10 gallon Nano ...questions, problems, pics!

[whippet]

Okay so I am putting togeather a nice 10 gallon Nano. With the intentions of having a single clown, a shrimp, some snails and scarlet/blue crabs. Here are a few progression pics and some questions for you all if you don't mind giving a girl a few pointers.
First chunks of liverock added after cycling for a week or two.

First formation of baserock added....I have since changed the layout, but I wonder if I have tooo much rock now. What do you all think?

Here it is a few weeks later....Eeek serious algae problems seem to be an issue. What can I do? I got a free polyp with my live rock and I don't want to loose it by blacking out the tank. I have a couple of small snails and one wee crab in there, but what should I do next? I am scrubbing the front and sides well, but how do I get it off the rocks without hurting the good stuff? What type of algae is this? I also am getting a red scummy algae on the glass but am scrubbing that off.
My light is only on for about 8 hours a day.

close ups...

and my crabby!

And the polyp...

So any advice for a newbie?

 

[silverdak]

best advice... get rid of that hair algae ASAP before it takes over your tank. I am fighting it right now and it shouldnt have gotten to where it is now. nip it in the butt now while you can. take that rock out and really scrub it up with a tooth brush NO SOAP

 

[whippet]

I found a great post here on how to get rid of hair algae, so now that I know what it is...I will go ahead and try those methods. So now I still wonder if it is too much rock. Anyone have an opinon on this?

 

[scottallert]

i would take out a bulky piece and make more cracks and legdes for better circulation. good luck with the hair algae.

 

[gmann1139]

What are your parameters?
If hair algae is already appearing, and you aren't feeding anything (I assume), there has to be a nutrient source.
Are you using RO/DI water?
Good choice on the Hagen filter and Stealth heater. I prefer to mount the heater horizontally, since it makes it easier to hide. I would add a small PH to the tank to increase flow (Maxijet 400 or the smallest Hydor Koralia).