Turf Algae

The Gurg · 03/09/2019, 02:44 PM

Went to the fish store last weekend and had them test the water. The guy comes back and remarks that it’s the most perfect water he’s seen in two weeks. I had a seahorse for two and a half years and he died six months ago. I’ve been battling algae, so I decided I would run the tank empty almost like a frag tank until the algae cleared up. I had planned on keeping my regular 20% water change schedule, but with no seahorse I have admittedly slacked off. I was super disciplined before. I did a 20 gallon water change on my RSR170, and five or six 20% changes in the last six months.

I have four Aquamaxx fr-s reactors 2 gfo, 1 carbon, 1biopellets, a reef octopus 150SSS, a homemade turf scrubber with a Kessil H80 on one side and a 20watt Amazon flood light on the other.

The turf algae looks like it is pretty healthy dispite what should be very inhospital nitrate and phosphate free water. Any advice?

bertoni · 03/09/2019, 07:49 PM

How long has the GFO been in the system? Maybe it needs to be replaced, but sometimes, turf algae can outcompete GFO for nutrients. I might try a bit of hand-trimming now and then, if it's not too tedious. A few minutes a week might be enough. Do you have a time frame for getting rid of the algae?

The Gurg · 03/09/2019, 08:01 PM

I just replaced it. I try to replace it every other water change. But usually it winds up being every 3-4 water changes. Each reactor only holds 1/4 cup. I think they are rated for higher, but if they are too full they stop tumbling well. I thought a lot about hard plumbing in a real reactor with some actual capacity.

The Gurg · 03/09/2019, 08:03 PM

No time frame. It’s just been a constant in my system for 8 years. I even started over and used muriatic acid on the rocks, but it came back.

bertoni · 03/09/2019, 10:08 PM

You could consider fluconazole, I guess, but I probably would try a bit of manual pruning, and work from there. The goal is to export nutrients, so getting all of the algae isn't a priority.

The Gurg · 03/09/2019, 11:31 PM

I’ll definitely follow the advice to prune back the algae (I do that periodically, but it’s been a bit). I’ve heard the advice for years that nutrient export is the key. Somehow you have to get nitrates and phosphates low. I got high end test kits and always have very low readings for either. Now I don’t have anything creating nutrients. I would expect the algae to start to die. But it looks like it’s doing just fine.

I am using really old rock I bought from someone. I thought about replacing all the rock.

bertoni · 03/10/2019, 01:37 AM

The algae can recycle nutrients and use what gets in via the air column and live indefinitely if it can keep enough phosphate away from the GFO. I wouldn't count on out-waiting it, unfortunately, although that's my favorite maintenance tactic.

The Gurg · 03/10/2019, 12:02 PM

Oh, intersting. Ok, wondering if the hard plumbed more serious reactor would be the best bet. As opposed to replacing rock. Thoughts?

Why is the turf scrubber not getting to the algae first? I’m removing about 1/4cup of plant material from the scrubber every other week.

I think I have some fluconazole somewhere. Need to break that out.

bertoni · 03/10/2019, 03:09 PM

You can check whether flucaonazole works for hair algae. I think AlgaeX is another similar product that might be worth considering.

rjjr1963 · 03/16/2019, 03:17 PM

I would stop using GFO. It will strip all the phosphate. Phosphate doesn't necessarily cause GHA and plus you need some phosphate in your system. I would not try to change water parameters unless something is way way off. Your tank looks great and I'd remove any algae manually.

03/09/2019, 07:49 PM	#2
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	How long has the GFO been in the system? Maybe it needs to be replaced, but sometimes, turf algae can outcompete GFO for nutrients. I might try a bit of hand-trimming now and then, if it's not too tedious. A few minutes a week might be enough. Do you have a time frame for getting rid of the algae? __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

03/09/2019, 10:08 PM	#5
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	You could consider fluconazole, I guess, but I probably would try a bit of manual pruning, and work from there. The goal is to export nutrients, so getting all of the algae isn't a priority. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

03/10/2019, 01:37 AM	#7
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	The algae can recycle nutrients and use what gets in via the air column and live indefinitely if it can keep enough phosphate away from the GFO. I wouldn't count on out-waiting it, unfortunately, although that's my favorite maintenance tactic. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

03/10/2019, 03:09 PM	#9
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	You can check whether flucaonazole works for hair algae. I think AlgaeX is another similar product that might be worth considering. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

03/16/2019, 03:17 PM	#10
rjjr1963 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2015 Location: Nebraska/Missouri Posts: 770	I would stop using GFO. It will strip all the phosphate. Phosphate doesn't necessarily cause GHA and plus you need some phosphate in your system. I would not try to change water parameters unless something is way way off. Your tank looks great and I'd remove any algae manually. __________________ 72x24x16 115 gallon under construction Current Tank Info: 40 gallon reef

03/09/2019, 08:01 PM	#3
The Gurg Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2015 Posts: 18	I just replaced it. I try to replace it every other water change. But usually it winds up being every 3-4 water changes. Each reactor only holds 1/4 cup. I think they are rated for higher, but if they are too full they stop tumbling well. I thought a lot about hard plumbing in a real reactor with some actual capacity.

03/09/2019, 08:03 PM	#4
The Gurg Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2015 Posts: 18	No time frame. It’s just been a constant in my system for 8 years. I even started over and used muriatic acid on the rocks, but it came back.

03/09/2019, 11:31 PM	#6
The Gurg Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2015 Posts: 18	I’ll definitely follow the advice to prune back the algae (I do that periodically, but it’s been a bit). I’ve heard the advice for years that nutrient export is the key. Somehow you have to get nitrates and phosphates low. I got high end test kits and always have very low readings for either. Now I don’t have anything creating nutrients. I would expect the algae to start to die. But it looks like it’s doing just fine. I am using really old rock I bought from someone. I thought about replacing all the rock.

03/10/2019, 12:02 PM	#8
The Gurg Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2015 Posts: 18	Oh, intersting. Ok, wondering if the hard plumbed more serious reactor would be the best bet. As opposed to replacing rock. Thoughts? Why is the turf scrubber not getting to the algae first? I’m removing about 1/4cup of plant material from the scrubber every other week. I think I have some fluconazole somewhere. Need to break that out.