Algae identification help!

[MiniQuaid]

Hey there so for the past few weeks I’ve been having issues with this algae that is starting to grow over everything it seems to kinda subside after doing my weekly water change but then comes back anyone know what it is and how to get rid of it?


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[york1]

Pictures would help
Also how old is the tank?
Parameters?
Are you testing for phosphates etc?

 

[MiniQuaid]

Sorry lol forgot to post these with it! And the tank is about 13 months old


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[MiniQuaid]

My phosphates are testing at the moment but past few weeks when I test everything seems to be going fine the nitrates seem to go up a little later in the week


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[snowmansnow]

Looks like dinos


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[jcook54]

Dinos short for dinoflagellates. These can look kinda like diatoms (which are common in new systems) but the stringy growth makes me lean towards dinos. Plus, your tank is 13 months old and diatoms are usually part of "new tank syndrome." However, I've seen cyano look a little brown and cyano also has all of the bubbles. Google "cyano vs dinoflagellates" and see what you think. Dinos are brutal but they are (thankfully) not nearly as common as cyano. The 2nd pic you posted looked a little red and I'm hoping you'll tell us it's more red than brown. Also, post you phosphate and nitrate numbers, tank size and water change size & frequency.

 

[MiniQuaid]

It’s definitely more of a reddish pinkish than brown, my phosphates are around .05 and the tank is a 20 gallon tall I do a 20% water change weekly and have a 165w led light


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[saltbubbles]

Looks like cyanobacteria to me.

 

[jcook54]

That's a good answer. You still should surf the old interwebs for more pictures to be sure but cyano is much easier to deal with dinos. If you are handy with a microscope, there is quite a bit of info out there about algae ID. I've thought about trying to figure it out myself but there are so many other things to spend money on that aren't a microscope! My solution for cyano and dinos is:

1. Increased the frequency and volume of my water changes.
2. I manually removed as much as I could during water changes and with a turkey baster in between water changes when it got looking bad.
3. I made a little box and put some cheato in the display. I didn't have a refugium so I rednecked something together to get some competition for the little buggers.

If it indeed is cyano, you cold always use a product like "Chemiclean" to eliminate it. It's really does work wonders but doesn't address the underlying issue of why the cyano got out of hand in the first place. Let me ask you this, does it change over the course of the day? In my experience, cyano seemed to be minimal when the lights kicked on but once the lights were one, it got worse and started getting bubbles in it.

 

[saltbubbles]

If it indeed is cyano, you cold always use a product like "Chemiclean" to eliminate it. It's really does work wonders but doesn't address the underlying issue of why the cyano got out of hand in the first place.

I second this. Chemiclean is great when following the instructions carefully. Otherwise, you can do more damage than good.

 

[snowmansnow]

Show us a pic of what it looks like on the sand bed. Cyno will likely lay in a flat magenta sheet and dinos will be stringy and brown


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[MiniQuaid]

Show us a pic of what it looks like on the sand bed. Cyno will likely lay in a flat magenta sheet and dinos will be stringy and brown


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I will get a pic when I get off work, but it definitely lays in a flat sheet on the sand the strings come off the rocks and such


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[MiniQuaid]

Little update, decided to give chemiclean a go and after just 12 hours it has helped so much! I just hope my hammers can come back from how much algae started to cover them and make them recede!


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[jcook54]

Glad it worked! Hammers are usually pretty hardy and will probably be fine. However, if you notice anything brown growing on them remove them ASAP. There's an issue called "brown jelly disease" and it can spread pretty quickly. I'm not too up on the causes of it but I think stress is a big contributor. Again, they should be fine but if you see anything that looks like, well, brown jelly, remove the coral quick.

 

[Tjb61885]

In the past when I had an outbreak I would use a turkey baster and blow the algae off my corals.