Newbie...Algae....dying coral

[cassidy_7]

I know that algae comes and goes in cycles, but mine has just come and not gone. It has only been an annoyance, but algae has now take hold of my candy cane coral and I think it will die in the not too distant future. The algae is composed of diatoms, greenish/brown, and dinos (which I just treated the tank for...the protein skimmer is acting very odd producing large amounts of clear water...hope this goes away). My corraline algae has also grown, although not to the extent of the other types. I keep some caulerpa in a HOB refugium for 'pod homes.

The tank is 25gal and about 4 months old. My equipment is all new and is as follows.

AquaC Remora Skimmer
2 powerheads for flow
HOB refugium
HOB emperor power filter, biowheel removed
CurrentUSA Outer Orbiter 150W HQI and 130 actinic (the light is suspended about 8 inches from the tank surface. I still wonder if this is too much light or if I need to raise it higher above the tank.)

The bioload is fairly low, only 3 damsels along with a typical clean up crew of hermits, snails, brittle star.
Feeding is usuall every 3 days, and includes some liquid foods for the 4 corals and feather dusters.
I add supplements to keep Ca, Mg, Fe, and I at "normal" levels, as well as strontium/molybdenum.

I have been testing for NO2, NO3, and NH3, all with negative results.
I do not have a P04 testing kit, but have used an absorbtive medium from Kent for a day just to be safe.
When I do use an activated carbon medium, I make sure to change it every 3-4days.
My temp. stays within 77-78F

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[cassidy_7]

forgot to post that I just added a lawn mower blennie in hopes he or she can help against the algae.
I also try for weekly water changes.

 

[ChrisRD]

A few things jump out at me...

The liquid invert foods can be very nutrient rich and may be contributing to the problem. IMO they can often do more harm than good.

Something is up with your skimmer if it's not producing dark skimmate daily. You might want to contact AquaC to troubleshoot the problem. Without the skimmer working properly you're definitely going to accumulate nutrients and therefore have nuisance algae problems.

Be sure no detritus is accumulating in the system or the hang-on filter. It's a good idea to blow out your rockwork periodically with a powerhead and syphon/filter it out of the system. If you have adequate amounts of live rock in the system it's really not necessary to run the hang-on filter full time, but if you do, just make sure to clean it very frequently.

You didn't mention what you're using for source water. If you're not already doing it, I recommend using RO/DI or some other purified form.

With good husbandry practices and balanced nutrient import/export the nuisance algaes will subside over time. In the short term you can speed the process of getting the tank back on track by doing several large water changes - say 50% (be sure to use purified source water) and scrubbing, syphoning or otherwise manually removing the algaes from the system.

HTH

 

[ChrisRD]

BTW, personally I have never found it necessary to dose iron or iodine. I would also recommend feeding your fish daily. Just stick to small amounts that are completely consumed within a few minutes. Limit your use of flake foods (at least until your algae problems are behind you) and strain off the nutrient rich juices before adding frozen foods to the tank. I generally just defrost them in warm water and strain through a net.

 

[cassidy_7]

I will cut back on the liquid/micro foods. Without these, however, will my feather dusters still be OK? Also, it was suggested to me to buy a P04 test kit. I use a RO/DI unit, but will test the water it makes to be sure it is really working.

 

[ChrisRD]

Feather dusters could probably benefit from a bit of phytoplankton dosing but I would use it sparingly. Personally I've never bothered dosing anything for them at all and it has never appeared to be an issue.

IMO, unless you're going to spend the money on a high quality, low range kit it's not really worth testing for phosphate. IME nuisance algaes will start showing up long before you'll see a reading on most hobbyist grade test kits and they are a better (and free) indicator of excess nutrients.

HTH

 

[cassidy_7]

ok, good to know, thanks for the advice.

 

[Meloco14]

I agree with Chris. Your tank is still young, and you will inevitably have algae problems. Try to save your corals by hand cleaning them. The liquid food and frozen food liquid are definite sources of phosphate, try to limit them. I have never dosed iron, and in fact I never would because iron fuels algae growth. You may want to try less frequent dosing and see if that helps. If your remora is producing clear water then raise the collection cup up so it can only catch the bubbles when they pop. The cup should then slowly collect a dark green or brownish water/sludge substance. Also I have noticed that with my remora I need to clean the powerhead and the spray nozzle regularly to keep it working properly. I don't know what corals you have but you probably don't need to feed them more than twice a week. I have soft corals, LPS, and SPS and I only feed liquid food a couple times a month. They feed primarily off of nutrients in the water. I don't have large feather dusters, but I have many of the tiny hitchhiker ones and they thrive without any supplimental feeding at all. You may want to try to limit your liquid food dosing to twice a week, and if you see no negative effects maybe go down to once a week. With only 4 corals in the tank I doubt they are starving for food suppliments. Anyway, try a few of these changes but go slowly and monitor the tank closely. If you see anything negatively reacting go back to the way you were and try something else. Overall don't be discouraged. I had a hair algae problem for over a year and one day I woke up and noticed it was gone. It is something that just happens and is very hard to control, so don't let it stress you out. Good luck

 

[jumpincactus]

Chris and Meloco are offering good advice.... the two mains ways that phosphates enter our tanks is thru water sources and feeding. Either overfeeding and types of food. Even some store bought seafood contains phosphrous.

Here is a great article on phosphates. Like Chris said most hobbyist test kits cannot even detect the other side of phosphates such as organic phosphates they are undectectable in most kits unless you want to spring for a LaMottes and now your taking big ching ching.

There is also the theory with testing for phophates is that the ions are taken up by the algae quicker than you can test for them so you can actually show no phophates but still have an algae problem in your tank. Here is the link on all things phophates...................http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/sept2002/chem.htm