Algae

[salisbury a d]

This morning I woke up to red and grey yes grey algae all over the sand in my tank. Will it go away on its own, should I stir the gravel, or should I add some kind of chemical? Also, last Tues. I bought some kind of cup coral and Yesterday it stopped extending its polyps , could this be because it is new to the tank.
Thanks in advance.
Adam

 

[burnnspy]

What are the water parameters?
BurnNSpy

 

[b_ball12_99]

Is the red and grey alge slimy and brushes off easy? If so it is likely to be cyanobacteria and is caused by high phosphates or sometimes lighting changes.

 

[salisbury a d]

I will post paremeters in a little while Today I will do the most recent test. But the algae, what I do is The only way to get rid of it and not loose the sand in a siphon is to swirl a tooth brush in the sand. This burrys it but it comes back. I have tried siphoning after stirring but that sucks up the gravel too.
Adam

 

[dseiler]

Sounds to me like a red slime algae. I have had it and it is a drag. Stirring it up won't help unfortunately. The only way I have been able to get rid of it is by using a product called erase. Since then mine has not come back, but that stuff is hardy.
Good Luck

 

[salisbury a d]

Will this "Erase" harm inverts coral or rock?
And should my lfs carry it or do I order it specialty from somewhere.
Adam

 

[dseiler]

It did not hurt any of my inverts, corals, or anything that I wanted. It only got rid of my Bad Algae. I got it from my LFS. I have never tried on line though.

 

[salisbury a d]

Nitrate 0
nitrite0
ph 8.2
ammonia0
temp 82 because of weather.
salinity was 1.025
I just diluted the salt to around 1.023ish
Adam

 

[burnnspy]

What are the phosphates?
BurnNSpy

 

[b_ball12_99]

Phosphates are probably high or have you had a change in the lighting?

 

[salisbury a d]

I do not have a phosphate tester. The lighting did change but not in intensity. All I did was rearange the bulbs.
Adam