Algae won't go Away

[SuperScro]

It seems like my tank is always growing new algae, despite my low phosphate and nitrate levels, strong lighting, constant water changes, good water flow, and active carbon.

Right now I have red bubble algae in my tank. Its mostly on one rock, but a lot on that rock. I was thinking about taking the rock out and scrubbing the bubble algae off the rock. Just wanting to make sure this is the easiest and most effective way.

Also, my sand gets algae every few weeks. It usually turns up brown, and makes a blanket on top of my substrate. I had this when i had a red slime algae or dinoflaggelate(sp) bloom.

I am just trying to see how natural this is. Or something is wrong with my tank. My tank is ready to go reef now, except I am afraid with all this algae around, harmful or not.

[MDeth]

Hmm, I'd invest in a fuge Makes things easier.

How often do you change your carbon and what kind are you using? Have you tried chemi-clean or chemi-pure?

[Otty]

If you get some Nassarious Snails they will help keep the sandbed mixed up for you. I got 100 of them off ebay and out of 118 of them sent I only had 3 die in shipping...awsome. You never see them until you drop some food in the water and then the sand comes alive (as my daughter says it)
How did you cycle your tank..time, chemicals????

[Tangster]

What Otty said .. I'd suggest lots of Snails of every type Hermits not so much a few. Also what are you feeding the tank on a daily bases and what animals do you have in there to be fed daily ? What type water are you using of top off and what type skimmer are you using ?
So I guess my questions are

1. How many snails do you keep ?
2. What type animals do you have and how much an what do you feed them ?
3. Are you using R/O D.I water ?
4. What skimmer are you using ?
5. What are the NO3 and PO4 readings ?

[DrHank]

Low phosphate and nitrates need to be no phosphate and nitrate readings. Any reading at all indicates a surplus of nutrients which are algae food. Skimm like mad (wet), multiple 10% water changes each week for the next month, reduce feeding to a minimum, use RO/DI water for all make up and top off water.

Answer all of Tangsters questions plus, What type of lighting and how old are the bulbs/tubes? How many hours a day are you lighting your tank.

The brown algae may well be diatoms which are always present in a new tank and go away. The red algae is probably cyanobacteria. That would indicate that a significant increase in water flow is needed in addition to nutrient reduction.

[SuperScro]

Will answer all of these questions.

The carbon I ahve is a larger 12x12 pad that I fit into my bak-pak skimmer where the bio-bale would normally be. It has been there for slightly less than a month. I have a tank to fit under my main display, just need to get it started.

I do have Nassarius Snails, but not that many. I have 3 very large ones and 4 small ones. Wasn't sure if too many was bad or not. My tank started the cycled with a pair of damsels, and they didn't do well at all so I added Bio-Spira a couple weeks later. I wated a couple more weeks and then added cured live rock with some dieoff. Then waited a month or so before my first fish.

1. 7 Nassarius Snails, 2 Turbos, 2 Astreas, 2 Red Leg Hermits, 2 Margarite Snails, 2 Cerith snails.
2. I have one purple firefish. He heats once every other day or sometimes every two days. I feed a portion of frozen cubed food such as krill, mysis, brine, spirulina, squid, clam. I net out as much as I can. The firefish gets plently.
3. I use a tap water filter. I make about 5 gallons of water an hour. From aquarium pharmaceuticals.
4. Bak-Pak 2r skimmer
5. Nitrates < 10. I use the Salifert Nitrate test, still hard for me to read, but its less than 10. Need to check again because I did another water change the other day. Phosphates are 0, so says my testing kit which is aquarium pharmaceuticals. Going to buy a salifert one instead.

I skim 24/7, feed every other day with a small amount, at least a 15 gallons changed each month (5 each week, usually skip a week.)
My lighting is fairly new. The bulbs are new. I got my T5H0 fixture about 2 months ago. The lighting has lately not been on longer than 10 hours a day, with half actinic and half 10k. Used to be 12 hours a day but was afraid i was feeding the algae. I have a strong flow, Maxijet 1200 and SEIO 620. My 620 seems week though, going to check it out and clean it.

[amcarrig]

Are you testing the output of your water filter (which is simply a DI filter by the way) for phosphates, nitrates, etc.?

[djnzlab1]

HI,
Many food items have more phos than other's

[SuperScro]

I could test my water change water. I tested for Nitrates before, zero there, haven't checked anything else. I am going to try phosphates and others tomorrow. After I fill my bucket, i put my Maxijet 1200 and circulate and aerate it for at the least 12 hours before it goes in the tank, salt and all. Does it matter if it isn't RO? I thought it was ok, but was thinking the RO was for top offs? Don't remember, someone fill me in.

I put very little food in the tank, so it would be hard for me to imagine that the food could be the problem.

I also thought of one dreadful thing I did when I first started my tank. When I set the tank up back in early december, I filled the entire tank with tank water, and let it run for a week. I was afraid this could be my problem. That was 7 months ago, and a lot of water changes. I was afraid this could have done something, since back then, I knew a very, very small fraction of what I do now.

Hopefully my carbon is working, the whole thing is in my skimmer and was hopeing it would help. All my crabs, snails, and my firefish are doing fine.

[mattgeezer]

do you use tapwater?