Saltwater in the Long Ago #3: A Healthy Tank 1977

[Doug]

The biggest indicator that you were on track to a successful saltwater tank back then was a lush growth of green hair algae over every surface of your tank. Phosphates, though we knew nothing of their capabilities, were our friends. This presented a quandary, however, in that the natural coral skeletons that comprised most of your tank decoration were unrecognizable beneath this "healthy" shag carpet of green. What a dilemma-- cleaning your coral meant killing your algae. Typical coral cleaning involved a bathtub full of bleach-laden water for several hours, followed by endless freshwater rinses. But you were rewarded-- however briefly-- with pristine white tank decor. Some found middle gound in simply exposing their "dirty" coral to very hot water to kill and slough off the algae, the resultant color scheme being a limey green until the hair algae re-established itself. I have to wonder if there wasn't a naive wisdom in the cultivation of obscene amounts of green hair algae-- it seemed to preclude the much-reviled red algae that would come to consume so many hobbyists in their attempts at its removal, after the heyday of green algae had passed.

Next: "Modern" Saltwater Technology, 1979