Hair algae or...?

zirabius · 05/29/2011, 12:22 PM

so i believe I have a mixture of hair algae and bubble algae and some other type of algae all at once and I do not know how to start fighting it.

There are some growing on my sand which have anchored down pretty good.
there are a lot of them growing on my rocks which seem to trap air (Nitrogen?) under them.
and I believe there are some good old hair algaes.

this is a new set up tank (less than 3 month old) my stats are all at zero.
right now there are 4 emerald crabs
2 hermit crabs and 1 clown fish.

they started blooming ever since I added a canister to my tank set up and the hair algeas started growing crazy in the direction of the canister's return pump!

I removed the canister bc it didnt seem to be doing much good for me. and it seems that they are not growing as much any more.

I also removed one of the small rocks that was covered completely with the unknown algae out of my tank. the rock was literally wrapped around with the algea with a ton of air bubble in a way that the surface was smooth and green but you could see bubbles underneath and when I pushed on it it would release air bubbles.

this has become a problem bc ever since they started growing they covered up my feather dusters and my zoo mushrooms are not comming out any more.

my nitrite and nitrate and ammonia are at zero. I checked my phosphate last week and it was at zero also but I do not know if it has changed or not.

I was going to try to add Mg to my tnak to see if they will go away or not but I am not quite sure if that is the right decision..

asid61 · 05/29/2011, 06:47 PM

It looks like PETCO live rock!

zirabius · 05/29/2011, 07:03 PM

I know .. even though I did not buy them from Petco...
any solutions?

skabooya · 05/29/2011, 11:49 PM

It looks like cyanobacteria although ive only seen it as green in freshwater and purple/pink/red in saltwater.
I dont see hair algae, just the same cyano looking stuff that is stringy. Ive had stringy cyano and film cyano (covers everything like a film).
i do see some bubble algae. Manual removal of this is the best but you will also run the risk of spreading it if you pop a bubble. Some people have luck with emerald crabs and this algae.
You do have a newer tank. What are your params like? Sounds and looks like your nutrient levels are high.
What kind of flow do you have over your tank? How old are your bulbs? What livestock do you have in your tank?

zirabius · 05/30/2011, 10:01 AM

I have 2 x 10000k + 2 x actnic HO t5.
I cut back on the light as of yesterday to 6 hours instead of 8.

I also added a turbo snail and a lawnmower and a tang.
I also have 4 Emerald crab 2 hermit crab and a clown.
As far as the water flow goes i have a maxijet 2100 as a return pump for my sump.

I just checked my Phosphate level and it was 0.2 so I ordered Phosphate sponge.
My ammonium and nitrate and nitrite were zero.
My ph was 8.1~8. 2

zirabius · 05/30/2011, 10:02 AM

Also my bulbs are one month old

RJT · 05/30/2011, 10:05 AM

What size is your tank?

skabooya · 05/30/2011, 10:42 AM

Yes what size is the tank. It is a very new tank being only 3 months old. All sorts of algae and things will pop up until things become stabilized. That does not mean when all params are 0. When the tank matures more it will stabalize. Until then keep doing weekly water changes, reduce feeding and light period. Manual removal is going to be a pain but also your best friend. Dont blow the stuff anywhere you will spread it. Try to siphon out as much as possible during water changes. Add another powerhead for more flow around the tank. No dead spots. Try some coral snow it can work. I use it and i find it does work a bit and the corals love it. When i had cyano nitrates and ites were hard to detect because the algae would absorb everything fast but i had very high trates because i overfead and had a large bioload (this was on my fw tank).

zirabius · 05/30/2011, 11:42 AM

The tank is 55 gallon with around 60 lb of live rocks and 20 lb live sand.

Do you guys think of adding high doses of Mg to the tank since so many people have had success with it?

And since its a 55 G I should change around 5 gallon a week right?

And what is that snow thing that you mentioned? And what does it exactly do? Sorry I have never heard of it..

And I read somewhere that Phosphate is a big factor in algae growth. Should I add a Phosphate reactor in addition to the Phosphate sponge?

Tenor · 05/30/2011, 06:17 PM

You can use phosphate media to remove phosphate and cut back on feeding, using old toothbrush to remove all hair algae on the live rock.

Soulsanctu · 05/30/2011, 10:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zirabius

I also added a turbo snail and a lawnmower and a tang.

I would rethink a Tang in a 55.

zirabius · 05/31/2011, 12:26 AM

Why is that?

skabooya · 05/31/2011, 09:31 AM

coral snow- http://www.jlaquatics.com/phpstore/s..._ID=zv-csnow02

problem algaes including blue green algae which you have - http://reefcleaners.org/index.php?op...d=54&Itemid=29

zirabius · 06/12/2011, 06:36 PM

I wanted to say thanks to everyone!
I did get the algae under the control finally!
I did a one time manual removal. Dosed a little bit magnesium, a 25 percent water change, decreased the light, added extra phosphate remover media and added a lawnmower and turbo snail.

It has been almost two weeks and have not seen any algea!

eddiesylas · 06/12/2011, 08:43 PM

Stay on top of your problem. It will return if disregarded. But glad to see a success story. Keep us posted if it returns.

05/29/2011, 12:22 PM	#1
zirabius Registered Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: TX Posts: 17	Hair algae or...? so i believe I have a mixture of hair algae and bubble algae and some other type of algae all at once and I do not know how to start fighting it. There are some growing on my sand which have anchored down pretty good. there are a lot of them growing on my rocks which seem to trap air (Nitrogen?) under them. and I believe there are some good old hair algaes. this is a new set up tank (less than 3 month old) my stats are all at zero. right now there are 4 emerald crabs 2 hermit crabs and 1 clown fish. they started blooming ever since I added a canister to my tank set up and the hair algeas started growing crazy in the direction of the canister's return pump! I removed the canister bc it didnt seem to be doing much good for me. and it seems that they are not growing as much any more. I also removed one of the small rocks that was covered completely with the unknown algae out of my tank. the rock was literally wrapped around with the algea with a ton of air bubble in a way that the surface was smooth and green but you could see bubbles underneath and when I pushed on it it would release air bubbles. this has become a problem bc ever since they started growing they covered up my feather dusters and my zoo mushrooms are not comming out any more. my nitrite and nitrate and ammonia are at zero. I checked my phosphate last week and it was at zero also but I do not know if it has changed or not. I was going to try to add Mg to my tnak to see if they will go away or not but I am not quite sure if that is the right decision..

06/12/2011, 08:43 PM	#15
eddiesylas Premium Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Kalamazoo, MI Posts: 950	Stay on top of your problem. It will return if disregarded. But glad to see a success story. Keep us posted if it returns. __________________ Aaron Current Tank Info: 10G Pico Seagrass/macro.

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05/29/2011, 06:47 PM	#2
asid61 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Cupertino, CA Posts: 507	It looks like PETCO live rock!

05/29/2011, 07:03 PM	#3
zirabius Registered Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: TX Posts: 17	I know .. even though I did not buy them from Petco... any solutions?

05/29/2011, 11:49 PM	#4
skabooya Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 195	It looks like cyanobacteria although ive only seen it as green in freshwater and purple/pink/red in saltwater. I dont see hair algae, just the same cyano looking stuff that is stringy. Ive had stringy cyano and film cyano (covers everything like a film). i do see some bubble algae. Manual removal of this is the best but you will also run the risk of spreading it if you pop a bubble. Some people have luck with emerald crabs and this algae. You do have a newer tank. What are your params like? Sounds and looks like your nutrient levels are high. What kind of flow do you have over your tank? How old are your bulbs? What livestock do you have in your tank?

05/30/2011, 10:01 AM	#5
zirabius Registered Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: TX Posts: 17	I have 2 x 10000k + 2 x actnic HO t5. I cut back on the light as of yesterday to 6 hours instead of 8. I also added a turbo snail and a lawnmower and a tang. I also have 4 Emerald crab 2 hermit crab and a clown. As far as the water flow goes i have a maxijet 2100 as a return pump for my sump. I just checked my Phosphate level and it was 0.2 so I ordered Phosphate sponge. My ammonium and nitrate and nitrite were zero. My ph was 8.1~8. 2

05/30/2011, 10:02 AM	#6
zirabius Registered Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: TX Posts: 17	Also my bulbs are one month old

05/30/2011, 10:05 AM	#7
RJT Registered Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: Maryland Posts: 332	What size is your tank?

05/30/2011, 10:42 AM	#8
skabooya Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 195	Yes what size is the tank. It is a very new tank being only 3 months old. All sorts of algae and things will pop up until things become stabilized. That does not mean when all params are 0. When the tank matures more it will stabalize. Until then keep doing weekly water changes, reduce feeding and light period. Manual removal is going to be a pain but also your best friend. Dont blow the stuff anywhere you will spread it. Try to siphon out as much as possible during water changes. Add another powerhead for more flow around the tank. No dead spots. Try some coral snow it can work. I use it and i find it does work a bit and the corals love it. When i had cyano nitrates and ites were hard to detect because the algae would absorb everything fast but i had very high trates because i overfead and had a large bioload (this was on my fw tank).

05/30/2011, 11:42 AM	#9
zirabius Registered Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: TX Posts: 17	The tank is 55 gallon with around 60 lb of live rocks and 20 lb live sand. Do you guys think of adding high doses of Mg to the tank since so many people have had success with it? And since its a 55 G I should change around 5 gallon a week right? And what is that snow thing that you mentioned? And what does it exactly do? Sorry I have never heard of it.. And I read somewhere that Phosphate is a big factor in algae growth. Should I add a Phosphate reactor in addition to the Phosphate sponge?

05/30/2011, 06:17 PM	#10
Tenor Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 71	You can use phosphate media to remove phosphate and cut back on feeding, using old toothbrush to remove all hair algae on the live rock.

05/31/2011, 12:26 AM	#12
zirabius Registered Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: TX Posts: 17	Why is that?

05/31/2011, 09:31 AM	#13
skabooya Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 195	coral snow- http://www.jlaquatics.com/phpstore/s..._ID=zv-csnow02 problem algaes including blue green algae which you have - http://reefcleaners.org/index.php?op...d=54&Itemid=29

06/12/2011, 06:36 PM	#14
zirabius Registered Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: TX Posts: 17	I wanted to say thanks to everyone! I did get the algae under the control finally! I did a one time manual removal. Dosed a little bit magnesium, a 25 percent water change, decreased the light, added extra phosphate remover media and added a lawnmower and turbo snail. It has been almost two weeks and have not seen any algea!