Filthy algae is taking over my life.

[GeorgeandWheezy]

I began my tank with a 29 gallon salt water. Before I invested too much time and money, I wanted to see if I could manage salt water aquarium so I started out small. I have maintained perfect water perimeters, religiously change 15%-20% water changes every Tuesday with RO Primo water from Walmart. The salesman at the pet store helped me with all the equipment, set up, clean-up crew, live rock, sand and my 4 little guys (1 tiny clown, and one inch basslet, a blennie and a wrasse) Everything is going great, all my little guys are healthy and happy. The problem is the foul, horrid, ugly ALGAE monster has never left my tank. It started with big brown patches on my sand bed. Since we thought it to be diatoms, I moved it out of any sunlight and I left it alone. Then it grew hair, and I’m talking massive fur…then my snails grew green hair, my rock grew green hair, my emerald crabs too. My tank looks like I am growing balls of penicillin with Oscar the Grouch climbing around. Fortunately my fish are not suffering at all. But it has killed my feather duster, anemone, and two soft corals, 3 snails, and 2 emerald crabs, a shrimp and its working on my last two leather corals. The lady at the pet store suggested that I change out my sand bed with crushed coral. I did that and that was just fresh meat for the little buggars. Darn algae came back and brought more with it. This algae has been red, it’s been green with a full blown green algae bloom, and now it’s some type of long stringy, gunky brown crap. I even bought a UV sterilizer, some “chemiclean” tank treatment, and “Kent Marine Superbuffer dKH Buffer and KH Builder” along with a battery powered “sucker outer” gravel cleaner all suggestions from forums and such. Although I hated to do it, I even left the light off for 48 hours and didn’t feed the little guys for 3 days, with no luck. I clean it out, it comes back…next day..no joke. I’m looking to upgrade to a 65 gallon some day but GEEZ I can’t imagine fighting with twice as much algae as I have now.

 

[jay0705]

What type of filter

 

[GeorgeandWheezy]

I've had the same filter since I began..a aqueon quietflow 30 filter for a 30 gallon tank and I have a coralife 65 protein skimmer that looks like it's doing its job according to the collection cup and filter cartridges

 

[jay0705]

Crushed coral is horrible. Its honestly probably part of the issue. Algae is generally fueled by excess nutrients. How much and what do you feed your fish.

 

[GeorgeandWheezy]

That's good to know, the sand was actually easier to clean, I would just scoop up the gunk in a net and it was back the next day. The coral requires the gravel siphoning and the water turns murky with 'flaky algae' lingering around the tank until it settles back down. I feed them 1/4 of a square of omega one freeze dried brine shrimp once a day (about a 1/8 the teaspoon ) and they battle over it. It's gone in a minute.

 

[jay0705]

Freeze dried isn't the best nor is just brine. Maybe try frozen. Also some of the chemipure products may help suck out some nutrients. Macro algae could also help, in my tank the glass algae is winning currently tho lol. Need more snails.

 

[GeorgeandWheezy]

Would it harm the rock if I put it in a bucket and give it a good scrubbing? As well as change the substrate back to live sand? Is macro algae in the live sand? The fish are thriving, so a change to frozen won't bother them I assume.
Thank you for all your help!

 

[beaslbob]

Kill your lights. the algae will die off.

Add chaetomorphia or caulerpa Prolifera macro algae to consume the nutrients. (best to protect the macros with a partition (egg crate) to keep livestock and macros separated.

Once you get the algae you like (macros) growing and in control the uglies will not be a problem.

FWIW the nutrients are coming almost completely from the livestock. Not from the replacement water and other sources. Water changes convenient to hobbiest will never remove nutrients fast enough to prevent algae.

my .02

 

[beaslbob]

Would it harm the rock if I put it in a bucket and give it a good scrubbing? As well as change the substrate back to live sand? Is macro algae in the live sand? The fish are thriving, so a change to frozen won't bother them I assume.
Thank you for all your help!

As a test take that rock out and put it in a bucket covered with saltwater and circulation. Cover the bucket to keep the rock in darkness. You'll be surprised how quickly (days) it becomes algae free.

my .02

 

[jay0705]

Would it harm the rock if I put it in a bucket and give it a good scrubbing? As well as change the substrate back to live sand? Is macro algae in the live sand? The fish are thriving, so a change to frozen won't bother them I assume.
Thank you for all your help!

Certain fish can be picky with food changes. I feed 3 diff types so the fish pick and choose. I feed spirulina brine, mysis, and hikari mega marine most often.
I separate my macro bc my tangs would devour all of it. Your live stock wouldn't bother it so u could just place it in the tank

 

[Jesterrace]

Food Source makes a huge difference. Frozen Foods are best. I feed my tank Frozen Reef Frenzy almost exclusively after trying Mysis Pellets, Frozen Mysis, Spirulina Formula, Arctipods and dried Seaweed. All of the other foods make my nitrates rise rapidly and my corals don't respond as well as they do to the reef frenzy. My suggestion would be to switch to reef frenzy and then occasionally supplement with Frozen Spirulina Formula to help balance out the diet for the clown (the rest are carnivores and should be fine with the Reef Frenzy).