need help with algea

[landonb16]

So it started about 3 months ago and it keeps getting worst and worst. I have tried many things an i just can not seem to get rid of it. here are two pictures of it

http://picasaweb.google.com/landonb/...33314438909714

http://picasaweb.google.com/landonb/...33288669105922
here are some specs on my tank:
- 72 gallon saltwater tank w/20 gallon sump
- animals: yellow tang, blue hippo tang, 2 engineer gobies, serpent star, various snails and hermit crabs
- over 50 pounds of live rock
- skimmer
- lots of flow, 1600 gph
- water changes done with ro/di
- temp ~80
- lights 4 50/50 vho's
- nitrates, nitrites, and ammonia are all 0
- has been up for over 2 years
Any ideas on how to get rid of it and what it is called, i think it is green hair algea.
Thanks, Landon

 

[fedukeford]

It looks like hair algea. What are your phostphate levels? How much and how often to you feed the fish? what kind of skimmer?
Feduke

 

[bellanavis]

Get a seahare, but also find out why its growing.

 

[landonb16]

Originally Posted by fedukeford
It looks like hair algea. What are your phostphate levels? How much and how often to you feed the fish? what kind of skimmer?
Feduke
i feed the two tangs some seaweed every other day and i have a Coralife Super Skimmer. My phosphate test out at 0.01.
Thanks, Landon

 

[rusting]

Originally Posted by landonb16
So it started about 3 months ago and it keeps getting worst and worst. I have tried many things an i just can not seem to get rid of it. here are two pictures of it

http://picasaweb.google.com/landonb/...33314438909714

http://picasaweb.google.com/landonb/...33288669105922
here are some specs on my tank:
- 72 gallon saltwater tank w/20 gallon sump
- animals: yellow tang, blue hippo tang, 2 engineer gobies, serpent star, various snails and hermit crabs
- over 50 pounds of live rock
- skimmer
- lots of flow, 1600 gph
- water changes done with ro/di
- temp ~80
- lights 4 50/50 vho's
- nitrates, nitrites, and ammonia are all 0
- has been up for over 2 years
Any ideas on how to get rid of it and what it is called, i think it is green hair algea.
Thanks, Landon
How old are your bulbs, and how much and often do you feed?

 

[landonb16]

Originally Posted by rusting
How old are your bulbs, and how much and often do you feed?
replaced bulbs in september and i feed them every other day thin 4 X 4 inch square of sea weed.

 

[rusting]

Originally Posted by landonb16
replaced bulbs in september and i feed them every other day thin 4 X 4 inch square of sea weed.
How about your water changes, are they weekly? I do 20% every week. I had a very bad outbreak a year ago, I changed to a deep sand bed, bought better lighting, added 4 power heads, and lots of snails. The water changes are the most important IMO.

 

[ratrod]

Here's my algea 101 rant
I'm gonna give you my advise on the nasty hair algae curse. Not everone will agree with me on all of what I have to say but I can asure you I've had a reef up for over ten years and I've been to hell and back with this stuff and I'll tell you what works, for sure, some of the time, part of the time, and non of the time. It is true that hair algae loves phosphates and silica, and ofcourse light, and eliminating or reducing these things will help curb it to a degree, but here's the thing a perfectly healthy reef with good water quality can grow hair algae, especially if your reef has ever had it before. Water changes are the quickest way to get your PO4 under control assuming your using RO water or a water source that has no PO4 in it. Here's the hard part and the part that always makes me laugh when people pipe off and say it, that is, all you have to do is worry about water quality and get it right and the hair algae goes away. Thats a joke and not true! The hair algae that is in your tank stores enough nutrients within itself to grow at an alarming rate with perfect water readings!!! Dont be fooled just because the test kits read zero! Its like a heart problem, once you have, you dont cure it, you manage it. So, here's my 2 cents on how to get rid of it including all the blatent obvious things that are repeated over and over again. Bigger and longer established tanks are harder to treat than smaller ones.
1) Do water changes ofcourse, but rig yourself up a rigid length of clear tubing to your siphon hose to control and vacuum up all the loose algae and reef dust.
2) To really get a head start take the rocks out of the tank and dip them into a bucket of salt water and scrub the algae off with a toothbrush.
3) Cutting your light time, and reducing your feedings are certainly helpful at least until you get it under control. Poeple say that older lights cause algae, its possible but changing them wont help much.
4) Get or make sure your skimmer is running properly! And replace your prefilter media constantly.
5) When selecting a clean-up crew, be careful not to over do it at first. Its great to have a snail for every gallon like some people say, and I dont totally disagree, but if you put a lot them in and some die off, you've now created more fuel for your algae.
6) Dump in some long spiny urchins, you cant kill hardly em, and they really mow! They can tip things over though.
7) The phos-ban products do help, but their expensive and with all the other factors they alone wont eliminate your algae only help manage it after you've gottin rid of a lot of it. I like the slower acting stuff for a long term preventative measure.
8) UV stearlization is good for some things, but worthless for hair algae.
The bottom line on all this is to get it under control you have to get a little drastic, or you wont get it under control. Then from that point on its prevention. Hope this helps.

 

[landonb16]

ratrod, Thanks for your help, i think i am going to try your way, i have tried everything else. I'll let you know how it goes, Thanks!

 

[the j.o.p.]

i wish i could rent you my emerald crab "kong" he would take care of that no problem.