Bright green algae?

number1gsxxr

number1gsxxr

Member
I've been doing some searching and I have come across some posts that this might be corraline algae but I think it might be green cyano. It does not budge when I syphon but it comes off with a brush. But it is not hard like the corraline on the back of the tank. It forms a thin mat over the substate which makes me think it is cyano. Any ideas?


Some background: I have a 24gal Aquapod and a Koralia 1 with one false perc and a 6-line wrasse. I've been battling this for quite some time. I replaced my lights, added more nessarius snails, added some grape calerpula, been doing 20% water changes weekly with store bought RO. Lights are on for 8 hours. I've tried blocking light for a few days but it doesn't seem to help. I think the PO4 is the problem.
Parameters:
pH=8.0
nitrate=0
nitrite=0
po4=0.25
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
do you have any algae eating snails? also... you've got a nasty diatom bloom due to your CC, and nass. snails don't like CC... what are you using to test nitrates? i'm always skeptical when people say they have zero nitrates. it just means your algae is using it before it's testable.
 
number1gsxxr

number1gsxxr

Member
I've been using Mardel test strips to test the water. I had turbo and astrea snails but they kept dying so I stopped buying them. They would live maybe a month. I do have a sea hare which seems to be munching on things. Also have a bunch of red and blue leg hermits and a coral banded shrimp.
I'm in the process of setting up a 46-gal bowfront tank with 20-gal sump/fuge. I plan on transferring the aquapod to that once it has cycled but I'm afraid to bring any harmful algae with me. Going to use sand instead of CC.
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
i'm not sure how well test strips work, i've always used regular liquid/powder kits.
mexican turbos will just keep dying no matter what tank they are in. astreas should be hardier than that, and if you get them small there should be enough algae to keep them alive. you could also get some cerith or margharitas
 
cranberry

cranberry

Active Member
That algae is a boring type (boring as in grows into the surface, not boring as in *yawn*). An "average" CUC can't touch that stuff except urchins which just rip up the top layer of everything . They will actually eat it from any surface they can get to. But you have a nutrient problem and I'm sure the urchin would meet the similar fate of your snails. A balanced tank does not a diatoms... you need to find the source of that. It will help reduce all of that algae and help keep your CUC alive so they can help you. Your first step would be to buy some reliable test kits. But if you are doing 20% water changes a week, there is something else amiss... like the water from your LFS. I had turbos that would cut through the top layer and you could see the path they had mowed through, but there was always a very thin green film left behind...
Maragrita snails should not be used in the average reef/fish tank for they are a cold water species.
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
i dunno cranberry.. i've got half a dozen margharitas that have been in there for almost a year. i have to knock them down out of the topof the water every once in a while, but they are such great grazers they actually sometimes move in and out of my overflow area because they will go out of the water, unlike astreas. i always thought mexican turbos were the only colder climate snails which is why they always die.
 
renogaw

renogaw

Active Member
The Margarita Snail does well in the home aquarium provided it is well established and has an ample algae source for the Margarita Snail to feed upon. For best care, they should be kept at cooler water temperatures with other peaceful tankmates. However, most Margarita Snails can adjust to an aquarium with a water temperature as high as 78 degrees Fahrenheit.
one thing i'm wondering about the invert death in the OP's tank.
have you EVER used copper in this tank? ever treated a medication in there?
 
cranberry

cranberry

Active Member
That description sounds like it came right from a site that is selling them. Not a good source for correct information. These are honest-to-goodness coldwater snails. I live in California, which is one area they are collected from. If the water reaches 70 here ever, it in short spurts. I know people advertise and supply them in CUC reef packages, but it just isn't so. They don't die instantly... they die slowly. It can take months for these pretty long lived snail to cook to death. But dig around some more, away from sites that sell them, and you'll find the information there.
google "cold maragrita snail" and you'll find it.
 
hollywooddiver

hollywooddiver

Member
so i came onto this thread cause i have the neon green algae as well and wanted to know what it was. sooo. does anyone know what it is?
 
pbnj

pbnj

Member
It's green coralline algae, not cyano. Cyano, as you say, is easily removed. I have this in my tank as well. It doesn't just go away, but it does start to lose its green intensity over time. Mine changed from intense lime green to a metallic green/gray and I'd really have to scrape it off to remove it now. It's gradually getting covered up by purple coralline.
 
pbnj

pbnj

Member
Just as much as purple coralline.
Here are two pictures. Both these rock started off bright lime green. The first one is starting lose its intensity and the other is almost all purple now.

 
pbnj

pbnj

Member
By the way, I keep dozens of different snails and some hermits with no significant die-off.
 
number1gsxxr

number1gsxxr

Member
I have 4 cerith snails as well and I've never used copper. The only medication I used was the cyano red slime remover when I first setup the tank and had a small outbreak. Do you think the water I have been buying isn't that pure? I've been getting Poland Spring distilled water but now that I have my own RO/DI unit I will be using that.
 
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