Ultimate Nuisance Algae Thread

amcarrig · Feb 9, 2009

This thread has been stickied

kiarah · Feb 9, 2009

johnmaloney said: ↑

Okay, so unless you have a nuisance macro algae that is complex and not normal, we hopefully got you covered. We need photos to continue the thread, send them in.

The Common Pest Algae. (Diatoms, Hair, Film, and Cyano)

Cyano:

Slime Style:

Powdery Nasty Mess on Sand Style:

Scientific Description: Red slimey mess. Can be long and stringy, can be brownish, can be powdery on your glass or rocks.

Manual Removal - wipe glass with mag float, etc... Light toothbrush harder corals covered and gorgs, and the rocks. Stir sand and siphon

Clean Up Crew- Ceriths, Nerites and Blue Legs

Why it happened - too much phosphate, and you probably have a phosphate imbalance. Meaning you probably have less than a 20:1 N ratio.

Starving it out - Use a phosban reactor or a macro like chaeto to take down phosphate. If you have a nitrate problem too, you can add more live rock or rubble to the tank, do some more wcs, add macro, add dsb, etc...

John's Tip - Increase the flow in your tank to take care of dead spots. Are you using RO/DI? Either way check your source water for phosphates.
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Hair Algae:

Can also appear brownish like this:

Scientific Description: A variety of green filamentous algae are lumped together under Green Hair Algae, because identification requires a microscope.

Manual Removal - yank it out. If it is growing from the sand sift it out with a net.

Clean Up Crew- Blue Legs, bigger hermits, turbos, limpets, chitons

Why it happened - too much nutrients, both phosphate and nitrate.

Starving it out - Use a phosban reactor or a macro like chaeto to take down phosphate. If you have a nitrate problem too, you can add more live rock or rubble to the tank, do some more wcs, add macro, add dsb, etc...

John's Tip - Older light bulbs grow more hair algae.

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Diatoms:

Scientific Description: Brown Powdery like substance that can cake in extreme cases like the one above. Usually occurs right after a tank finishes its cycle.

Manual Removal - wipe glass with mag float, etc... A blast from a turkey baster takes care of rocks. Stir sand and siphon.

Clean Up Crew- Ceriths, Nerites and Chitons

Why it happened - bio available silica, probably from sand or rock or something plastic your recently added to the tank.

Starving it out - Diatoms starve themselves out, just try to keep something eating it in the mean time so it isn't so ugly as it slowly removes the silica from your tank.

John's Tip - Pods love diatoms. Left with no predation from fish, and a steady supply of diatoms over a month's time, (you do this by keeping the diatoms under control), you should be able to see rapid pod maturation in your tank.

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The "Super Pest Algae". These are algae that you should have kept out through QT. They are a pain to deal with and there are a few hobbyists who have torn down their tanks because of these.

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Byropsis sp.

As you can see in distant pictures it looks very similar to hair algae, and the two are often confused. Here is a link to a picture of Byropsis pennata, that is close up:

Notice the feather detail on the algae. This is what you are looking for in your tank to confirm or deny identification. If you do have it be prepared for a fight:

1. Try to get on it quickly. If it is only on one rock remove the rock, remove algae, starve of light in a QT.
2. Manual Removal - If that doesn't work or get it all, remove all you can by hand. People will tell you not to do this because it will spread. Let me assure you, left untreated byropsis will spread. Just be careful about it, and if you can pull the rock out to remove it all the better. If takes hold in the sand sift it out with a net. If you don't remove the base of byropsis you are wasting your time.
3. Starve it out - As always if you can get down nutrients nuisance algae has a harder time taking hold, or coming back after manual removal.
4. Repeat steps 2 & 3 aggressively.

5. If that doesn't work try raising your magnesium to very high levels. I don't want to be blamed if this causes losses in your tank, many people have done this with great success and minimal stress, but still....please do your research and don't blame me if something goes wrong. I say QT. Here is a good article:

Reef Central Online Community - Finally an easy solution to bryopsis!

John's Tip: save your money on CUCs, if it is truly byropsis none of the normally sold will finish it off, only pick at it which is what we can do with manual removal in 2 minutes time. Opaque cutouts shaped to cover an area of byropsis can be put between the light source to shade them out. Remember fire and corrosion concerns, tupperware might work, but remember soap, chemical contaminant concerns.... Home Depot bucket lids make good cutouts.

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Bubble Algae

This is green bubble, one or more of the Valonia species:

Scientific Description: Almost cool looking, almost. Can have a metallic look to it. Once it takes hold it can grow very fast and dominate a tank in a month.

Manual Removal - Don't be clumsy and spread this one. Get em small, cover them with a baster, scrape the baster along the rock, when the valonia comes off release the plunger and suck it up. Discard and repeat. If you have a lot to do, by the time you are done you will be ready to add new mixed water to complete the water change. Be aggressive with your manual removal.

Clean Up Crew- Emerald Crabs

Why it happened - You didn't quarantine, and you have available nutrients for it.

Starving it out - Use a phosban reactor or a macro like chaeto to take down phosphate. If you have a nitrate problem too, you can add more live rock or rubble to the tank, do some more wcs, add macro, add dsb, etc...

John's Tip - Juvenile Emeralds are better for the task, the smaller the better. Get one per handful amount of the bubble. (After aggressive manual removal, remember to limit based on tank size etc....that recommendation is only based on the bubble algae.)
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Lobophora sp. (Usually variegata):

Scientific Description: Almost cool looking, almost. Can have a metallic look to it. Once it takes hold it can grow very fast and dominate a tank in a month.

Scientific Description- Brown semi rigid but slippery macro algae. Often confused with plating coralline, the slippery rubbery feel is a give away if you don't want to use scientific methods to determine the id.

Manual Removal - Difficult. Qting the rock in dark cycle is the best way. Good thing it doesn't spread rock to rock too fast. A chisel or a flexible knife like a putty blade works, but you got to get it all, and take some of the rock just to be sure.

Clean Up Crew- Emerald Crabs, Sea Hares, some Turbos, Chitons, Limpets, Tangs, Urchins, will pick at it, but it is likely to persist.

Why it happened - You didn't quarantine, and you have available nutrients for it.

Starving it out - Use a phosban reactor or a macro like chaeto to take down phosphate. If you have a nitrate problem too, you can add more live rock or rubble to the tank, do some more wcs, add macro, add dsb, etc...

John's Tip - Under the right lighting it can take on amazing colors. Also, it is not calcified despite its appearance.

http://www.com.univ-mrs.fr/IRD/atollpol/ecorecat/images/lobovah.jpg

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Blue Green Cyano:

Description: Forms a slimy mat of green goop for lack of a better term. Usually greenish despite name.

Removal: This stuff is difficult to get rid of, but can be done if you persevere. Capable of surviving in low to zero light and without nitrates, it only needs phosphates in your tank to feed off of. You can prevent it by utilizing mangroves and macroalgae that will reduce the phosphates in your tank and prevent it from forming. If you have a break out and are trying to deal with an established problem, then you should consider adding a chemical phosphate removal system to kill it. The setup, (you need a phosban reactor and a filter media), may run you up to $75, before tubing and getting your tank setup going. Increase flow to dead spots.

Fun Fact: Scientists believe Blue Green Cyano was one of the first life forms on our planet.

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(If anyone would like to lend a good close up pic of byropsis I would be grateful).
All for now, I will keep getting at it when I get some more picture permissions. Feel free to help me out by sending pics of pest algae.
Click to expand...

Well i have some pictures off mine but they are not that great! also i have some good ones off the crusty looking one( the one that looks like good algea)!
Thanks K

johnmaloney · Feb 9, 2009

Thanks! I am getting a lot of pictures in now, and hopefully I can add like 5 more today, have to see if I got 5 different pictures, I know I have been getting a lot in. Thanks guys!

GuitarMan89 · Feb 9, 2009

Am so gutted i spent all that money on what was ment to be the best live rock!
Click to expand...

I did the same thing, I bought 55lbs of cured liverock and it came with some gha. I got rid of it, but it took a while. I also had some bryopsis come in on a zoa frag, again I got rid of it, but only by epoxying over it, leaving it for 2 months, then removing the epoxy. My tank looked real bad for a few months, but now its good to go. I will never buy anything but base rock again. I feel that too many new hobbyists go for the pre-cured rock, including myself, thinking it is the best way to go. Many have learned the hard way. There also seems to be a really big confusion about what live rock actually is, but that's for another thread.

johnmaloney · Feb 16, 2009

i think you are right about that guitarman. Plus the difference between wild, maricultured, aquacultures, cured, non-cured,base, live rock that was taken out and left in a garage with organics on it kind of base, etc...

lrgosinkvet · Feb 21, 2009

Ditto- I fell into the same trap. I was totally new, bought primo live rock only to get bubble algae, bryopsis and flatworms. I have eliminated all but the bubble algae, but its not really a problem. The Bryopsis was definitely the hardest. I pruned/ weeded 2-3x per week removing every last tid bit. Thankfully I have fairly long nails, so I could get right down to the base and pull it there. It took me about a month, but I think I got at least 99% of it. I found one little piece today that went to go meet Jesus. I really think it would be nice if there was an honest LFS out there that when they see a beginner, they take them aside and give them resources to read an help em out instead of trial by fire. It's a good thing I make a good living or I would have given this up quickly.

johnmaloney · Mar 8, 2009

been awhile since an update, I think I will try to get 4 more in today. Some caulerpa racemosa variations, red bubble, maybe some red hair would be nice, and some cotton candy algae.

JupiterSailfish · Apr 6, 2009

Would this be Callithamnion aka Cotton Candy Algae?

johnmaloney · Apr 7, 2009

i don't think so. the branches are not thin enough it seems. can you get in me in for a closer look.

Johnnie Mac · Apr 21, 2009

Wow , I have about 3 types of those algae, but I am winning the battle.....

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Attached Files:

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