I have a hair problem and it's not balding

[u235a4]

Yes, As I said I have a Hair algae problem, trates 0, phos 0, nothing died, corals healthly. it just started after a year my two other tanks are hair free will post pics just looking for things that i can do or look for.

 

[nerdy]

In my experience, when the phosphates are low like yours the lighting is usually the problem. If you have had the same bulbs for a year, the spectrum on them may have seen better times.
Or they might have been a poor spectrum in the first place. Let us know what kind of lighting you have!!!!

 

[u235a4]

Originally posted by Nerdy
In my experience, when the phosphates are low like yours the lighting is usually the problem. If you have had the same bulbs for a year, the spectrum on them may have seen better times.
Or they might have been a poor spectrum in the first place. Let us know what kind of lighting you have!!!!

the lighting is
(2) 20K VHO 36"
(2) 10K VHO 36"
(8) Actinic VHO 36"
But i will add the bulbs are 8-9 months old
and powered by 3 icecap 660's

 

[birdy]

Might be time to change the bulbs, but I do have one more question, how bad is the hair alge problem? If it is pretty significant then you will show 0 on phosphates because the algae is consuming them, then when the algae naturally dies off it feed new algae growth, It is very important with hair algae that you remove as much of the algae as you can daily.

 

[u235a4]

I use a 802 powerhead and blast it off the rocks daily and try and get most of the stuff out i'll change bulbs and see what happens just sucks to spend 350 on bulbs.... for future ref how often should i change the bulbs 6months 3 months ?

 

[cincyreefer]

With ice cap ballasts i would recommend changing them every 8-9 months. I have found it best to change only a couple at a time though.
Another thing... I wouldnt just blast the algae off the rocks in the tank. The algae can release the nutrients back into the water column and you still have calcium phosphate on the rock which is a fertile growing area for hair algae. I recommend taking the rocks out of the tank and into a bucket with water from the tank and scrubbing the algae off with a tooth brush or something of the sort. Then add a clean up crew if possible and they should mow down the rest of the small algae left.
What chemicals are you dosing to your tank, if any? A tank overloaded with too many additives, especially trace elements, will also contribute to an algae bloom.

 

[u235a4]

should i scrubb the rocks in salt water or normal water and what type of brush should i use...I add marine snow once a week and change the water every other week useing instant ocean

 

[clarkiiboi]

I recommend taking the rocks out of the tank and into a bucket with water from the tank and scrubbing the algae off with a tooth brush or something of the sort. Then add a clean up crew if possible and they should mow down the rest of the small algae left.
That is exactley what I did and it worked. Also, if you do add new bulbs turn them on gradually. (a few hours one day and work up to the normal schedule). Another thing I did (which is most likely a no no, but felt I had to) was used air line tubing and syphoned what I could off the sandbed. that is fustrating cause of little pieces of shells clogging the hose, but I lost less water this way. Most likely it is due to lights---thats a gimme that it is time for me to get new ones. HTH.

 

[cincyreefer]

Use water from the tank and any clean brush will work. I have always used new toothbrushes.
The marine snow should be fine as long as you put in the recomended amount. How many corals do you have in the tank and what kind?