What's the best way to manually remove hair algae from LR?

Lee

Lee

Member
I had a long thread going about algae control, and I had it pretty well under control as of late, but after my last WC, I had a massive outbreak of this green/brown fuzzy hair algae (see below).

I just set up a GFO reactor the other day, and I treated the water with a marine algicide and Chemiclean today. Tomorrow I'd like to do a good 30% WC, but I have all this hair algae on the rocks. I REALLY want to get the algae gone so that when this GFO reactor starts kicking in, its starting with no algae in the tank.

What is the best/safest way to manually remove this hair algae? I have a scrub brush that has only been used on fish stuff, but I'm not sure what the best way to do this is, without killing off the LR inhabitants. If I scrub the rocks, even in a bucket of salt, I'm guessing that I'll kill off a lot of the good stuff. Certainly scrubbing in a sink rinsing with fresh water won't be any better.

Any suggestions?




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degibson84

degibson84

Active Member
I would take out the rock into a tub of saltwater and scrub the crap out of it. shake off any GHA before placing it back into your DT
 
ddelozier

ddelozier

Well-Known Member
PREMIUM
RS Ambassador
any method that will remove enough to count will also risk killing the bacteria on the Live rock. I have used a 1 cup per gal H202 soak for 24 hours on rocks that are covered, but do it outside the DT. The HA dies within a couple days after the soak, but the nutrients will re enter the water. Best bet for a simple solution if there is no corals in the tank is a 5-10 day blackout, turning lights on only for an hour or so to feed fish. with corals, 3 day blackout, leave lights on regular for 2 days, then 3 day blackout again. Either process will remove the HA, but fill the water with nutrients. If you have means, a Turf Scrubber will strip the water of nutrients and starve the HA out, transferring it to the screen. Otherwise large water changes are in order.

my 65 has a hanging turf scrubber, I never have HA probs, and params are spot on, even without a skimmer. Im running a 6mo experiment with it. Im at 4 mo now. no yellow water, and SPOT ON parameters.
 
Lee

Lee

Member
ddelozier said:
any method that will remove enough to count will also risk killing the bacteria on the Live rock. I have used a 1 cup per gal H202 soak for 24 hours on rocks that are covered, but do it outside the DT. The HA dies within a couple days after the soak, but the nutrients will re enter the water. Best bet for a simple solution if there is no corals in the tank is a 5-10 day blackout, turning lights on only for an hour or so to feed fish. with corals, 3 day blackout, leave lights on regular for 2 days, then 3 day blackout again. Either process will remove the HA, but fill the water with nutrients. If you have means, a Turf Scrubber will strip the water of nutrients and starve the HA out, transferring it to the screen. Otherwise large water changes are in order.

my 65 has a hanging turf scrubber, I never have HA probs, and params are spot on, even without a skimmer. Im running a 6mo experiment with it. Im at 4 mo now. no yellow water, and SPOT ON parameters.
Click to expand...

I've got a huge skimmer, refugium with cheato and cualerpa (sp?). I've also got an algae scrubber but it does absolutely nothing. It refuses to grow algae. Some weird conflict with my refugium perhaps... I dunno. I just added a GFO reactor, so hopefully that is the missing ingredient. Otherwise I'm all out of ideas

As far as a blackout, I've got a Sebae anemone so that's not really an option
 
S

sheavens

Member
Reducing the hours that the lights are on helps a lot.
You could maybe try taking the rock out and putting it in an oxygenated and heated container completely blacked out for a week or two, lifting the lid for maybe an hour a day.
 
PSU4ME

PSU4ME

JoePa lives on!!!
Staff member
PREMIUM
H202 soak would be my first step (try 2-3 rocks first). 50/50 solution with tank water and dip for 3 minutes. Rinse in clean tank water then put back in.
This will kill it on your rocks but you will still need to deal with the source problem. Testing will be tough because your readings will most likley show 0 as the GHA is using it up. Sometimes you need to ride out the algae wave and be diligent about keeping the tank clean. cut back on your feedings, make sure the food is cleaned and rinsed as well. Vaccum the sump out, do water changes with ro/di water more often etc etc etc.

GHA bites everyone but it is easily beaten if your diligent.
 
AC273

AC273

Member
What is the best way to manually remove hair algae? The best way is to NOT manually remove it. Get a few large mexican turbo snails and let them go to town. They will mow it down very quickly. Just remember not to get too many or they will starve after the algae is all gone.
 
L

lzrlvr

Member
:hallo:::hi your tank has to cycle i would like to advise you not to put all of those additives into your tank.like Douglas Adams wrote in hitchhikers guide to the universe dont panic! let it rest do not add any fish or inverts only the clean up crew of snails and small hermit crabs not to many of either one.if you want to remove some of the algae manualy use a round brush tied to a 1/4 inch wooden dowel (stick) long enough to reach the deepest parts of your tank imerse the brush end into the algae and twist like you were twisting cotton candy onto a paper cone pull the dowel and brush out of the tank and remove the algae from the brush.just be careful not to pull the rock you are removing the algae from out of the tank along with the algae.
 
Lee

Lee

Member
PSU4ME said:
H202 soak would be my first step (try 2-3 rocks first). 50/50 solution with tank water and dip for 3 minutes. Rinse in clean tank water then put back in.
This will kill it on your rocks but you will still need to deal with the source problem. Testing will be tough because your readings will most likley show 0 as the GHA is using it up. Sometimes you need to ride out the algae wave and be diligent about keeping the tank clean. cut back on your feedings, make sure the food is cleaned and rinsed as well. Vaccum the sump out, do water changes with ro/di water more often etc etc etc.

GHA bites everyone but it is easily beaten if your diligent.
Click to expand...

Well considering I have a huge skimmer, refugium, algae scrubber, 7 hours of lighting, RODI WC's, and now a GFO reactor, I'm hoping I've got the source problem taken care of... At least one would assume. the GFO reactor was the latest addition and has only been running a few days. I just want to get rid of the GHA that is already there as quickly as possible.
 
Lee

Lee

Member
AC273 said:
What is the best way to manually remove hair algae? The best way is to NOT manually remove it. Get a few large mexican turbo snails and let them go to town. They will mow it down very quickly. Just remember not to get too many or they will starve after the algae is all gone.
Click to expand...

Turbo snails might work, and when the GHA is all gone, my Moray Eel will probably eat them :)
 
Lee

Lee

Member
lzrlvr said:
:hallo:::hi your tank has to cycle i would like to advise you not to put all of those additives into your tank.like Douglas Adams wrote in hitchhikers guide to the universe dont panic! let it rest do not add any fish or inverts only the clean up crew of snails and small hermit crabs not to many of either one.if you want to remove some of the algae manualy use a round brush tied to a 1/4 inch wooden dowel (stick) long enough to reach the deepest parts of your tank imerse the brush end into the algae and twist like you were twisting cotton candy onto a paper cone pull the dowel and brush out of the tank and remove the algae from the brush.just be careful not to pull the rock you are removing the algae from out of the tank along with the algae.
Click to expand...

That's not a bad idea... I'd like to be able to remove it without removing all my rocks, and forcing all the fish to reestablish territory.

I tried a turkey baster, but that isn't breaking the GHA free...
 
PSU4ME

PSU4ME

JoePa lives on!!!
Staff member
PREMIUM
If you don't want to remove the rock then I'd go mexican turbos, sea hare and a long spine urchin. That combo will make quick work but once the algae is gone be ready to rehome most.

As for the source, my guess is your rocks are leaching nutrients...... It should pass
 
AC273

AC273

Member
Lee said:
Turbo snails might work, and when the GHA is all gone, my Moray Eel will probably eat them :)
Click to expand...

I had bad hair algae in my 29 for 8 months and I tried everything. The turbos were finally the solution. Once they finished off the algae, I would feed them the seaweed salad marine algae using an algae clip a couple times a week. They continually clean the rocks and make sure it never comes back.
 
DianaKay

DianaKay

Princess Diana
RS STAFF
I had 4 in my 65gal and that's TOO MANY....gave one away, Still too many...I'm having to feed them sheets of dried seaweed. But I don't have any hair algae left & it was a green forest in the early tank days.
If you have a place to re-home them I guess a dozen would get the job done. They are BIG and push stuff around like bulldozers. They do LOVE hair algae :D
 
Lee

Lee

Member
DianaKay said:
I had 4 in my 65gal and that's TOO MANY....gave one away, Still too many...I'm having to feed them sheets of dried seaweed. But I don't have any hair algae left & it was a green forest in the early tank days.
If you have a place to re-home them I guess a dozen would get the job done. They are BIG and push stuff around like bulldozers. They do LOVE hair algae :D
Click to expand...

I could give them back to the LFS. So like, get a dozen, and then give back what, half? Is 6 a reasonable number to keep in a 125 or is that still too many?
 
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