This green hair algae is out of control!!!!!

[njjamie]

Originally Posted by sepulatian
http:///forum/post/2685160
As mentioned, your salinity is low. That is why your sea hare and snails have not done well. Raise it as Robdog recommended. Stop adding the buffer. Never add anything like that unless you are testing your readings daily. It can raise too high too fast. Even the fish cannot tolerate that. As the SG increases the PH will stabilize. The salt mix contains a buffer. When there is more salt mix in the water there will also be more buffer. Have your LFS test for phosphates and also alkalinity. Post those readings.
I have stopped adding the buffer as suggested. To my surprise, my sea hair is still around. My girl thinks it is doing a better job than I do, but maybe I am over analyzing??
I am waiting for the next top and I will be topping off with salt instead of RO as I usually do.
Should I be taking this phosphate bag out?
Does the salinity have anything to do with the hair algae?

Thanks again for everyones help!
Jamie

 

[kellenr]

The phosphate bag isn't gonna hurt, it'll remove phosphates & silicates which cause some algae but also aren't good for fish/corals. Unless its Kent Phosphate Sponge, that loses its charge after a few days and needs to be replaced, or else it can begin to release phosphates back into the water.
Agree, Specific Gravity should be around 1.025.
You said your Nitrate = 0 and your Nitrite = 20 ??? I'm assuming you mixed those up, if not that could definately be why stuff is dying.
Add that Kent Marine dKH Superbuffer only once a week (at most), you should really only be adding it as your testing for it. 2Teasp. a day seems WAY too high, if you read the directions I believe it says that amount per week, or after water changes.
No, I don't think low pH or 1.021 SG is gonna cause your algae. Have them test your Phosphates and you should have your Alkalinity numbers if he said its low right?
You're not using tap water right?

 

[njjamie]

Originally Posted by KellenR
http:///forum/post/2687829
The phosphate bag isn't gonna hurt, it'll remove phosphates & silicates which cause some algae but also aren't good for fish/corals. Unless its Kent Phosphate Sponge, that loses its charge after a few days and needs to be replaced, or else it can begin to release phosphates back into the water.
Agree, Specific Gravity should be around 1.025.
You said your Nitrate = 0 and your Nitrite = 20 ??? I'm assuming you mixed those up, if not that could definately be why stuff is dying.
Add that Kent Marine dKH Superbuffer only once a week (at most), you should really only be adding it as your testing for it. 2Teasp. a day seems WAY too high, if you read the directions I believe it says that amount per week, or after water changes.
No, I don't think low pH or 1.021 SG is gonna cause your algae. Have them test your Phosphates and you should have your Alkalinity numbers if he said its low right?
You're not using tap water right?
Today my sea hare died??? I have raised the specific gravity and been doing my water changes. I do have these neon green things growing in some very small spots on my rock. I have to get some pics in. More and more death......it is never ending here. My girl keeps telling me that the algea is toxic and that is why everything is dying. How do I tell her she is wrong?

But I thnk it is something to do directly with my water???

Please help

 

[notsonoob]

Originally Posted by T316
http:///forum/post/2682885
Nj....I'm not slamming you about using your lfs for the tests. If that is what is at your disposal right now, then definately utilize him. But in general, don't trust what they say, unless you do the test yourself.
Not to sound pompous, but I chuckle to myself watching most LFS run their tests. Most of them have old dirty equipment or test kits that have not been properly maintained.
Had my wife freaked out about salinity, when I explained that they hadn't probably even flicked the bubbles off the needle on the hydrometer. He said it was at 1.038....when we tested it together at home and found that after three tests they were all at 1.024.

Second part is always test more than once, especially if something has changed.

 

[notsonoob]

Anyway, Everybody has an opinion on everything.
Here is your first course of action. I believe that everthing in your tank may be dieing, because you are probably changing things too quickly. Additives up and down.
1) Do you have a sump? If you do, to raise your salinity you have to do it slowely over time. I would say .005 or so per day, but others will way a bit more is ok. You can do this by adding 1/2 cup of salt mixed with say about 4 cups of RO water. Let it mix for a little while. But only once a day until you get the readings you want. Also realize that if you are evaporating alot out of the tank (having to top off quite a bit) that will also affect your salinity readings. You should test after you refill your evaporated water.
2) Buy some test kits for yourself. Test your water that you are putting into your tank. Test it for phosphates and nitrates and to be on the safe side, use a dechlorinator, just in case. If you are buying the RO water, you really are just rolling the dice that the company making the water, is doing so effectively. Chlorine will kill the RO membrane, but with other heavy metals included, it is a why not add to your water.
3) Take it easy and not worry to much about the algea at the moment. The only way to quickly get rid of it is to use chemicals. But what many don't understand is that algea is just kept in check, not fully erradicated aquariums. That is why it can always come in full bloom.
4) Don't buy anything else until you let the tank sit for about a couple of weeks. Once you are confident that the tank is ok and the water parameters are stable, then slowly start adding livestock. Too much too quick can wreak havok.
5). If you do buy test kits. 1 buy a refractometer for salinity checks and also, keep a jug of distilled water (I usually by the nursery water for babies) on hand to rinse your test equipment.
Understand that Alkalinity is the resistance of acidicy of your water. The higher the alkalinity the more resistant to the changes of PH.
PH I'm sure you know is the acidicy or base of the water. This should be kept at 8.3. What can affect this is low alkalinity and adding RO water, which will be at a lower PH. Also, the lack of gas exchange will drive your tank down. If you have glass tops, discard them, another good thing is to place a fan over your sump. If you don't evac the CO2 out of your tank it will drive your Ph down.
Your nitrates might be what is causing the algea to stick around. You can throw some cheato in your tank to suck this up. Ideally, you can use a refuguim, but you can get a mesh bag and toss it in your tank!
PS. I had snails, crabs, and shimp live perfectly happy at 1.021 salinity. It is variable changes that gets em'.

 

[notsonoob]

Would you discribe for me how you are adding your additives?
It is best dilluted. I bought myself a big ol'glass mixing container. If it calls for 1/2 teaspoon. I mix it with about 4-6 cups of RO water and dump it in your sump (or hang on the back filter, slowly) after it is mixed as good as possible
Also, make sure that you are adding the right dosages. They will say 1/2 tsp per 20 gallons of water, figure that you have a 55 with 50 pounds of rock, you may only have 35 gallons or so of water in your tank. This is based on water ammounts not on actual capacities.
I might even think about adding a bit more liverock in the future. I believe it should be somewhere about 1.5 pound of live rock per gallon. That is your main source of biologic filtration.
Don't worry, I was in the same boat you were once too.
I leaned more from my pool actually, that too many additives too quick just makes everything out of whack.

 

[dogfaceman]

if things are still going so bad and you are losing everything, (check phosphates, and maybe look for a new place to pick up water at), maybe you might want to rip everything out and restart?

 

[robdog696]

You know, I just went back and read your original post. It really explains a lot. And I can't believe I didn't figure this out sooner. Cyano feeds on CO2. Hair algae feeds on CO2. High CO2 causes low PH. So you obviously had at least two of the problems before the power outtage. My guess, not enough flow. Good water movement causes gas-off, replacing harmful CO2 with beneficial O2. Tell us what filters you are using. Do you have an overflow/sump? How many powerheads do you have? We'll help you get this figured out, but more importantly we need to lower your nitrites.
You had a lot of fish die. That could have led to an overgrowth of harmful bacteria that displaced the beneficial nitrifying bacteria. KellenR is exactly right, as usual. Nitrites are more harmful than nitrates, and if you don't have enough good bacteria in your tank to turn the nitrites into harmless nitrates then stuff will start dieing. What you need is some BIG water changes. I'd start doing about 20 gallon water changes every few days. You basically need to completely change your water over the course of a week or two. Once we get your nitrites down to zero the rest will be a cakewalk.
You have five problems:
Nitrites
CO2
Salinity
PH
Bacteria
Water changes should fix the Salinity, Nitrites, and PH. But the one part I'm not sure about is whether water changes will get rid of the harmful bacteria. KellenR or Sepulation will know. A UV sterilizer will kill bacteria, but I've never used one. I hate to give you any direction on removing bacteria. Hopefully someone else can. Then we'll work with you to fix the CO2 buildup that is causing your cyano and hair algae.

 

[nicnac2169]

i used to have a 29 gallon tank and when my hair algea got out of control i would use the uv sterilizer. i did a lot of research on them and found the best one to be the turbo twist. i have heard that is good to run it only for four hours with a reef tank though

 

[njjamie]

Originally Posted by Robdog696
http:///forum/post/2695713
You know, I just went back and read your original post. It really explains a lot. And I can't believe I didn't figure this out sooner. Cyano feeds on CO2. Hair algae feeds on CO2. High CO2 causes low PH. So you obviously had at least two of the problems before the power outtage. My guess, not enough flow. Good water movement causes gas-off, replacing harmful CO2 with beneficial O2. Tell us what filters you are using. Do you have an overflow/sump? How many powerheads do you have? We'll help you get this figured out, but more importantly we need to lower your nitrites.
You had a lot of fish die. That could have led to an overgrowth of harmful bacteria that displaced the beneficial nitrifying bacteria. KellenR is exactly right, as usual. Nitrites are more harmful than nitrates, and if you don't have enough good bacteria in your tank to turn the nitrites into harmless nitrates then stuff will start dieing. What you need is some BIG water changes. I'd start doing about 20 gallon water changes every few days. You basically need to completely change your water over the course of a week or two. Once we get your nitrites down to zero the rest will be a cakewalk.
You have five problems:
Nitrites
CO2
Salinity
PH
Bacteria
Water changes should fix the Salinity, Nitrites, and PH. But the one part I'm not sure about is whether water changes will get rid of the harmful bacteria. KellenR or Sepulation will know. A UV sterilizer will kill bacteria, but I've never used one. I hate to give you any direction on removing bacteria. Hopefully someone else can. Then we'll work with you to fix the CO2 buildup that is causing your cyano and hair algae.
My water movement I think should be good enough. I have 3 Rio's in there right now. 1- 180 and 2-600's. I also bought a new Koralia #2 which is supposed to handle a 55 gallon tank all by its self.
I have recently removed my Eheim I had because it was making a ton of noise and was old. I was told that just running my HOB protein skimmer, I would be fine.
Yesterday, I took each of my rocks out of my tank and scrubbed the hell out of them to get the algae off. It obviously looks a lot better, but who knows if it will stay this way. I am going to try and get readings done again to see if anything has changed. I do know for sure I have increased the salinity. With my nitrites at 0 and my nitrates at 20 ppm, we will see if anything changed. I will also try to get the other tests I need as people have mentioned in other responses to my posts.
I am hoping to get a big water change or two under my belt, then possibly load up some snails and a clean up crew again in my tank.......do you guys think I am crazy to take that step? Perhaps I should wait longer to see if this algae is done growing yet?? I am thinking the clean up crew can prevent it form getting so bad again?
Thanks for your advice,
Jamie

 

[nycbob]

at this point, i wouldnt buy anything for the tank. just do regular water change, and let everything settle down a bit. livestocks dying in ur tank will only add to the algae problem.

 

[spongy]

I had the hair algae issue some time back, went to a fuge and careful monitoring of water changes and levels, eventually disapated so you can win by attrition if you are patient and diligent. my 2 bits...

 

[robdog696]

Originally Posted by njjamie
http:///forum/post/2700495
My water movement I think should be good enough. I have 3 Rio's in there right now. 1- 180 and 2-600's. I also bought a new Koralia #2 which is supposed to handle a 55 gallon tank all by its self.
I have recently removed my Eheim I had because it was making a ton of noise and was old. I was told that just running my HOB protein skimmer, I would be fine.
Yesterday, I took each of my rocks out of my tank and scrubbed the hell out of them to get the algae off. It obviously looks a lot better, but who knows if it will stay this way. I am going to try and get readings done again to see if anything has changed. I do know for sure I have increased the salinity. With my nitrites at 0 and my nitrates at 20 ppm, we will see if anything changed. I will also try to get the other tests I need as people have mentioned in other responses to my posts.
I am hoping to get a big water change or two under my belt, then possibly load up some snails and a clean up crew again in my tank.......do you guys think I am crazy to take that step? Perhaps I should wait longer to see if this algae is done growing yet?? I am thinking the clean up crew can prevent it form getting so bad again?
Thanks for your advice,
Jamie
So I guess you mixed up the nitrate/nitrite readings. That's good. High nitrates is far less problematic. If it were my tank I would not add anything. I would do a major water change, and I'd get a UV Sterilizer. I'd let that run for a week or two, and do another water change before adding anything. Then I'd add a half dozen turbo, nass, and astrea snails. That's just me. I don't want to be rude at all, so please don't get mad at me. But it sounds like you don't do regular water changes. Saltwater tanks need to have a good portion of water replaced regularly. If you don't ever do water changes, this is what happens. If my tank ever had 20 nitrates I would freak out. Mine have never gotten above 5. And I only change about 10% of my water once a month. After reading up on UV sterilizers, I think I'm going to get one myself. Not only do they claim to kill single cell algae, but they supposedly make the water more clear. Whatever you do, I hope it works out for you! I hope you're at least a little less frustrated now. I can't wait to read "My hair algae is gone!" LOL! Good luck!

 

[nycbob]

i read it somewhere black molly will eat hair algae in a reef. i also read they need to be acclimated slowly to saltwater of about 4-6 hours. has anyone ever tried this?

 

[njjamie]

Originally Posted by Robdog696
http:///forum/post/2701329
So I guess you mixed up the nitrate/nitrite readings. That's good. High nitrates is far less problematic. If it were my tank I would not add anything. I would do a major water change, and I'd get a UV Sterilizer. I'd let that run for a week or two, and do another water change before adding anything. Then I'd add a half dozen turbo, nass, and astrea snails. That's just me. I don't want to be rude at all, so please don't get mad at me. But it sounds like you don't do regular water changes. Saltwater tanks need to have a good portion of water replaced regularly. If you don't ever do water changes, this is what happens. If my tank ever had 20 nitrates I would freak out. Mine have never gotten above 5. And I only change about 10% of my water once a month. After reading up on UV sterilizers, I think I'm going to get one myself. Not only do they claim to kill single cell algae, but they supposedly make the water more clear. Whatever you do, I hope it works out for you! I hope you're at least a little less frustrated now. I can't wait to read "My hair algae is gone!" LOL! Good luck!
I dont fund it rude about the water changes, but I promise, I do them on a regular basis. I just did a 20% last Thursday, then another 20% on Monday.
I took every rock out of my tank and scrubbed it with a toothbrush. I then netted out as much of the algae as possible. All of the algae is just about out of my tank. On a side note, it is kind of funny that one of my hermit crabs has this algae stuck to him. The algae is about an inch and a hlaf long and it blows in the current, it is kind of fuuny....like a green mohawk. This is the only funny thing that has come out of this green hair algae mess.
I will keep you all posted on my tank but I do appreciate your constant feedback. O am hoping that my tank will stablilize after two weeks and I will try to add a new cleaning crew at that time. Possibly 6 newcomers at a time??? What do you guys think?
Thanks again!

 

[deltablack22]

These things may have already been mentioned but rather than reading through all these posts I'll just toss in a few ideas:
-Check your source water (RO/DI filters may need to be replaced)
-Reduce feeding
-If you dont have any coral in the tank light reduction could work wonders.
-Something I have done is use a small "shower caddy" from walmart to house cheato in the tank (if you dont have a sump). It will compete with the hair algae for nutrients and has worked well for me even when the multitude of common corrections wouldnt. Cheap and easy solution, check it out:

 

[njjamie]

Originally Posted by DeltaBlack22
http:///forum/post/2704323
These things may have already been mentioned but rather than reading through all these posts I'll just toss in a few ideas:
-Check your source water (RO/DI filters may need to be replaced)
-Reduce feeding
-If you dont have any coral in the tank light reduction could work wonders.
-Something I have done is use a small "shower caddy" from walmart to house cheato in the tank (if you dont have a sump). It will compete with the hair algae for nutrients and has worked well for me even when the multitude of common corrections wouldnt. Cheap and easy solution, check it out:

I really like that idea.....cheap and easy. I am not sure if that would work, but I will try it as I dont think it could hurt?? I get RO from LFS, I barely feed at all the one clown I have in there plus my one anemone.
Any other suggestions,
Jamie

 

[deltablack22]

Like I said, I didnt wanna read through all the other replies and I'm sure a few of the suggestions I shot out there had already been mentioned over and over again. Its just good that your thinking it out and know what the cause and effect of different inputs on your part have on the closed environment that you are maintaining. I'm sure there are plenty of cure-all's listed so just do your research and you'll eventually get a handle on it.
The reason I mentioned the shower caddy was I had that set-up in my frag tank and NEVER had a problem with hair algea. I started getting some in my display and couldnt seem to get it under control no matter what I did. I finally got tired of plucking it out of the tank so I added one of these set-ups and within a week I noticed that the hair algae wasnt coming in as thick or growing as wildly.
Essentially all you are doing is adding a macro algea in a controlled area (due to lack of sump, the shower caddy) that is out competing the nusiance algae for nutrients. Give it a shot, it wont hurt anything and worst case scenario you have another spot to stick junk in your shower. I know its not pretty so if it works for you and you want to make it permanent you could always invest in a hang on refugium to keep it out of sight and out of mind. Good luck and let me know how it works out.