Dark red spots on rock and hermit shells?

DL6259 · 06-27-2008, 06:09 PM

Hi all, First timer on this site here.
I have a 6 month old 150 gallon reef tank that started growing dark red spots on the live rock and also on the hermit crab shells. It is not slimey and I can not scrape it off. I'm also getting some green hair algae growing on the intake. Fish and corals appear healthy. I do weekly 15 gallon changes with RO/DI water, keep salinity at 1.025, temp at 80F, add the calcium, magnesium etc. I did lose 3 Anthias a few weeks back (refused to eat, stupid fish) and the bodies were never to be found. Is this a result of decomposing fish raising amonia / nitrates?
Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Dave in Virginia

glampka · 06-27-2008, 06:59 PM

Nice looking tank. The red spots are no doubt coralline algae - good stuff. Dead fish left in the tank = rise in ammonia & nitrites. Have you tested for them?

Snelly40 · 06-27-2008, 07:08 PM

i second the coraline from the sounds of it

csmsss · 07-04-2008, 01:45 AM

Definitely coralline, but it's tough to make that stuff grow to any extent. What I always experienced with the deep red coralline algae was just specks of it all over the place, but I could never get it to encrust like the pink or purple coralline. Perhaps I wasn't dosing with adequate iodine - not sure.

BigAl07 · 07-04-2008, 01:51 AM

Yeah that's coraline growing. Looks GREAT though!

Oh yeah... Welcome to RS

You do need to test your tank to see how your biological filtration system is handling the lost fish.

Green hair algae can get out of hand in a HURRY if you don't get a handle on it "yesterday". Test your tank water, your source water, "evaluate" your feeding and do larger/more often water changes. It comes faster than it leaves

Again WELCOME to the Reef

Jake · 07-05-2008, 03:34 PM

The red coraline is good. I also have lots of red spots. They look good when mixed with the pink and purple coraline.
Like others have said, the hair algae is worth addressing now. Test you posphates maybe add a phosphate remover bag in the sump, check your lighting duration, limit your overfeeding. Do a search for hair algae and you will find lots of good info on here. Be sure you are using RO/DI water not just RO water.
Cheers.

sonicfish · 08-11-2008, 09:37 PM

i have dark red algae in my tank its hard and almost impossible to get off but in some rocks it covors it and im wondering if its another type of algae ill try to get some photos but what do you guys think

sambrinar · 09-09-2008, 09:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sonicfish

i have dark red algae in my tank its hard and almost impossible to get off but in some rocks it covors it and im wondering if its another type of algae ill try to get some photos but what do you guys think

you should start your own thread, probably will get quicker answers

06-27-2008, 06:59 PM	#2 (permalink)
glampka Achilles Tang Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Margaritaville Posts: 885 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Dark red spots on rock and hermit shells? Nice looking tank. The red spots are no doubt coralline algae - good stuff. Dead fish left in the tank = rise in ammonia & nitrites. Have you tested for them? __________________ We are the people our parents warned us about! JB 30 gal mixed reef 12 gal mixed Aquapod, 70 W MH 12 gal JBJ cube - mixed reef 12 gal Aquapod - work in progress

06-27-2008, 07:08 PM	#3 (permalink)
Snelly40 Manta Ray Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Charlotte, NC Posts: 3,098 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Dark red spots on rock and hermit shells? i second the coraline from the sounds of it __________________ Snelly's 90gal Reef-O-Rama *Member-"Crabs Are Evil" Society*

07-04-2008, 01:45 AM	#4 (permalink)
csmsss Midas Blenny Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 98 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Dark red spots on rock and hermit shells? Definitely coralline, but it's tough to make that stuff grow to any extent. What I always experienced with the deep red coralline algae was just specks of it all over the place, but I could never get it to encrust like the pink or purple coralline. Perhaps I wasn't dosing with adequate iodine - not sure.

07-04-2008, 01:51 AM	#5 (permalink)
BigAl07 Do I look as lost as I am Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Waynesville, North Carolina Posts: 21,549 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Dark red spots on rock and hermit shells? Yeah that's coraline growing. Looks GREAT though! Oh yeah... Welcome to RS You do need to test your tank to see how your biological filtration system is handling the lost fish. Green hair algae can get out of hand in a HURRY if you don't get a handle on it "yesterday". Test your tank water, your source water, "evaluate" your feeding and do larger/more often water changes. It comes faster than it leaves Again WELCOME to the Reef __________________ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~ *Live Rock Rubble will do the SAME thing as Bio-Balls and is NOT a suitable replacement for BIO-BALLS in a Reef System! It's ALL gotta go!!* Nitrate (NO3) reduction is directly proportional to percentage of Water Change. Allen's home-made formula...currentNO3-((%WC.01)currentNO3)=finalNO3 (thanks Luukosian) This means if you change 50% of your total water volume (That's EVERYTHING) you'll get a net reduction of (NO3) somewhere around 50%. Ask me about how to increase your REEF budget without going without FOOD!!* Big Al's 10g Julie's (BigAl's Gal) 6g NanoCube Gone but not forgotten BigAl's Slow 90g Tank Chronicle Allens OFFICE 12g Nano-Reef

07-05-2008, 03:34 PM	#6 (permalink)
Jake Pistol Shrimp Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Florida Posts: 267 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: Dark red spots on rock and hermit shells? The red coraline is good. I also have lots of red spots. They look good when mixed with the pink and purple coraline. Like others have said, the hair algae is worth addressing now. Test you posphates maybe add a phosphate remover bag in the sump, check your lighting duration, limit your overfeeding. Do a search for hair algae and you will find lots of good info on here. Be sure you are using RO/DI water not just RO water. Cheers. __________________ 75 Gal Setup 4/07 Fish: Purple Tang 6", Solarensis Fairy Wrasse, Pajama Cardinal, Two Ocellarous Clowns, Firefish Inverts: Few Red leg hermits, Few Turbo Snails, 3 Nassarius Snails, 3 large Trochus Grazer snails, 3 conch, 1 cleaner shrimp, 2 peppermint shrimp Coral: Frogspawn, Blastos, White Candy Cane, Yellow candycane, Fox Coral, African Blue Xenia, Pom Pom Xenia, Long White Polyp Tip Leather, Pink Pavona, Blue, Green, Orange Recordia, Orange Monti Cap, Kenya Tree, Green Star Polyp, Armour of God Zoa, Cat Eye Zoa, Pink Zoa, Red Zoa.

08-11-2008, 09:37 PM	#7 (permalink)
sonicfish Star Polyps Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 153 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: Dark red spots on rock and hermit shells? i have dark red algae in my tank its hard and almost impossible to get off but in some rocks it covors it and im wondering if its another type of algae ill try to get some photos but what do you guys think

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