help green hair alge

Discussion in 'Algae' started by greyhawk, Oct 27, 2005.

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  1. greyhawk

    greyhawk Astrea Snail

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    Location:
    Memphis,TN
    i keep it clean too. i use a python system to suck all the junk out of it every two weeks and change the foam block and floss once a month.
     
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  3. Covey

    Covey Scooter Blennie

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    It doesn't matter how clean you keep it wet dry make nitrate and that can help to drive the algae. How deep is the sandbed?
     
  4. Birdlady

    Birdlady Finback Whale

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    Can you give a rundown of tank water parameters?

    Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, alk, Ca, pH ?

    These would help narrow it down...I am following Covey's thinking on the wet/dry. While they are great for fish only setups, I don't care for them on the reefs. They are quite efficient at processing ammonia into nitrite, and nitrite into nitrate...but they have no anaerobic zones to process nitrate into the nitogen gas to bubble out...:-/ Therefore, you may likely have a nitrate buildup. (but with all the algae, the test may not show too much)
     
  5. nfarocks

    nfarocks Astrea Snail

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    Oct 26, 2005
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    Location:
    Pickering Ontario Canada
    i have the same problem all the time...i found a new grazer to clean it all up......my hand.....i just spend a few hours and pick it all out.....i also use a power head to blow all the crap off my LR once a week...it's seem to get less and less all the time.....i have never heard of a wet dry causing the problem...
    but you can never tell...also add 10 hermit crabs per gallon...
     
    Last edited: Nov 10, 2005
  6. greyhawk

    greyhawk Astrea Snail

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    Location:
    Memphis,TN
    Ammonia 0
    Nitrite 0
    Nitrate 0
    alk seachem test 5
    Ca 450
    pH 8.4
    not much alge yet but i can see it coming back on my frags and corals.the rest of the tank is all new rock about two months old now since i gave away all my old rock.i blow out my rock every two weeks.sandbed is about 3 inches
     
  7. allaboutfish37

    allaboutfish37 Feather Duster

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    oakley, CA,California
    what about the sun light?is it hitting your tank?
     
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  9. greyhawk

    greyhawk Astrea Snail

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    nope no sunlight hitting the tank
     
  10. Covey

    Covey Scooter Blennie

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    This stuff is beatable
    [​IMG]
    Here is my tank 1 1/2 months after the pic above it is on its way out. Algae is a simply beast. It needs light, CO2, nitrogen, phosphate, and some trace elements. Like I said the test won't show much because the algae using the bad stuff as fast as you put it in the tank. You can keep replacing the rocks but the algae will just keep coming back until you figure out what your doing to get it to show up. If you make favorable conditions for algae it will show up.
    My best suggestion for you is to turn your Wet/dry into a fuge and slowly over the course of a few week remove the wet/dry media. You have got enough LR/LS to handle the nitrogen cycle but a fuge with a DSB is a great help. All the algae growing down in the sump is taking food away from the algae in the main tank. I also would switch from the shrimp to a high end flake food like formula one so there is less phosphate than the frozen food and above all else try to keep the Tang for eating it. Stop the sources of the algae and get someone chowing down on it and it will be gone in no time;D
     
  11. Covey

    Covey Scooter Blennie

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    Sorry for the hugh pic I am tryiong a new photo hosting site
     
  12. kb.bear

    kb.bear Peppermint Shrimp

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    any media can trap stuff and cause nitrates