Alge Help

squeegle

squeegle

New Member
Hi I'm pretty new to the whole saltwater thing and I'm beginning to get really discouraged. I've had my tank running for about 10 months now and just in the last couple of months I've been having a really bad alge problem. I clean the glass all the time and literally a day or two later it's beginning to get covered again. I don't know if this is normal or not but it's completly unsightly and really time consuming to try and manage.
Is there anything I can do to control this? Supplements? recomended alge eaters? When I get paid on Friday I'm going to the pet store to get more crabs and I've heard starfish can be good at taking care of alge so maybe I'll look into that as well.
Any help is greatly appreciated.
 
cmholl

cmholl

New Member
Do you have a cleaning crew... Is your tank in direct sunlight for more then 5 hours a day. What kind of light do you have and how long is it on every day? There's a lot that can cause algae outbreaks but these are the most common. Also, what kind of algae is it.
 
cmholl

cmholl

New Member
Also, how many fish, how often do you feed them and how much. This will all play a role in algae production. If its not the sunlight, the fish light being on to long... I would recommend a good protein skimmer.
 
squeegle

squeegle

New Member
Alright I'm going to try and give you the best answers I can but I don't know all of the exact tech specs.
1. I have a few red legged hermit crabs but I know I need more so I guess I would say sort of. Do you have any recomendations for how many I should have for a 37 gallon tank?
2. No it isn't in direct light pretty much ever. I keep the blinds closed in my apartment almost all the time especially in the winter.
3. This I'm really not sure of. It was just the stock light that came with the tank. It's on a timer that is set to be on between 10am and 10pm. How long should the light be on for?
4. I have a foxface angel fish (I know he's too big for my tank. It's a long story how he got there and I'm currently looking to find him a new home.) I also have a small snowflake eel. I feel the angel a pinch of food every day and the eel some brine shrimp every couple of days.
 
geridoc

geridoc

Well-Known Member
In addition to good water quality practices (water changes, etc.):
1. Reduce your light cycle to 6-8 hours/day. In fact, leave the lights off for a few days, then start the shortened light cycle.
2. If you have a sump put some macroalgae (caulerpa is my fave) in it and give it plenty of light. If no sump, put the caulerpa in a filter mesh and suspend it in your display right under the lights. The growth of this algae will remove phosphate and nitrate that the pest algae are using to support their growth.
3. Consider adding either a phosphate reactor or an algae scrubber to your system.
There is no acceptable quick fix for this common problem, but the steps I've outlined above will give you long-term control over this nuisance.
 
squeegle

squeegle

New Member
Thanks so much for all the advice! Today was a pretty good tank day. I followed your suggestion and turned the lights completly off. I'll leave them off for a few days and then turn them back on at a reduced rate. Also I went to my local fish store and I got a few turbo snails at their suggestion. I also got phosphate reducing filters which they said would help. I'll look more into the macroalge too... it sounds like it can be extremly helpful.
Totally unrelated but my dad surprised me with a nice new small tank today so I'm excited to see what I can do with it!
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Squeegle http:///t/394853/alge-help#post_3514711
Thanks so much for all the advice! Today was a pretty good tank day. I followed your suggestion and turned the lights completly off. I'll leave them off for a few days and then turn them back on at a reduced rate. Also I went to my local fish store and I got a few turbo snails at their suggestion. I also got phosphate reducing filters which they said would help. I'll look more into the macroalge too... it sounds like it can be extremly helpful.
Totally unrelated but my dad surprised me with a nice new small tank today so I'm excited to see what I can do with it!

Congrats on the new tank!
I have heard of Fox face Rabbit fish but not a Fox face angelfish....I will have to look that critter up, just to see what it looks like.
Anyway, are you using tap water? Just in case you are, switch to RO (Reverse Osmosis) water. It only costs 37 cents a gallon at the Walmart near me, and most big grocery stores carry RO water (refill station). The best thing is to have your own unit, but do use RO for top offs, and water changes from now on, it will go a long way in keeping the water quality up.
Everyone has to clean the front glass...I use a mag float, it works like an eraser, it's a big magnet with material glued to it, one goes inside the tank, and the other outside to use as a handle. You just "erase" your algae off the front glass. A CUC (Clean Up Crew) of snails, serpent or brittle stars, shrimp, hermit crabs, and filter feeders like feather dusters, and clams will keep the tank nice and clean.
What kind of test kits are you using?
 
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