Unexplained algae growth(if it is even algae)

[Serioussnaps]

Hey everyone,

Just moved the 55 a month ago to start a new SPS(acro dominated reef). This week I have noticed a weird type growth that I have never seen in any tank i have ever kept. It is brown, and very short (looks like hair but it is NOT hair algae) almost stringy, it is not a film like diatom like substance and is definitely not cyano... I cant identify exactly what it is.

I tested as I do weekly....everything is fine....the two main contributors to algae growth phosphates and nitrates tested at 0. so p04=0 and No3=0(with brand new salifert TK's).


I am overskimming the 55 with an ASM G3, have chaeto growing 24/7 in the fuge, approximately 90 -100 lbs of live rock, i stir up the substrate everyday to keep deitrus in suspension(Copperband and clown are only fish), there is plenty of flow with tunze at full blast, Mag 7 return, and two maxi 900's, weekly 10 g WC, i use RO/DI which i tested and reads 0 for trates and phates, i feed every other day and rinse off all food with tank water prior to feeding to rinse off all excess nutrients.

I believe my husbandry to be very good and with the test readings at 0 i am at a loss for why this is growing.

First i dont know if it is an algae or some other lifeform.

I moved 1 month ago and it was barebottom for a week and everything remained spotless. After a week i added 1.5 inches of substrate and it remained spotless for 2 more weeks. This week it has started to grow... i brush it off with a toothbrush and it just retracts rather than coming off like hair algae or cyano...very weird.....

Only thing i can think of is it is not algae but something i dont even know of, back to new tank syndrome?, silicates could be causing(i dont have a TK for silicates)

Someone give me some ideas

[Serioussnaps]

keep in mind this tank prior to move was established for 2 and half years so it isnt a new tank just a tank in new location.....water temp is 78-80 F, my salinity is off (swing arm i know it isnt accurate but refractometer on way this week) and measures 1.0255...trying to think of everything.......

[outy]

most moved tanks, some new set ups i always see the brown lol

i just moved my tank out of the house for new carpet, added 80% new sand to the 20% i already have [deeper dsb] and i have a brown carpet after a week growing with perfect water.

the local reef store just set up a new display tank with perfect water same thing he,s got some brown going as well.

just a normal algea cycle untill more bacteria grows and eats the junk before algea can get a foothold

[Serioussnaps]

oh and i couldnt believe nitrates tested absolutely 0....the salifert test kit is almost impossbile to read IMO so my results their are iffy to me but it looked to the best of my eyesight to be 0( i dont recommend the salifert po4 TK)

[Serioussnaps]

Could the chaeto, skimmer and the growth in the tank be exporting the nutrients so efficiently that a TK reads 0...if a TK reads 0 there couldnt be that many nutrients if this is even the case????

dinoflagellates maybe????

[Serioussnaps]

Could the chaeto, skimmer and the growth in the tank be exporting the nutrients so efficiently that a TK reads 0...if a TK reads 0 there couldnt be that many nutrients if this is even the case????

dinoflagellates maybe????

[Ciarán]

I definitely think it is cyano. I get filamentous brown cyano in localised areas of low light and flow. Posting a pic would help.

[Serioussnaps]

There is undoubtedly no low light or low flow....that is the whole thing

I am running an SLS T5 fixture (4x54 with parabolic refl.) on a tank that is only 20" deep and really 18-19" due to sandbed. The unnamed algae is growing at the very top on the surface of the rocks that are closest to the light....so that low light theory is a NO.

To address the flow....there is no where in the tank with low flow...this is designed to be an Acro tank....there is a Tunze 6000with controller on full blast at all times....two maxi jet 1200's along the back walls to keep from dead spots and a return that is pushing about 500GPH....that is 4100 gph in a 55g tank which equals about 80x turnover....and all pumps/ph's are positioned so that there are NO deadspots....so NO to either of those theories....

also...i know what cyano is...have dealt with it in the past and slaughtered it...this is NOT cyano....the only 2 things i can think of is a lack of bacteria in the tank due to the move(rock was out of water for 2 hours, new SB, and only 50% of the water from before) thus algae growth....also it could be silicates causing this which i cannot test for at the moment....

if it was due to the move why did it wait almost 5 weeks to rear its ugly head?

maybe the tank is trying to "recycle" if that is such a word...but all tests read at 0(cycling in a 2 and half year old water and rock????)

i am actually decreasing the light and not feeding as to starve this stuff for a few weeks ....also...i will begin dosing kalk again which will raise the ph(algae doesnt like high ph) and also precipitate any phosphates which may be binding up from being exported by the other listed means above


Anyone ever moved a tank an noticed this? What do dinoflagellates look like???? I am going to get some pics this weekend ..but it definitely isnt cyano!

[outy]

its normal for the algea to attach to the new substrate because there is no bacteria on it, the fastest thing that can grow on it will and at this point the bacteria on the dsb surface isnt keeping up or multiplying as fast as algea spores.

this is not a nutrient issue

yes its dinoflagellates one of the fastest growing algeas readily avalible

oh the new tank that is covered in brown at the local reef store is SPS only frag tank. this guys water is perfect

your going through a normal stage as i am

[Serioussnaps]

thats what i am thinking....not enough bacteria....i have a feeling however that if i was barebottom i wouldnt be having this....i am about to go vacuum the hell out of top of sand bad right now as we speak

i am going to do a series of staggered water changes...taking off the daylights and just running actinics since there are no frags yet...and not gonna feed the fish for a week to see if it stops growing.....i guess then i stilll have to find something that will eat it to get rid of it....if this works i will be very encouraged.....

i dont want this to become a vicous cycle

[Serioussnaps]

yes i agree with you....i have spent some much time, money and effort making sure that i wont have a NUTRIENT issue....i really hope i have not failed....but something has to be feeding the algae and cant grow without for a lack of a better term "fertilizer"

[Serioussnaps]

what else kills me is if you right a detailed thread no one posts because they dont wanna take the time to read it....i know that me and outy arent the only ones who have seen this particular situation.....

so a BUMP

[outy]

if it was BB you would have it lol :) you havnt failed

heres some proof for you

my tank was out of my house empty last week, 80% new sand.

now everything that is new/cleaned ,,, glass, powerheads, sand has a diatom bloom,[no bacteria] my LR coral ect is perfect without a trace [plenty o bacteria] :) this is quite normal

if i were you i would not do anything but wait it out. you dont want to prolong it.

[john rochon]

this stuff is relentless. its dinoflagellates for sure. I've been fighting it for 6 months. I made a huge mistake because I wanted to add coarser sand. I thought I did it slow enough but I smothered my sand bed. this stuff took over and I haven't been able to get my tank back:(

[Serioussnaps]

When i moved i used a coarser sand rather than the sugar fine oolitic that I have always used in the past.....my SB isnt a DSB but just about 1.5" deep so the DSB issues dont apply but i wonder if that did contribute....

I am going to do some research on dino's....i think it is something that might have to use erythromicin,....hopefully this is not the case...

i dont know what dinos even look like so i have some research ...i hope it is just some simple algal form that will work itself out.....

doing a 50% WC and only feeding once a week my fish....going to make sure nutrients arent an issue....

guess i am bout to start a dinoflagellate thread

[pdbigb211]

I understand your frustration i am going through the same thing with my 120 i have tons of flow 3860 gph circ. plus 1200gph return I do weekly water changes and run ozone my paramaters are all zero no nitrate no phosphate no silicates alk/kh is good and so is calcium i have had to pull all the live rock twice and srubbed it off just lately have i been able to supprese the algea added tons of snails they do good work! cut your lighting back dramatically until u have control of it cut your feeding pack to about every other day make sure your bulbs are up to par and also another thing you shoudl check is that sometimes live rock can get gucked up and start leaching phosphates into the water to test pull a piece off rock and put it in a bucket of mixed water wait a day and test water for phosphates :)

[Serioussnaps]

I just did some research.....undoubtedly dinoflagellates....i have only heard of them and because i was so miffed over what this was....its a rust color algae that has bubbles forming when the daylight bulbs come on...and produce blood red strings as well...no matter what i do they grow back.......undoubtedly dinos....i am going to snap some pics for everyone

i am going to not feed for a few days....cut off the lights and with all the great exportation i have going on i think it will be eliminated and when i start dripping kalk again i know it will only be another bullet in my arsenal......i am about to start a thread for everyone who has or is experienced this and show my results on eradication

[outy]

you have cyano as well as dino,s

again normal because of the diatom bloom, it will all pass in a normal algea cycle

patient,s buddy patient,s

what ever you do not cut back lighting and stress livestock, do not try and get rid of it. IT WILL PASS

do not make a simple thing complicated.