Hair Algae??!! HELP!!!!!

delpni · Jul 25, 2010

mikesommers;541797 wrote: I think you need to increase water changes. Thats it. If your tank is fairly new P03 can be coming from the rock depending on where it came from and how it was cured. I have approx. 15 fish in a 90 gallon with 125lbs of rock and a total of 115 gallons of water. I average between 75 and 85 gallons a month in water changes. with no issues going on. If I had an issue I would most likely double that until it was straight. Also look at your water source. By the way I don't see were anyone asked, where do you get your water from? What are you using for top off water? You could be adding both P03 & N03 to your tank. Just a thought.

I have been treating tap water :blush: with buffer, Prime, and Stress Zyme. Once treated, the water tests almost the same as the RO I used to buy....at least for the things I can compare in a test. I have a biocube with RO water and I have to clean it much more often.

mikesommers · Jul 25, 2010

:up: I knew it had to be something simple. Tap water has P03 and N03 in it and chemicals do not remove them. Get some ro-di water and allot of it or buy a good 5 stage ro-di unit as dawgdude said. Start changing water. I would say 15-20 gallons a week. Put a nice reactor on it with good GFO in it and you should be good to go in about 6 weeks. I have an sps dominate tank and only run 8 hrs of light a day. You can do more when all the algae is gone but I would have a good cuc. I have 10 bumble bee snails, 20+ turbos, 2 star fish, and 10 pellet eating snails

blush: forgot there name) got them all from ATA. My point is your cuc and good water is the back bone of a reef tank. Just in case I forgot to mention NO tap water. Worse case go get premade saltwater from a sponsor or a member. I sell saltwater and ro-di to one of my co workers.

Good luck! Shoot a pm if ya ever need some help!

Mike

mikesommers · Jul 25, 2010

delpni;541863 wrote: I have a biocube with RO water and I have to clean it much more often.

So the when you say you have to clean it more often, more than the tank with gha? Does it have GHA? Where do you get this ro water from? Is it RO/DI? If it's not DI then it's still got minerals in it. I have to do something to my tank every night! That's part of the fun for me. You have to love the hobby for it to show you the goods!!!!

the fish store · Jul 25, 2010

In my experience of dealing with hair algae for 32 years, I have learned that hair Algae grows by a multiple. The more you have, the more it grows. While it is ESSENTIAL to remove phosphates, high temps, limit feedings and limit lighting,(which has been covered very well by all of the other posts on this thread) it is equally important to remove as much of it, as soon as possible.

If you are as lazy as me, (not too lazy), a great number of natural clean up crew is extremely helpful. While most snails and hermits do not eat the large colonies of hair algae, they do help tremendously keeping new growth under control, as long as you have enough, and you have manually removed as much of the large colonies you can. Of course, when you have a large population of cleaners, you will experience some loss, (starving). But since most cleaners are a buck a piece, it seems to be a small price to pay to have your aquarium look nice.

The X Factor.... The dreaded Sea Hare. Everyone in this hobby has a different level of risk tolerance, when it comes to their tank. Some will take the risk of putting a sponge, sea cucumber, sea apple or a sea hare, even though they know that any one of these animals can release toxins in the water if threatened or dies in their tank. Having said that, I am not advocating one way or the other on any of these animals. In my experience, the sea hare has been my secret weapon, when I need to eliminate my hair algae problem. Very often, a sea hare can eliminate a hair algae problem within a week. Having said that, they can also starve to death very easily. If you ever use one, I suggest getting rid of it once it has done the job. This will mitigate your risk to some extent. Just think of it as hiring a hair algae maintenance guy for really cheap. As far as the husbandry of this animal, three things I highly recommend:

1. Make sure the animal is moving before you buy it.

2. Acclimate the sea hare like a cleaner shrimp, extremely slow and careful.

3. Do not buy one if you have a temperature problem, If your tank is above 82 degrees, your tank is probably too hot for a sea hare.

This advice is not scientific by any means, but based on personal experience. Good luck.

mikesommers · Jul 25, 2010

That's some really cool info!!!:up:

Warehouse Aquarium;541945 wrote: In my experience of dealing with hair algae for 32 years, I have learned that hair Algae grows by a multiple. The more you have, the more it grows. While it is ESSENTIAL to remove phosphates, high temps, limit feedings and limit lighting,(which has been covered very well by all of the other posts on this thread) it is equally important to remove as much of it, as soon as possible.

If you are as lazy as me, (not too lazy), a great number of natural clean up crew is extremely helpful. While most snails and hermits do not eat the large colonies of hair algae, they do help tremendously keeping new growth under control, as long as you have enough, and you have manually removed as much of the large colonies you can. Of course, when you have a large population of cleaners, you will experience some loss, (starving). But since most cleaners are a buck a piece, it seems to be a small price to pay to have your aquarium look nice.

The X Factor.... The dreaded Sea Hare. Everyone in this hobby has a different level of risk tolerance, when it comes to their tank. Some will take the risk of putting a sponge, sea cucumber, sea apple or a sea hare, even though they know that any one of these animals can release toxins in the water if threatened or dies in their tank. Having said that, I am not advocating one way or the other on any of these animals. In my experience, the sea hare has been my secret weapon, when I need to eliminate my hair algae problem. Very often, a sea hare can eliminate a hair algae problem within a week. Having said that, they can also starve to death very easily. If you ever use one, I suggest getting rid of it once it has done the job. This will mitigate your risk to some extent. Just think of it as hiring a hair algae maintenance guy for really cheap. As far as the husbandry of this animal, three things I highly recommend:

1. Make sure the animal is moving before you buy it.

2. Acclimate the sea hare like a cleaner shrimp, extremely slow and careful.

3. Do not buy one if you have a temperature problem, If your tank is above 82 degrees, your tank is probably too hot for a sea hare.

This advice is not scientific by any means, but based on personal experience. Good luck.

ralph atl · Jul 25, 2010

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mapleredta · Jul 25, 2010

I, too, am getting ready to start battling HA. I have to feed often because of the moorish idol so I am going to do a huge add on to my cleaner crew, step up to weekly water changes and run a GFO reactor. Now, to figure out what media I need.

Hair Algae??!! HELP!!!!!

delpni

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mikesommers

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mikesommers

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the fish store

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mikesommers

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ralph atl

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mapleredta

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