main display to help with a brown hair algae outbreak that I had! Now that the hair algae is gone, I have removed ALL the grape and replaced with chaeto and some razor(or saw grass) caulerpa. This will just be temp though until I finish setting up my fuge! I actually kinda like the look of it though. It gives off a natural type look along with it's green color!

I have also used some gracilaria in the main display. It looked WONDERFUL IMO, however only lasted a couple weeks due to my tang devouring it! I had ordered it off Liveaquaria. They give you quite a bit, but it is in small pieces, so it took a couple hours to randomly place it throughout my 125!

[blueboy]

yeah, i've been considering adding a Kole tang, but he'll probably wipe out my gracillaria

[MikeP]

I would if it lasted more than 10 seconds:

Powder brown
Regal tang
Scribbled rabbit
soccer ball size Diadema urchin

= algae doesnt stand a chance!

[Instar]

Really it depends on what you decide to keep in there, what your tastes are and how much maint. you like doing. If its an sps tank, pieces of macro that die off make a pretty dirty tank for sps so the maint intensity will have to go way up if you keep those. Otherwise, lots of people do macro in the main display and keep it under control. There is nothing like an eel grass waving in the currents that is 24 inches long or an 8x24 dragons breathe.

[C.Mydas]

I did the same thing in my 37 (before I put in a mangrove fuge). I had a curtain of red sea kelp behind my rock work as a background....it worked great never had any issues with algaes.

[Shark_Bait]

I'm keeping macros in the tank. Don't have a fuge and with the way it's working don't think I need one; besides as an excuse for another tank :angel . I actually like the look. Thou........ A fuge would be a place for a mantis.