Deadlock

[fishfanatic2]

My battle with hair algae has kind of ended up in a deadlock. It'll grow, then I'll remove most of it (can't get it all), then it grows back, and so on in a cycle. I currently have 3 conchs mowing it down (they've tripled in size), and I'm not sure which way to go next. BTW I use RO/DI, I can't get a new skimmer, lighting is 130 watts, tank is 29 gallon, sandbed=about 1".

A) Get more snails, lots of em.
B) Lettuce nudi temporarily.
C) Emerald crab?-I'm not sure it would eat it.
D) PhosBan or something similar for chemical media.

Which choice would you think would be most productive in getting rid of it? And with the media, if it brings the algae under control, I'll be stuck using it forever right?

 

[polcat]

Maybe a small, long spined urchin temporarily. They will eat it right down to bare rock. Algae machines & poop machines. If you vacum up the urchin droppings you will export the HA nutrients that tend to just recycle using snails. Just a thought since you can't upgrade your skimmer.

 

[fishfanatic2]

Oh yeah I have a pencil urchin too, fergot about him.

He does great on it, just not fast enough.

 

[Anonymous]

what is your lighting cycle like? How many hours is it on a day? Can you cut it down any?

 

[fishfanatic2]

12 hrs a day-currently i am running only 65 watts since the other bulb hasnt arrived. Plus I have a condy anemone in there so that may not be the wisest idea, however I could try it.

 

[Jolieve]

I'd cut it back to 10 hours per day once you get the other bulb. It really doesn't need to be much longer than that for photosynthesis to take place for your anemone and corals.

For my systems.. I run phosban continuously, and also recommend dosing with kalkwasser. It has the ability to precipitate phosphate really well and this combo has worked for me in the past in ridding my systems of hair algae. Yes, you will be stuck running it forever, but phosban is great stuff. I haven't noticed any negative impact to coral growth in my systems where phosban is being used.

The other thing, really regular (weekly) water changes. Outpace the nutrient uptake of the hair algae with these water changes, and you should be able to get a grip on it. Also use the water changes as an opportunity to siphon out as much of the hair algae as you can.

Good luck!
J.

 

[fishfanatic2]

TY, I find it difficult to suck up hair algae so I take it out of the tank when I mow. :wink: I'll try the Phosban, can't hurt.

Any more suggestions plz share!

 

[Ben1]

I run phosban continuously, and also recommend dosing with kalkwasser. It has the ability to precipitate phosphate really well and this combo has worked for me in the past in ridding my systems of hair algae.

If you are not using Kalk arleady it will help. It also helps keep alk stable and pH a bit higher. It must be getting its nutrient from somewhere? How much do you feed? How many fish? Have you tried a sand bed storm with mechanical filtration on a small protion of your SB?

And with the media, if it brings the algae under control, I'll be stuck using it forever right?

Hopefully not. If you can stabalize the nutrient import/export, and get it low enough so the HA isnt growing any longer then you should be able to find a balance with out the need for constant media use.

 

[zonkers]

I have learned that light deprivation can be a trap in regards to algae control. I realize going from 12 to 10 hours may not be deprivation, per se, but some of the same effect may occur. The idea is that by depriving algae of light, it will cause it to die off. The trap is that as the algae dies, it release the nutrients that it has taken out of the water back into it, so that when light is restored back to its original levels, the algae can make a comeback, sometimes with more gusto. I have experienced this 1st hand in my freshwater tanks (before I understood what was going wrong ).

I would also like to mention that I have tried Lettuce Leaf nudibranchs in an attempt to add another level of control on my hair algae, & this has met with tragic success. Maybe another day I'll share that sad story, but suffice it to say that the hair algae in my tank was simply not to their liking, & they slowly died off I'll leave the Crispata in the sea from now on.

My war wages on, but I am following the 3 cardinal rules of algae control-- lighting (strong enough, proper wavelengths), circulation (more is better), & nutrient control (feed less, filter with nitrate & phosphate media). If I could only get my gracilaria to grow properly in my fuge....

 

[Jolieve]

What I'm saying about your light cycle, is that it's too long, irregardless of the algae. Reduce it, not just for the algae, but for the corals as well.

J.

 

[fishfanatic2]

I run phosban continuously, and also recommend dosing with kalkwasser. It has the ability to precipitate phosphate really well and this combo has worked for me in the past in ridding my systems of hair algae.

If you are not using Kalk arleady it will help. It also helps keep alk stable and pH a bit higher. It must be getting its nutrient from somewhere? How much do you feed? How many fish? Have you tried a sand bed storm with mechanical filtration on a small protion of your SB?

And with the media, if it brings the algae under control, I'll be stuck using it forever right?

Hopefully not. If you can stabalize the nutrient import/export, and get it low enough so the HA isnt growing any longer then you should be able to find a balance with out the need for constant media use.

3 fish, a clown, a watchman, and a small pygmy angel, so no serious bioload problems. I feed about every other day, sometimes more sometimes less. I use a dropper to squirt all the crap out of the nooks and crannies. I haven't tried a sandbed storm, but when I siphon it nothing huge comes up if I go deep, just grayish sand which I assume is bacteria. I am not currently using kalk, maybe I'll try that.

BTW, I was in the fish store today and I asked a couple questions. They said no snails would eat it and neither would the lettuce nudi. After hearing zonker's story, I probably won't go that route. They said a sally lightfoot would eat it however, thinking of the goby, I have seen the size they get and more than one horror story so I passed. I picked up a poly-filter to try and absorb some phosphates (if that is the problem), one of the employees said it worked on their tank so I said WTF why not.

Ty for all suggestions, plz keep them coming, I will update this thread.

 

[Mihai]

My yellow tang really cleaned my tank of hair algae. However, I heard mixed experiences with yellow tangs for hair algae. I guess that it depends on the algae (and perhaps on alternate sources of algae for the tang). I had some reddish hear algae and the classical light green (long stem), he got them boths.

M.

 

[Unarce]

I run phosban continuously

How come you have to run it continuously? Just curious, as I've never used phosphate removers of any sort.

I was told yesterday that stuff like Phosban and Rowaphos remove plenty of other stuff besides phosphate, and suggested that it be used sparingly.

 

[fishfanatic2]

Well, this is the second day of running the poly filter and it's brown. :? About a medium brown, not too dark or light, which I think signifies phosphates. I guess that's the main root of the problem then, which is good since I'm glad I finally found it. I'll keep running the filters and may look into getting PhosBan or what not.

reefnutz, that's interesting. What kind of stuff do they remove?

I will continue to update, ty for all suggestions, any more plz add!

 

[fishfanatic2]

Update-I've been running the poly-filter, but the algae, while growing slower, continues to grow. It's also a little easier to pull out and a darker color, but still not quite there yet. Besides the kalk thing, which I haven't done yet, I don't know where to head next. I would really like to try to end this soon so I can start adding corals SUCCESSFULLY to the tank.

For dosing kalk, do you need a reactor, or are there additives?
Any suggestions, plz add.