Lawnmower Blennie

[ragawaga]

Hi,

Over a year on I'm still getting hair algae growing. I've got loads of macro algae growing in a tank that's plumbed into the system that's lighted 24 hours. I'm lighting the main tank with a 150W 10K MH with a 48W actinic. Running a Deltec APF600 skimmer. The specs of my tank are on my web-page.

I'm getting fed up of pulling out algae and scraping it off the glass . I know I need to get an RO unit, but until I can afford that , will a Lawnmower Blennie help with the hair algae? I've got red hermits in there, but they don't seem to touch the stuff and anytime I add snails, they die within a week .

 

[Anonymous]

a lawnmower blennie would help yes, but it can only eat so much. why are your snails dying? whats the water parameters? the fact that you have an algae problem that wont go away and you snails keep croaking makes me think something is definately out of whack with the water. You wont be solving anything by putting a lawnmower in the tank- if anything that might add more waste nutrients for the algae to live on.

 

[Len]

A Lawnmower blenny (Salarias fasciatus) can help crop back some hair algae growth, but grazers are really not the best solution to algae control. It's a known principle that grazers can promote the spread and survival of vegative growth (if vegetation is not stripped clean). They do provide good relief in the short run, but you should seek balancing nutrient import to nutrient export as the primary means of algae control. The R/O filter should help out greatly in this regard. I'm not sure how much they cost across the pond there, but they aren't too expensive here in the States .... a very worthwhile investment.

 

[Anonymous]

Lawnmower blennies are awesome fish that are real characters. However, I would never rely on them to solve a hair algae problem. Mine sucks on the glass a bit, but that's about it.

My guess is that you won't be able to win the hair algae battle until you get an RO unit. I suspect that your tap water has all kinds of things in it that hair algae just loves.

Make the investment...you won't be sorry! Good luck, and keep us posted!

Chris

 

[ragawaga]

Hi. I forgot that it's my birthday next week, so I might be able to buy a small skimmer in the next fortnight. That doesn't solve the problem of the algae that's in there. Without taking every rock out and going over it with a toothbrush, it will never go away. If the growth of the algae is stopped, would the blennie eat the remaining algae?

 

[aliendomain]

Yes, If you can crop the hair algae back a Lawnmower will help keep it back but as Len and Chris pointed out the blenny can only eat so much and after a while the hair algae will eventually return. With added skimming and good purified water for top-offs and water changes you can keep it from returning. I understand about the cost of a RO unit, I still get my water from a LFS but it's still better quality than I get from a tapwater purifier. Hope this helps and good luck.

 

[Robin Goodfellow]

hi.
Ditto what other said.

I've got red hermits in there, but they don't seem to touch the stuff and anytime I add snails, they die within a week .

Ever wonder where all the nitrate come from? Yes, the dead snail and hermit. Pulling macroalgae and trash them will export some, but as long as you are dumping these fertilizers in the tank, the hair algae will keep growing.

 

[Unarce]

I agree with Robin. If you don't harvest the macroalgae regularly, it will release the nutrients back into the water.

Do not scrub the rock with anything. The clean surface is just being prepared for even more algae growth. It's odd that the snails would die so fast, but you might want to try just pulling off as much as you can and let blue-legged hermits finish off the rest. They seemed to be the only ones that would mow down the patches I've had in the past. At least one per gallon.

It won't happen overnight, but eliminate the phosphate source and eventually it will go away. Sometimes, a refugium that's lit 24-hours can produce some unwanted algae. You might want to think of running it at an opposite photoperiod, and you'll still be maintaining a steady PH.

 

[reefann]

I think a RO unit would be a better investment than a skimmer. How often are you doing water changes?
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