ID Algae - and HELP :)

piznac

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Link to video of this morning:


So this morning is probably the worst I have seen. I need help identifying this algae and possible steps to remove it.

I presumed a few weeks ago this was dinos. So I started doing some research and found that maybe my nutrients where to low and since some of my coals where not looking to good either I decided to take steps to raising those levels a bit (feeding more, turned off skimmer, turned off refugium light etc.). This seemed to work and with daily blowing off of the rocks I thought I was getting this under control. Well as of the last few days it seems worse then ever. Any help would be appreciated.

Parameters tested this morning directly after I made the video and the lights came on.

PH: 8.25 - Hanna pHep meter
Alk: 8.1 - Hanna
Temp: 79
Salinity: 1.027 - Refactometer
Calc: 388 - Hanna
Nitrates: 0 - Salifert NO3
Phosphates: 0.04 - Hanna ULR (Last week read 0)

Some additional facts:

  • I does Kalk - Just started a few weeks ago trying to dial in my parameters. Before that I had let the tank go a bit and alk was down to 5 something, ph was 7.8 and calc was 460.
  • As I let the tank go the fuge light was on 24/7 for a month or so. Right now it is dark and has been for a week.
  • As I let the tank go I didn't do one single water change for several months. I started doing them but stopped as I heard that was bad for dinos. Been a week since I have done one after 3 weeks of doing 10 gallons.
  • Lighting schedule is from 9:30ish am to 9:30ish pm (4 t5's 4') - I have a hybrid lighting system and plan on adding some led's eventually.
  • All fish appear to be very active and healthy.
  • This stuff will typically blow off the rocks easily with a turkey baster.
  • I'm about to go try to shipon off as much as possible today without doing to much of a water change.
  • Stock list: 2 osc clowns, 1 royal gramma, 1 basslet, 1 coral beauty, 4 blue/green chromis and cleaner shrimp.
Well that's all I can think of it. Any help would be greatly appreciated as this is getting frustrating.
  • Is this dinos? If not what is it?
  • Anything you can thing of that would help, preferably from some one who has dealt with this.

    Thanks!
 
That’s actually Cyanobacteria, which resembles algae. It may go away on it’s own, & you can suction the worst of it with a hose & water change. How old is your system?

 
Also, you don’t want zero NO3 while keeping corals, imo.

There are several nitrogen additives, or you can dose amino acids.
 
System is roughly 6 months old. Ok let me watch this video,. would be nice if that's what it is. (but would mean I have been doing the opposite of what I need to do, which would make sense, since it's getting worse.)

Yeah I have been looking for some some of nitrate dose - So crazy to me,. my last tank 10 years ago - trying to keep ntirates down was the trick of the day lol.
 
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