Question about snails & crabs for red algea

[marisela21]

Hello,
I was wondering if there is any specific type of snail or crab that eats red slime algae. My tank is out of control with red slime algae. I've tried many things but still cant manage to get rid of it... but i wont quit. I was thinking maybe adding reef janitors will make a huge difference. I have snails but sadly some of them died i believe the algae killed them. My fish are ok though. Please any suggestions on the janitors, and any other tips... So desperate right now!!

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Marisela21 http:///t/395426/question-about-snails-crabs-for-red-algea#post_3520436
Hello,
I was wondering if there is any specific type of snail or crab that eats red slime algae. My tank is out of control with red slime algae. I've tried many things but still cant manage to get rid of it... but i wont quit. I was thinking maybe adding reef janitors will make a huge difference. I have snails but sadly some of them died i believe the algae killed them. My fish are ok though. Please any suggestions on the janitors, and any other tips... So desperate right now!!

Hi,
Red slime is not an algae, it's called cyanobacteria. To get rid of it, you need to figure out what caused it. if you opt for slime remover, if you don't STOP the cause it will keep coming back, and eventually get immune to the remover...you do not want that to happen. getting rid of it naturally is the best thing.
A few of the most common reasons:

• 
  Low water flow. (the wasted food settles in one area and the slime feeds on it and grows there)
• 
  Overfeeding (causing too many nutrients to accumulate)
• 
  Phosphates in the water. (a test will give you a false negative reading...because the cyano is feeding on it) You must have high PO4 or cyano wouldn't be there.
  The solution:
• 
  Stop overfeeding...Don't use flake food, and if you feed frozen foods ... Thaw and rinse it first.
  Use a turkey baster to remove the blanket of slime the best you can.
  Water changes once a week (not huge changes, maybe half what you would do normally once a month) This will remove the phosphates and extra nutrients.
  Take a stick with a plastic ribbon, (a strand from a bike streamer works great) and place it in different areas of the tank, and if the ribbon drops...that is a dead spot. Add power heads, or readjust the ones you have.
  Running a GFO reactor, or Chemipure elite in the filter will also curb PO4 (AKA Phosphates)

 

[beth]

What have you tried? Snails and such generally will not eat cyano.
Take a look at this information:
https://forums.saltwaterfish.com/t/73002/how-to-rid-your-tank-of-red-slime

 

[marisela21]

Thanks Flower and Beth!!!
Thanks for correcting me Flower...
Well I have tried a product called "RedCyano RX" it was working then suddenly the cyanobacteria came back. I do a water change every week of 50%. Will test the water again today, but everything has been looking great during the testing. I cut back on the feeding but now i just realize that maybe it can be the lighting =/ . I have a power head which is very strong so i make sure there is enough water flow. I had to discontinue the protein skimmer because of the product im using. I've been told that i can bleach the live rock but im scared to do so. =/

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Marisela21 http:///t/395426/question-about-snails-crabs-for-red-algea#post_3520462
Thanks Flower and Beth!!!
Thanks for correcting me Flower...
Well I have tried a product called "RedCyano RX" it was working then suddenly the cyanobacteria came back. I do a water change every week of 50%. Will test the water again today, but everything has been looking great during the testing. I cut back on the feeding but now i just realize that maybe it can be the lighting =/ . I have a power head which is very strong so i make sure there is enough water flow. I had to discontinue the protein skimmer because of the product im using. I've been told that i can bleach the live rock but im scared to do so. =/
There is no need to kill your rock. No, I wouldn't bleach it either.
Just because you have a good PH does not mean that all areas are getting flow, that's why I told you to take a ribbon and test each area in the tank. Is the cyano settling in the same spot, or is it all over the tank in different places? If it's more concentrated in a single area, then that area might have low flow.
Could lighting be part of the problem???? How old are your bulbs?
Yes the skimmer will go nuts during treatment, however if you treated the tank and it came back...you didn't get rid of the original cause. 50% water change a week is not good...it's too much. Even once a month you only should do 30% and 50% a week is crazy, it will mess with the tanks ability to settle down and for lack of a better word "mature". A tank under 1 year old goes through stages as it matures, you are resetting the tank if you do 50% every week.
Also if you have PO4, and hair algae or cyano, a test will not show it, you will get a false negative reading because the cyano is living on it, and absorbing it out of the water. Are you using RO or tap water?

 

[beth]

I agree with what Flower said, especially about having good water movement throughout the tank. Change the light bulbs. If you don't have corals, try turning your lights off for a week. Leave room lighting, and turn the lights on for an hour a day during which you can feed your fish.