Algae ID

mattgee87

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This stuff is taking over my tank and i'm not sure what it is. It looks like a short grass unlike hair algae. It looks like turf Algae to me but i'm unsure. Also what would eat this? I have been dosing red sea no3 po4 x and have gotten the nitrates to zero and my phosphates to zero as well.
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I don't know the scientific name of it but it is definitely Turf Algae.

Miserable stuff and really difficult to remove. Usually requires manual removal by removing the rocks and scrubbing the bejeebers out of them - I've used a small wire brush on that stuff.

You can either do a water change and use your waste water as a scrubbing bucket, or new saltwater in a scrubbing bucket, remove the rocks one by one, scrub as much off as is humanly possible, give it a good rinse in the bucket of saltwater, and return to the tank. I'd even give the rocks that don't have it (yet) a good rinse to get detritus off them, it will help get rid of the food source for the algae.

What are your parameters, including nitrate and phosphate? Those feed the stuff. In addition to manual removal, you want to cut out the food source because it WILL grow back, and the method I just described may have to be repeated several times over the next few weeks as it regrows. If you don't solve the cause, you'll be repeating it a lot more before you get the upper hand on it.

That bit in the substrate, I'd just grab it out and whatever substrate is attached to it, and remove it. That will be the easiest part of removing it.

Going forward, don't wait til it's all over the place before repeating the scrub-down - get it as soon as you can, when you see it.

Not an easy solution but in my experience, it's the only solution.

Edit: I see you have your nitrate and phosphate to 0 on a test, but they are still there, being bound up by the algae. Until it's all exported and being exported before the algae can take it up, you're caught in the vicious circle.

Jenn
 
mattgee87;945971 wrote: Well dang, there isn't any kind of creature i can get to eat this stuff?

turf algae is edible most of your clean up crew including. the sea hare will consume it, along with tangs.
 
Do you have clean up crew now?

Apparently they haven't eaten it :)

Try what you like - just relaying how I've had to get rid of it from multiple tanks over the years.

Jenn
 
JennM;945974 wrote: Do you have clean up crew now?

Apparently they haven't eaten it :)

Try what you like - just relaying how I've had to get rid of it from multiple tanks over the years.

Jenn

I didn't mean to step on your toes Jenn.. I was just trying to help.
 
No worries, no feelings hurt.

In my experience, not much, if anything, will eat that stuff. It's wiry and it's REALLY hard to pull off the rocks, even with a stiff wire brush.

Jenn
 
JennM;945979 wrote: No worries, no feelings hurt.

In my experience, not much, if anything, will eat that stuff. It's wiry and it's REALLY hard to pull off the rocks, even with a stiff wire brush.

Jenn

The cuc has to be really hungry.... otherwise they'd rather eat the food thats put into the tank...and I know sea hares like it.
 
as Jenn has already stated, your test kit is not reading your low range phosphates and nitrates, so I would suggest large weekly or twice a week (assuming it's your nano tank) water changes (insure the water temp, Salinity, and Alk match) to reduce nutrient levels. Your grass is extremely well fed and fertilized. A reactor with gfo could aldo be utilized, but with a nano, not usually necessary with frequent water changes.

There is an extremly easy way to get rid of this as long as you can remove the rock from the tank for 10 minutes.

Take out Rock and place in shallow tupperware or bucket. Pour 3% H2O2 over rock, let sit for 10 minutes, RINSE with saltwater, place back in tank. If you have any corals or anything on rock you want to keep alive, use a syringe to carefully coat area up to that item, but without touching said coral. H2O2 will kill most things, albeit not all...

http://www.atlantareefclub.org/forums/showthread.php?t=75890&highlight=H2O2">http://www.atlantareefclub.org/forums/showthread.php?t=75890&highlight=H2O2</a>

[IMG]http://www.atlantareefclub.org/forums/showthread.php?t=89062&highlight=H2O2">http://www.atlantareefclub.org/forums/showthread.php?t=89062&highlight=H2O2</a>
 
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