What is this green/blue thick algae?

[traysee]

What is the green blue, thick, hairlike algae growing on my sand? How can I get rid of it? It is ugly and aggrevating me. :mad: I think natural sunlight started it, took care of that, and now its like a bad boyfriend that won't go away! Lol.

[ACBlinky]

We need a picture in order to ID it. Does it grow in a sheet that peels easily off the sand? If so, it might be a type of cyanobacteria -- cyano is usually red in SW tanks, but there are also black, green and bluegreen types.

No matter what type of algae/cyano it is, the bottom line is that you've got a nutrient issue. Light cannot cause an algae outbreak on its own, there must be phosphate in the water to fuel the growth.

Cyano can fix atmospheric nitrogen, so controlling nitrates alone won't get rid of it (or any algae issue) -- go after the phosphates. Use a PO4 reactor, adsorbing resin, or a refugium full of chaeto to eliminate phosphates from the system (as much as possible). Feed less, or feed foods with less PO4, change more water, make sure you're changing out any mechanical filter media (filter sock etc.) daily so the waste can't break down.

Can you get us a picture, along with water test results? let's see what we're dealing with just in case there's something else you can do that I haven't thought of :)

[traysee]

Thank you AC for your response, I apologize I havn't been able to respond faster.
I believe what you describe is what I have going on. It will peel off like a sheet and I try to manually take it out and it comes back. I couldn't get a good picture of it. I also believe there is/was a nutrient issue. I am a lazy water changer, so I have been trying to do a water change about every other day for the last 2 weeks. I changed the Ammo-Carb in my drip filter. I usually throw a little bit of old charcoal with the new to keep biological going. Should I be changing that everyday? I don't think I caught that part the first time I read this. I also added a few more astria snails, although I don't think they eat it just make a path through it.
The water changes seem to have helped not let it flourish as much as before. I don't know what absorbing resin is or what chaeto is. I do have a fuge that I can put it in. I have 1 little fish, haitin anemone, rock anemone's, a upside down jellyfish, and all the other little critters that seem to all be fine. I feed DT's phyto, brine shrimp and a little fish food once in a while. Are these things high in PO4? I also have started to use Purple Up for about 6 weeks now, which if the phosphate is still high then its pretty useless right now. I have not been able to pick up a phosphate test yet, that will be the next step.
Thank you for your help and education. It's all fascinating to me. Please excuse my spelling...I can spell anenome 20 different ways except the right way! lol. I will keep working on it and probably pick your brain some more.:rollface:

[airinhere]

Most of the foods you listed are high in phosphates. Of course almost any food is high in phosphates, so dont let that get you down. try rinsing your frozen foods in a brine shrimp net under tap water to rinse the juice off it. Most of the phosphates in frozen food are in the juice.

Dt's is great for feeding clams, filter feeders and zooplankton, but it doesnt directly feed most things in our tanks. The anems would likely fare better with meaty foods. They can eat the phyto, but for the effort, I think meaty food like cyclopeeze or Mysis (mysid) shrimp would be a better option.

Brine shrimp is like the lettuce of marine tanks. Little nutritional value compared to many other options out there like cyclopeeze or mysis. Brine shrimp are good for getting difficult to feed fish to start eating.

I use the spectrum thera A+ fish food in the tiny granule size. Its the only dry food I put into my tanks. There are many varieties, so look for the A+ version (it has garlic in it for increased immune system). I only feed about every two or three days and just enough that all my fish get to eat.

Your algae could be anything. Cyano seems very likely. Try siphoning the stuff up and see if that doesnt clear it up. Pictures would really help.

Algae (very different than cyano) needs nitrate, phosphate and iron to grow. Eliminate one and the algae will die off. Iron is very unusual to try and remove from a tank. Nitrate and phosphate are both easy to isolate. Phosphate is the easiest. Look up phos-reactors on any of the e-tailer sites and think about getting one. Its a plastic cyclinder that you fill with phosphate absorbing media. Water gets pumped in and the media soaks up the phosphates before the water ends up back in your tank. This removes most of the phosphates in that water. Limit the phosphates and the algae stops growng.

Of course then you still need to do water changes to get rid of the nitrates.

The solution to pollution is dilution,

Phos- reactor note.
Some phosphate media use up the alkalinity in your tank when it binds to the phosphates in your tank. This will result in your dKH levels dropping to unnatural and unstable levels. Please use a dKH test kit to monitor your alkalinity (dKH) when you are using a phos-reactor. Manual addition of dKH buffer is probably going to be needed.

Happy reefing!

[traysee]

I'm just about positive it is cyano. I have looked everywhere for a phosphate test and have not be able to find any anywhere. I tried a phosphate pad and didn't make a difference. However my nitrates were up which would be consistant in an outbreak. I have added nitraban and numerouse water changes. Changed my lights and I think something is finally happening. The growth has slowed considerably and it is bubbling up. I'm hoping that this is a good sign. The trates are still elevated and hoping a few more water changes and nitraban will finally get rid of this stuff. As annoying as this is, it is interesting learning and becoming more prepared for a bigger tank. Thanks all for your advice.:D
I'll update more later, hopefully when it is gone....:eek1:

[traysee]

I have also tested ph, ammonia, and nitrite and they are staying at normal ranges.:rollface: