Algae Problem help

[Hootiedablofish]

So I have been combating hair algae for over a month now. Ive come to decide that it is possibly from over feeding. My problem lies here. We have a 75 gallon tank with 2 clowns, algae blenny, watchmen goby, tiger pistol shrimp, and diamond goby. Light schedule is from 12pm to 10 pm. I feed thawed mysys/brine shrimp. I usually only am able to feed twice daily usually 4pm and then 10 pm due to work schedule. My question is we run a fluval 405 filter. We use carbon and chemi pure elite. I am thinking of removing the filter pads in the filter to possibly help with the algae, as I dont really have the time to clean the filter twice weekly. However if i knew that would get rid of it I would be willing to give it a shot. Second problem is, the algae has overtaken a majority of the rock surface area, and is starting to affect the corals in the tank. Is it ok to remove all the filter pads at one time if it is ok to remove them at all, and can I take the rocks out and clean them with a toothbrush to remove as much algae as possible? Or should I be setting up a 10g aquarium and removing the algae on the rocks in the water.


Thanks

Dustin

 

[Hootiedablofish]

Also wanted to add that we have a 29g bio cube upstairs with 4 blue/yellow damsels in it and some coral, and I have been feeding pretty much a pinch of omega one food twice daily as well, and have been noticing algae starting to creep up on the back wall and small patches starting on rocks, its driving me mad...and we do have our own RO/DI system we use which is pretty much brand new.

 

[BigAl07]

I wouldn't remove them all at once. Remember that your tank is currently relying on some of the bacteria in those for supporting the tank.

How much live rock?

I'd like to see a multiple front approach:

• A) Reduce feeding quantity and frequency . . . (My heavily stocked 90g gets fed every 2nd or 3rd day)
  
• B) All frozen foods should be thawed in RO/DI water and this water discarded (gels and preservatives can be Rocket Fuel for algae)
  
• C) You'll want to manually remove as much as you can right before each water change. Scrubbing, scraping, pulling and anything you can to get the stuff out of the tank.
  
• D) Evaluate source water for possible Nitrates or Phosphates
  
• E) Increase amount and frequency of water changes
  
• F) Evaluate bulbs - How old are they? What are they?

This didn't happen over-night and it will take longer to get rid of it. Just stick with it and don't give up.

 

[Hootiedablofish]

I want to say we have anywhere from 100 - 120 lbs of live rock in the 75 gallon. I really never knew you could feed once every couple of days, those fish go crazy every time i put some in there. I will have do a massive cleaning on it this week before the next water change. I have attached some pics of the nightmare.

 

[wm23oh]

Hey Dustin,

From my experience with any algae outbreak it always comes down to nutrients in the water. Removing the rocks and scrubbing them may help remove the algae asap but by doing this you are also going to kill some living things on the rock.

I highly recommend only trying to remove only the longest hair algae and any that's not as long just leaving it their. How is that going to help? It actually won't but it will prevent you from killing other good guys on your rock.

Most importantly is get your water quality under control. You must remove the nutrients in the water and get that under control and your algae will starve and eventually all die off. When doing this remember that it will release more nutrients into the water column so extra water changes must be made to prevent a prolonged battle.

Patience and water changes will get everything under control. Sometimes adding specific nutrients is needed to get the tank into balance and prevent the algae from getting hold of it.

One of my favorite links by leebca.
http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums/fish-diseases-treatments/34037-what-water-quality.html

Things to think about and check.

Where does your source water come from and even if it is RO have you tested it?

How often do you do water changes and how many % of the tank's volume do you do. I suggest 25% while battling algae 2 times per week with scrubbing in between.

If you have any flexy hose make sure you bump it around a little to get any debris to come up and out into the tank so it can get taken out of the water column.

Do you use a skimmer? How many GPH is it rated for? How large is your tank?

Do you keep your live rock blown clean? Keeping the crud that gets caught in the rock suspended in the water column will help keep your tank sparkling clean and with less to break down that means their is less likelihood of water fouling and algae getting a handle on your rocks.

Best wishes and always remember to include as much information in your posts so that others can get a better idea of what your tank looks like.

 

[BigAl07]

They go wild for a couple of reasons:

A) You probably have a routine with feeding and they recognize parts of your visit as triggering them for FEEDING TIME.

B) In the wild fish may not know when their next feeding is so they'll eat about every chance they get until they over-eat. They have you trained pretty well

C) We're human and we have the "Nurturing" gene. We want to nurture our tanks so they are the very BEST they can be.

 

[BigAl07]

James you're partly correct but... if the rock is cleaned in a container of SW you minimize any die-off. The trick here is to get as much of it out with each cleaning as possible. I've battled this nasty myself (more than I care to admit) and if at all possible it's better to get the rock as clean as possible on each cleaning.

 

[wm23oh]

James you're partly correct but... if the rock is cleaned in a container of SW you minimize any die-off. The trick here is to get as much of it out with each cleaning as possible. I've battled this nasty myself (more than I care to admit) and if at all possible it's better to get the rock as clean as possible on each cleaning.

I agree and disagree respectfully. My reason for suggesting not to remove the rock to another container (even though that would be ideal) is if their are any sponges living on the rock they will die from being exposed to the air causing more nutrients in the water for the algae to grow again once placed back in the DT as the sponge dissolves.

But then again I don't know much about the aquarium in question and I'm making an assumption that their may be sponges on the LR. If this assumption is wrong and their are no sponges growing on the LR then removing the rock with as little exposure to air as possible would be ideal so that the Coraline algae that is on it doesn't bleach expelling any nutrients again in the DT.

Respectfully,

 

[nunpuncher]

i would get a sea hare and skim really really wet while he mows your algea down in uder a week then when it is all gone give him back to the store
buy a two little fishys phosban reactor and start running a small amount of rowowaps ... buy a tds meter clean the buckets or jugs you store your rodi in with vinager and water cut feedings down
gl

 

[BigAl07]

A Sea Hare isn't a solution to the problem but one of the symptoms. When the Sea Hare is removed if you haven't taken care of the root cause you get HA all over again and usually worse than before. That's experience speaking

 

[rocknreef]

Hi All'
Tom here, & I can relate to this problem as well.
I'm in the middle of this battle with algae myself & looking for a few tips.
I've been able to clean most of the green annoyance off my LR, side panels
& back of tank. The scrubbing I did was inside the tank,then netting as much of the floating debris as I could.
After the water cleared, & everything settled I would do the partial water change, sucking up the loose algae & other junk left over from the scrubbing.
I think this will be an on going battle until I master the art of water balance.
Open to all suggestion.
Thanks

 

[ddinox64]

Rocknreef said as well as others. Balance

I have a whopping year and a half experience in reefing. Had tanks forever though. I know zero about keeping water in parameters. But my method is the KISS method, keeping everything in balance. Stability, stability, stability. Sad thing is, I don't know how to explain it, other than I don't mess with my tanks much. Never had a HA problem. I do have algae, but not a problem.
I don't like the sterile look.

I get out breaks of Red Slime but it's nice that there is an easy fix for that. Too bad not for HA.

But Hooty. I sometimes overfeed my fish when I notice one not eating, or I add a new one I know was wild caught and I'm trying to figure out what it is it wants to eat. Sure enough a few days later the red slime moves in. I then kick myself for buying that wild fish and putting it in my unwild tank.

So. Get everything back to square one. And slow down. As they say in this hobby. Only bad things happen fast.