Live rock turning green

Discussion in 'Algae' started by johnlocke, May 10, 2010.

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  1. johnlocke

    johnlocke Flamingo Tongue

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    My live rock used to be this nice white color..now lately it has turned this nasty neon green color.. i tried scrapping it with those algae scrappers (sponge).. but its not coming out, its very hard..any idea what would take this thing out?

    This is what it looks like:
    http://i941.photobucket.com/albums/ad251/petmania/IMG_5988.jpg

    Also my other live rocks have turned dark, just like the right side of this rock on the picture..

    I have astrea snails but it dont seem like they are doing a good job...
     
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  3. 4phish

    4phish Montipora Digitata

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    How long has the tank been set up?
     
  4. brew0688

    brew0688 Fire Shrimp

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    Did you put tequila in your water? It makes me turn green...

    wow. bad joke.

    How old is the tank? I'm guessing it's fairly new and still cycling.

    You'll need hermit crabs to take care of that stuff.
     
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  5. Seano Hermano

    Seano Hermano Giant Squid

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    It almost looks like Coraline to me..which comes in different colors, depending on the variety/origin of the rock.
     
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  6. NU-2reef

    NU-2reef Montipora Digitata

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    that looks to be film algae . turbo snails will help, but the main issue is in the water quality. decrease the excess nutrients. If the tank is in the cycle process then shut lights off or reduce lighting schedule.
     
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  7. johnlocke

    johnlocke Flamingo Tongue

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    the tank has been running for 7months.. and the lights (two t5-ho) are on for 12h.. the paraments seem to be fine except for nitrate being at 10ppm... it doesnt look nice at all and its in the middle of my tank which drives me nuts..

    so turbo snails should clean this up at least stop it from spreading? its a 30g tank, with 10astreas how many turbos should i get?
     
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  9. evolved

    evolved Wrasse Freak

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    Testing for Phosphates?
     
  10. Magnus

    Magnus Sharknado

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    Your 12 hours lighting schedule is definitely the culprit here. Try and reduce your light to 6 hours max, for 3 weeks or so, then slowly add half to 1 hour by-weekly. Also, check your phosphate level and try to reduce if detected.

    Mine has some of that green stuff too, but it doesn't bother me at all since Coraline has slowly started to take over it. Vodka dosing helped reduce that green look considerably, but it's not gone yet.

    Don't rush it. Give it time. Have you had any changes in your setup lately? Substrate or new rock added?

    - Mag.
     
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  11. johnlocke

    johnlocke Flamingo Tongue

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    thanx, i havent added anything new in the past 2months.. phopshates are at 0..

    I was wondering do turbo snails or hermit crabs climb rocks? and which ones are better for me to get to clean this up?

    I will also reduce my light
     
  12. NU-2reef

    NU-2reef Montipora Digitata

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    nitrates and phosphates are the issue. you can test for phosphates but the reading will likely be innaccurate to make a judgement on. Only because the available phophates are being used up by the green algae.

    2-3 turbos should do the trick, but they may starve when the job is done.
    Note: this is not the solution.

    do you have any corals in there yet? i would shorten the photo period and water change weekly with RO/di water to start