frvarugh

Advanced Reefer
Location
Queens
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18   0   0
Hi guys -

See video of my tank below. I started this tank in mid August, roughly 6 months, and slowly added fish and bacteria. After the first month, algea came and it never left. I thought it would go away after a month or two but now
it's 6 months and it hasn't gone away.

My nitrates are zero and my phosphates are zero. No soft corals or anemones really open up in this tank. I'm suspecting I have over working bacteria and the tank is too clean. Is that the reason why this algea won't go away? Any solutions?

 

Markbluereef

Advanced Reefer
Location
Queens
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You need clean up crew like hermits and snails, tangs. They will reduced algae. When its under control feed more. When you get experience dosing nitrate and phosphate may be needed.
 

Timfish

Experienced Reefer
Location
Asutin, TX
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You need more fish and feed more and get some quality maircultured live rock or wild live rock. The bottled stuff is fine for starting the basic nitrogen cycle but most of the stuff in a reef system can't be cultured. Live rock from the ocean will have the cryptic sponges and other microbial stuff essential for establishing and maintaining a healthy reef ecosystem.

With zero detectable nitrate and phsophate your corals are not going to be able to compete witht he algae and all you'll get is algae. Also keep in mind it can take 8 - 12 months for a system to mature so don't expect any changes right away.

Here's some videos you might find informative. But be forwarned, they lwill challenge much if the dogma you've likely heard.

"Coral Reefs in the Microbial Seas" This video compliments Rohwer's book of the same title (Paper back is ~$20, Kindle is ~$10), both deal with the conflicting roles of the different types of DOC in reef ecosystems. While there is overlap bewteen his book and the video both have information not covered by the other and together give a broader view of the complex relationships found in reef ecosystems

Changing Seas - Mysterious Microbes

Nitrogen cycling in hte coral holobiont

BActeria and Sponges

Maintenance of Coral Reef Health (refferences at the end)

Optical Feedback Loop in Colorful Coral Bleaching
https://youtu.be/oadKezUYkJE

Richard Ross What's up with phosphate"
https://youtu.be/ZRIKW-9d2xI
 

Jaydontlag_

Advanced Reefer
Location
Bronx
Rating - 92.9%
13   1   0
What do you have in place to remove/control nutrients? Are you running skimmer or gfo? Algae is growing in your tank, that could be a reason you are getting zero phosphates

I recommend getting some snails and wipe down glass periodically and run a skimmer if you don’t have one and you should be fine.
 

Timfish

Experienced Reefer
Location
Asutin, TX
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Does this mean Carbon dosing is bad?

That is what the research shows. What potenitally slows this process and saves corals from death is cryptic sponges are processing DOC 1000X faster than the bacterioplankton removed by skimmers. Here's some of the links if you're interested:

Indirect effects of algae on coral: algae‐mediated, microbe‐induced coral mortality

Influence of coral and algal exudates on microbially mediated reef metabolism.
Coral DOC improves oxygen (autotrophy), algae DOC reduces oxygen (heterotrophy).

Role of elevated organic carbon levels and microbial activity in coral mortality

Effects of Coral Reef Benthic Primary Producers on Dissolved Organic Carbon and Microbial Activity
Algae releases significantly more DOC into the water than coral.

Pathologies and mortality rates caused by organic carbon and nutrient stressors in three Caribbean coral species.
Starch and sugars (doc) caused coral death but not high nitrates, phosphates or ammonium.

Visualization of oxygen distribution patterns caused by coral and algae

Biological oxygen demand optode analysis of coral reef-associated microbial communities exposed to algal exudates
Exposure to exudates derived from turf algae stimulated higher oxygen drawdown by the coral-associated bacteria.

Microbial ecology: Algae feed a shift on coral reefs

Coral and macroalgal exudates vary in neutral sugar composition and differentially enrich reef bacterioplankton lineages.

Sugar enrichment provides evidence for a role of nitrogen fixation in coral bleaching

Elevated ammonium delays the impairment of the coral-dinoflagellate symbiosis during labile carbon pollution
(here's an argument for maintaining heavy fish loads if you're carbon dosing)

Excess labile carbon promotes the expression of virulence factors in coral reef bacterioplankton

Unseen players shape benthic competition on coral reefs.

Allelochemicals Produced by Brown Macroalgae of the Lobophora Genus Are Active against Coral Larvae and Associated Bacteria, Supporting Pathogenic Shifts to Vibrio Dominance.

Macroalgae decrease growth and alter microbial community structure of the reef-building coral, Porites astreoides.

Macroalgal extracts induce bacterial assemblage shifts and sublethal tissue stress in Caribbean corals.

Biophysical and physiological processes causing oxygen loss from coral reefs.

Global microbialization of coral reefs
DDAM Proven

Coral Reef Microorganisms in a Changing Climate, Fig 3

Ecosystem Microbiology of Coral Reefs: Linking Genomic, Metabolomic, and Biogeochemical Dynamics from Animal Symbioses to Reefscape Processes
 

frankny

Active Reefer
Location
brooklyn
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Hi guys -

See video of my tank below. I started this tank in mid August, roughly 6 months, and slowly added fish and bacteria. After the first month, algea came and it never left. I thought it would go away after a month or two but now
it's 6 months and it hasn't gone away.

My nitrates are zero and my phosphates are zero. No soft corals or anemones really open up in this tank. I'm suspecting I have over working bacteria and the tank is too clean. Is that the reason why this algea won't go away? Any solutions?

wish my fish tank only can be that clean one day lol, i got always 50ppm no3 and 1.2ppm on po4, algae is the problem.
 

Aaaliize

New Reefer
Location
Salt Lake City
Rating - 0%
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wish my fish tank only can be that clean one day lol, i got always 50ppm no3 and 1.2ppm on po4, algae is the problem.
If you have problems with the tank clean I'd recommend you buy a good water filter. I've just ordered this one https://pickedbyfish.com/hang-on-back-filters/#product1 It is said that the wrong filter choice affects not only the cleanliness of your aquarium but also the health of the fish and bacteria.
 

Fragmented

Junior Member
Location
Selden, LI
Rating - 100%
5   0   0
You need to dose nitrate and phosphate and consistently stay above 0. Phosphate 0.06, nitrate 5. Use hanna checker to test. I use esv nitrate and hlourish phosphate. Once I stayed above 0,algae and cyano went away
 

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