Algae ID

[reefwars]

Originally Posted by JohnnyReeftank

It is used rock....buddy said he had it in his system for 5 years and it was covered with growth...not to mention every bad hitchhiker out there...couple red flags I guess

My N03 and P03 both show zero....but it might be because the algae is sucking it up so fast......should I try phosphate absorbant like Daniella said??

I actually just got my RO/DI on boxing day so I've only made 1 water change with it....I've been using store-bought RO water from a local water store for the last month and a half and before that I was using tap water and prime.

I've got my 2 actinics running 14 hrs and all 4 bulbs running 12 hours a day....is this light period too intense?


......a couple before and after pics of the same rock

so youve only had this algae problem since this rock has been added??

[JohnnyReeftank]

Nope.....just started the tank (and the hobby) from scratch about 4 months ago. The rocks were all covered in Coraline during the cycle and for about 2 weeks after....then algae mania started on the rocks and back pane of glass....its especially thick in high-flow areas if that helps at all

[daniella3d]

I am not saying you have everything but you seem to have hair algae mixed with something else, something slimy, just not sure what that something else is without looking at it under a mcroscope.

some like dinoflagellates and cyanobacteria can look very similar, so not sure.

[reefwars]

Originally Posted by JohnnyReeftank

Nope.....just started the tank (and the hobby) from scratch about 4 months ago. The rocks were all covered in Coraline during the cycle and for about 2 weeks after....then algae mania started on the rocks and back pane of glass....its especially thick in high-flow areas if that helps at all

helps alot actually, algae tends to grow more on things like powerheads,and glass where it gets alot of flow thus passing alot of nutrients, so i say its time to sit back and give your tank what it barely needs .....

a tank at 4 mts of age doesnt need 14 hrs of light so i would cut that back to 10 hrs with only 6-8 of " daylight "

id also cut back on your feeding to a little flake here and there and a frozen dinner every now and then(i feed it every few days) but rinse well for phospahtes. 1 single lonely fish doesnt need to be fed frozen and flake a few times a dayits alesson we all learn eventually lol

continue using ro water it will make a diff in the long run.

consider running carbon and gfo or bio-pellets through a reactor as there def are nitrates and phosphates in your system its just being consumed so your test isnt showing it.


are you running a refuge or a sump??

[JohnnyReeftank]

No fuge....no sump. I have a large blood shrimp and a cleaner shrimp that seem to grab every morcel of food that the fish don't get so I didn't think I was overfeeding....but it can't hurt to cut down.

Do you think that switching from a 14 hour to a 10 hour total-light period will affect my coral growth or coloration at all?....mostly zoos and a few LPS

[reefwars]

Originally Posted by JohnnyReeftank

No fuge....no sump. I have a large blood shrimp and a cleaner shrimp that seem to grab every morcel of food that the fish don't get so I didn't think I was overfeeding....but it can't hurt to cut down.

Do you think that switching from a 14 hour to a 10 hour total-light period will affect my coral growth or coloration at all?....mostly zoos and a few LPS

not at all they arent getting 12 hrs of light where they come from the sun rises and sets so there should be only a few hours of peak light around mid day.im not sure on how much light each needs for photosynthesis
asim sure it varys on the coral in question but most people are on a 10-12 schedule with a lower light like actinics for sunset and sunrise.


are you feeding any liquids to your tank or dosing anything??

[JohnnyReeftank]

Yep....capful of Reef Fuel a week and Acan Plus twice a week for the corals. I've also been using Seachem Stability since the beginning....one capful after each water change.

I'm starting to think that it could be the Calgary tap water I used for the first 2 months.....it seems to be upwards of 150 ppm

[fishytime]

Originally Posted by JohnnyReeftank

Yep....capful of Reef Fuel a week and Acan Plus twice a week for the corals. I've also been using Seachem Stability since the beginning....one capful after each water change.

I'm starting to think that it could be the Calgary tap water I used for the first 2 months.....it seems to be upwards of 150 ppm

sounds like your over feeding......I feed once a day......and never spot feed my corals......try cutting back on on your feeding regiment and your light cycle....

[pscott99]

My tank info is at aquariumpros.ca. Note sure where to post here yet. Although I am new to this hobby this difference between my tank and yours is very obvious.

I feed once a day and NOT shrimp/mysis everyday.
I have not fed my corals yet at all and only have four. 2 soft 2 LPS
My lights are on 8hrs and not blinding.

Results after 3mo. All the brown hair algae is gone from the rock. Still cleaning it off the glass. Tank cleaned up itself.

Using filtered well water waiting for RO/DI to arrive

I am testing the theory that less is better and will work fine on smaller tanks. I have done extensive reading and have decided not to spend $$1000 plus on sump and toys. Anyone that says you can do it cheaper didn't add up all their bills.

Would it help my tank sure it would. Is it necessary. I say no, until or if I go bigger. Time will tell but what I like about this board is that I see a lot of smaller tanks that seem to do just fine with out all the toys.

As I said I am a newb and loving this beautiful FUN new hobby.

[reefwars]

Originally Posted by pscott99

My tank info is at aquariumpros.ca. Note sure where to post here yet. Although I am new to this hobby this difference between my tank and yours is very obvious.

I feed once a day and NOT shrimp/mysis everyday.
I have not fed my corals yet at all and only have four. 2 soft 2 LPS
My lights are on 8hrs and not blinding.

Results after 3mo. All the brown hair algae is gone from the rock. Still cleaning it off the glass. Tank cleaned up itself.

Using filtered well water waiting for RO/DI to arrive

I am testing the theory that less is better and will work fine on smaller tanks. I have done extensive reading and have decided not to spend $$1000 plus on sump and toys. Anyone that says you can do it cheaper didn't add up all their bills.

Would it help my tank sure it would. Is it necessary. I say no, until or if I go bigger. Time will tell but what I like about this board is that I see a lot of smaller tanks that seem to do just fine with out all the toys.

As I said I am a newb and loving this beautiful FUN new hobby.

that my friend is where it varys, take a look at my 33 zoa tank....no bells no whistles no nothing.....its been running over 3 years but has been plagued with many problems. i do know that you can run a tank without any sump or fuge or fancy equipment.

now......


ask me can i convert it to an sps tank...........def not , not at this point as my tank has stabilized to the point where it thrieves off nutrients.there are lots of corals that love this and lots that wouldnt last a week.


so in my opinion what you plan to keep is very important on the way you set your tank up.im using two different routes one small tank ive had for years with nothing but a hob filter and now a media reactor(as algae is hard to fight in a nutrient rich system) it uses tap water,rarely gets vacummed,plus gets fed zoo plankton frequently.........sooooo very hard to maintain as a clean tank.


my other tank im going a fifferent route...... ro water,controller,zeovit,media reactors and a super huge skimmer as in this tank i want to be more open to what i can have.

ive owned just about a hundred kinds of coral and i can def say that some are easier to keep in less than perefect conditions and some require pristine water conditions so choose your path wisely because 3 yrs down the road its gonna be alot harder to clean your act up than it is to now

cheers and i agree with fishytime that with a little less nutrients being added youll see your tank clean again it just may take a while

nothing but bad things happen over night