Hair algae eaters

[bill109]

hey everyone,
i know there are a million threads on this and i have read a lot of them. so far, people are deciding between, algae eating fish such as tangs, fox faces, LM blenny, some are headed towards the lettuce nudi.
now, in my system i have hair algae. there are no fish and there is about 15 lbs of LS in my tank. the tank is 90 gallons. there is approx. 70 lbs LR in there and the phosphates are through the roof. i am running phosgaurd and will keep using that heavily untill i see the levels decrease.
at this point im left with hair algae! now i need to get rid' of it.
my lfs has a nudi for like 30$ but said wfter it eats it, i can get about 20 some odd $ back for store credit.
or my 2nd option was a yellow tang. i have always had one untill my heater destroyed my tank. i was thinking about maybe one or the other? i had a ton of corals die off in the QT and decided to put the damaged corals back in the DT hoping to save them after the DT was up and running again.
diseases like RTN and rotting tissue off corals left me with this mess i *Think*
im looking for answers from people who have seen it work. do i try a tang or a nudi, or possibly a sea slug type critter? i just feel bad about using it eat the algae when i could buy something that is permanent to the tank
thanks in advance..
-bill

 

[meowzer]

Lettuce Nudis don't eat hair algae....they eat bryopsis
Get a sea hare!!!! Also you can get a few emerald crabs and some turbo snails

 

[mantisman51]

My emarald crabs and the lettuce nudibranch killed the hair algae in my 125g in about 3 weeks. But as Meow points out, nudi's have mixed results and are VERY expensive for a slug that will die in 2-3 months.

 

[flower]

With no fish in the tank right now, this is what I would do:
Get phosphate remover and dose the tank. Phosguard is to keep phosphates under control..yours is out of control so get an eliminator like Phosphate -E or Phosbuster pro, you pour it into the tank by measure, the tank clouds up and then the phosphates are gone in 24 hours.
Then remove the rock and scrub it in saltwater to remove as much of the stuff as you can by hand.
Do a good ½ water change, return the rock and then restock the tank starting with a good CUC. In that CUC have a Lawn Mower Blenny. The algae eaters will keep the algae under control after you give them a head start.

 

[nfsplayer]

i used sally foot crabs, they did a pretty good job.

 

[bill109]

thanks for the replies..
unfortunetly, there is no way i am taking out the rock, and scrubbing it. i put it in 2 weeks ago.
i have a ton of expensive zoas in there 2 risky for harmful chemicals.
the phosgaurd bottle says it is used for silcate/phosphate removal.. im just looking for something to munch it downn
i tested the phosphates and its down to zero. i dont get it. im going to have a lfs test and double check but the phosgaurd took all the phosphates out..
could some cheato that i got as a freebie have done it? i got a whole like gallon back crammed full of it. its the only new element to this other than rotting tissue.
i am getting some natural sunlight but the tank has not movied since the rebuild and its gettign the same amt. of natuaral sunlight. i dont think this is the problem

 

[caz2022]

Try an adult molly. I have an adult male sailfin molly and he not only mows through any algae he finds, he also helps keep my sand clean by picking any food he finds laying around.

 

[nikesb]

Originally Posted by bill109
http:///forum/post/3291275
thanks for the replies..
unfortunetly, there is no way i am taking out the rock, and scrubbing it. i put it in 2 weeks ago.
i have a ton of expensive zoas in there 2 risky for harmful chemicals.
the phosgaurd bottle says it is used for silcate/phosphate removal.. im just looking for something to munch it downn
i tested the phosphates and its down to zero. i dont get it. im going to have a lfs test and double check but the phosgaurd took all the phosphates out..
could some cheato that i got as a freebie have done it? i got a whole like gallon back crammed full of it. its the only new element to this other than rotting tissue.
i am getting some natural sunlight but the tank has not movied since the rebuild and its gettign the same amt. of natuaral sunlight. i dont think this is the problem
your phosphates are reading zero because the hair algae is using it up. i had a tough battle with gha too. I only used chemi pure elite because I do not like to jump into chemicals. The best way to keep it away is to keep it small. under .25". At this height emerald crabs and mexican turbo snails will mow them down.