Live rock turning green!!

carmexx

carmexx

Active Member
I am in the 5th week of my tank's existence. It has cycled as the testing reveals. It's a 30 gal FOWLR under 96w of PC lighting. Specific gravity is 1.025 using the swing arm method (sorry will get a refractometer next purchase). Ph is 8.0 and just added buffer to boost to 8.3 today after testing. Ammonia is 0.00 , Nitrites are 0.00, and Nitrates are 10 ppm. My live rock is turning green. I assume this is algae. Is this a normal stage in the beginning processes of a new tank? Will this green turn to coraline algae (pink)? Can someone help?
 
Miltonic

Miltonic

Member
Im having the same thing happen to my rocks and its also 5 weeks but will be 6 weeks tomorrow. The weird part is that this green is a very bright green not the ugly green color normal algae has. Im thinking it is coraline algae starting to grow because some areas are also pink.
 
carmexx

carmexx

Active Member
Yeah I have some pink in spots. And some red algae too. You're right when you say it is bright green b/c that's what I have too.
 
C

curly-shuffle

New Member
Check your phosphate level. I am 3 month into my 65 gl reef tank and from what I have been told by the people at my LFS is that the green algea will appear at the same time as the coraline. It is competing with the coraline algea. I was told to use a phosphate buffer/sponge and lower the phosphate level to 0 and the green will start to give away to the coraline algea. I have done what they told me and I am seeing white coraline algea starting to appear where the green was and in some spots the white is turning dark purple. I am a new guy so do some homework and read what you can online about coraline algea. Talk with other people with more knowledge than me.
 
JT101

JT101

Member
Is the green algae hard and "stony", or is it soft and fluffy, or perhaps even "hairy"? If it is the latter then it's some form of algae caused by excessive phosphates. If it's the former then it's green coraline, which is a good sign.
 
C

curly-shuffle

New Member
OK, it is hard and stony looking. My snails just move right over the top of it. It seems they don't eat it. I did have some hairy looking stuff that is gone. I think the phosphate sponge helped.
 
Miltonic

Miltonic

Member
mine is also green and stony and the snails don't seem to be eating it either, from my last test my phosphates were at zero but there is a lot of algae and chaeto in the fuge that seems to be taking care of it.
 
carmexx

carmexx

Active Member
My green algae appears to be hard and stony. That's the only way to describe it or it appears as it is stained onto the rock.
 
C

curly-shuffle

New Member
The pic's are great. That is what my rock looks like. I hope someone with some higher knowledge will jump on this thread and help us all.
 
Miltonic

Miltonic

Member
im on the same boat as you guys because my rock looks exactly like that also. Someone help and tell us what this means.
 
jefro120reef

jefro120reef

New Member
if it is new rock I would not worry. the green staining is normal. the coraline starts as small white discs and as it grows outward it will gain color.
 
C

curly-shuffle

New Member
COOL. Thanks for the info. I do see the white areas on my oldest rock and some little dark purple spots in the white areas.:bluenod:
 
C

curly-shuffle

New Member
Some was there but most of it developed later. Funny thing is my protein skimmer is picking up green gunk instead of a brown gunk and it does smell funky. Kind of planty, algea stink comes out of the collection cup. It looks like it is the rock itself turning green instead of something on the rock.
 
mettjl03

mettjl03

Member
If it smells it is still curing... I looked at ur pictures and my rock looks that way. Is the green part soft?
 
carmexx

carmexx

Active Member
i guess it could be soft....it's definately not hairy. It's the same texture as the rock really.
 
carmexx

carmexx

Active Member
Well I'm back months later and green still dominates my tank. Well I am fighting hair algae at the moment but what I mean is this: My 30 gal is 4 months old and my live rock is covered with GREEN coraline algae. There is purple and pink specks here and there but you can even see the evidence in my turbo snails shell. It was pink and purple when I bought it and you can see it's green as it's built it's shell since being in my tank.
 
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