For those of you who have had algae problems

Originally Posted by maxalmon
For those of you who have had algae problems, which k rating bulbs were you using?
well in the past, i was using 3 400's over my 180, it was sun system ballast, and 14k Hamilton's single ended bulbs, well it got out of hand, i checked my levels (pars) and it was fine, but foe some reason it had algae growing faster than the snails, crabs, etc could eat it, so everyday i cleaned,scrubbed,etc.. the tank.
So when i discovered Reef Flux Bulbs, i switch to 10k, 12k, pattern. seems like the algae was in check, Very odd because usually there got to be a nutrient load problem or warm water also indicates algae to grow.anyhow weird but that changed my algae to go haywire. also usually its a cycle thing.
over my 175 bowfront i also switch the bulbs to reef flux, it has a chiller running to cool the water to 78, it has a light pattern of 10,12k,10k,12k,, lots of my corals in this tank turned from a green to a blue color, more of a real look of what the coral supposed to look like.
 

tx reef

Active Member
Most algae problems on rocks are caused by not blowing detritus off of the rocks regularly......
Old bulbs and anything under a 6500k bulb will cause algae blooms......
 

coral keeper

Active Member
Originally Posted by TX Reef
Most algae problems on rocks are caused by not blowing detritus off of the rocks regularly......
Old bulbs and anything under a 6500k bulb will cause algae blooms......
So can a 2700k bulb grow chaeto algae?
 

maxalmon

Active Member
Originally Posted by Coral Keeper
So can a 2700k bulb grow chaeto algae?
Your better off with a 6500k bulb.
 

coral keeper

Active Member
Originally Posted by maxalmon
For those of you who have had algae problems, which k rating bulbs were you using?
Bump.
 

donald

Member
I have nova t-5's 4w54w, 2 blue (460) and 2 10,000, still fighting hair algae all other algae has been delt with
 

brandan

Member
Originally Posted by TX Reef
Most algae problems on rocks are caused by not blowing detritus off of the rocks regularly......
I have noticed this also. I have a piece of rock that concaves facing the surface, and if I do not blow it off, or have enough flow, it builds up with Cyano, and brown algae. I have cheep 10k bulbs for the record. I just haven't replaced them yet.
 

groupergenius

Active Member
I'm experimenting now with my Outer Orbit 2x250 hqi.
"In this corner, coming in at 10,000 kelvin of HQI lighting is the Current bulb. It has been fairly prolific at producing the green dusty algae on the glass and all the rockwork. More than likely due to the fact that this is a rookie tank and the bulb likes to hang too close to the water. In the purple corner to the right, the Phoenix 14,000 kelvin bulb is almost totally devoid of said algae. And a little more pleasent on the eyes. I think the 14K wonder will take this event hands down."
Looks like it could be a long battle friends.
 

mudplayerx

Active Member
Not sure of the purpose of the question, so I apologize if my answer isn't what you are looking for.
The rating of your lights won't necessarily cause an algae problem, but it will cause the problem to compound more quickly. Most algae problems are caused by lack of adequate water flow, dissolved organic coumpounds, and low pH.
ps- My guess is that algae grows best under 10k bulbs.
 
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