How else to do battle with hair algae

[michika]

I'm suffering with a really nasty green hair algae break out, and I've run out of things to do to try and curb, and eventually cure it.

The outbreak started in late May, but really became uncontrollable in early June. I am 90% sure the original trigger was my switch to tap water in conjunction with prime from RO/DI. Since the outbreak started to get worse and worse I started researching how to get rid of it, and causes. I've never really had to deal with hair algae before, so this is pretty new for me.

Possible cures
- reduce feedings - DONE, tank only gets fed once a week.
- increase water quality - DONE, switched back to RO/DI
- increase flow, and or distribution of flow in tank – SEMI-DONE, added Hydor powerhead. Changing out spraybars for shorter bars, with loc-line fitting at the bottom.
- changing lighting spectrum - SEMI-DONE, changed out 10K PC to actinic, still debating on 175w MH
- more frequent and larger water changes - DONE, I'm still doing weekly water changes, but I've uped the amount to 7-10g per change.
- reduce photoperiod - SEMI-DONE, reduced artificial light sources, and I try to keep sunlight out of the tank as much as possible.
- manually remove algae - DONE, this nasty job is done a few times per week.

Today's parameters are as follows:
pH (8.0-8.2): 8.2
temperature: 79.5
Specific Gravity (1.025): 1.024
Ca (420): 360 ppm
Alkalinity (7-9): 4 dKH <-- I dosed for this after the tests.
Magnesium (1280): 1170 ppm
Nitrite, Nitrite, and Ammonia (0): 0 ppm
What else, other then working on getting my chemistry more in line, can I be doing?

June 30th


July 9th - note the increased algae on the right, and on the gigas clam. It has also increased on the colony pictured in the center of the tank, which is directly in the path of flow of the hydor powerhead.

[marie]

You forgot to add to your list "get more clean up crew" . I would recommend an abalone and/or some turbo snails.

Bristle worms are amazingly helpful as well. My husband spent 10 min one night watching a particularily large worm (12+ inches) clear a inch square patch of hair algae off the back glass.

My husband is away from home 6 weeks at a time and what do we do when he is home? Watch worms

[michika]

Thanks!
I added a larger clean up crew once I noticed the issue was getting out of hand, but I haven't seen an impact yet. Any other clean up crew recommendations? Snails in particular?

[Clown]

Just bought a Arrow crab and it ate just about all the crappy algae

[marie]

astreas are good for the glass but in my experience they very rarely go on the rock, cerith keep mostly to the sand and i have never had any luck keeping margaritas for any length of time. Turbos seem to make the most obvious dent in the algae.
I haven't had any experience with sea hares but I've heard they are wonderful algae eaters maybe you could borrow one from somebody for a few months

[Chowder]

You can also try a seahare but make sure your powerhead intakes are covered. They have a tendency of getting sucked into them. Have you tested for phosphates. Those can also feed algae .

[Snappy]

Catherine I would call Neil and get about 50 blue legged hermits and your algae will be gone by Sept - Oct. It worked for me last fall. You saw my tank so imagine it full of hair algae and then gone 3 months later from hermit crabs.

[Delphinus]

I'll second the abalone suggestion, they're very very cool. Almost as good at nuisance algae control as a seahare, but seem to be less prone to starving themselves out (seahares eventually eat all the hair algae, then starve, unless they adapt to other food, but more don't than do).

There are some smaller abalones that would do well in a tank this size. I know Elite here in Calgary usually has the ones that are about 2" in size. Mine that I've got is a solid 8" so maybe a little too big for a tank your size, so watch out for the smaller ones. Mine is green, but these smaller ones at Elite that I've seen were more brownish.

Another wicked algae eater I've got is a green urchin. I have not been able to ID the species of urchin as it does not match any of the ones I've been able to research. It looks just like the temperate species urchin "green urchin" but a smaller scale model thereof. Basically, think a decorator urchin or blue tuxedo urchin, but all green.

Seahares are basically the ultimate algae eaters though. Just be advised that they starve once the tank is clean. Although I did have one that took a liking to the nori I feed my tang everyday, so he did fine for almost two years before meeting his end in a powerhead. (Which was weird, because he crawled onto powerheads without incident all the time, just eventually one time it ended badly.). But I think it's more the exception than the rule, if they won't eat any offered foods you're better off to lend him out, or sell him, to the next tank that has an algae problem.

Anyhow hope these suggestions help..

[andresont]

http://www.hiddenreef.ca/storefront/...categoryid=112

This Phosban Reactor works good for me, when i got this running in my system algae got down very fast thogh i had way less then you are.

[michika]

Thank you everyone for your suggestions.

I'm hesitant to add more to my clean up crew as they aren't currently making any dent in the issue. I currently have ~35 hermits, the bulk of which are blue legs, 15 various snails, turbos, astreas, and cerith's. I also have a handful of bumble bees, and a lipstick conch. I'm worried that adding more will have the same effect of nothing. Am I seeing no direct benefit from my clean up crew because its too small?

Does anyone have a link for abalones? I want to research their care and requirements more before I look into purchasing one.

My tank is quite small, so I will have to pass on a seahare, or an urchin, as they will probably be too large in my system. What about a lawnmore blenny?

Can anyone make other recommendations, other then adding livestock, and other then what is on my list above?