New tank algae?

[country24]

Hey guys I'm new to the hobby of saltwater aquarium keeping, and I have been cycling my tank for about a week now and all my levels, salt, ph, ammonia, temp, seem to be at about normal, but on some of my live rock there has developed some type of red slime maybe? its got air bubbles stuck underneath it and i dont know what it is. Red slime algae? anyone know if this is normal, safe, or do i need to get rid of it.

Thanks.

 

[ryshark]

Hey guys I'm new to the hobby of saltwater aquarium keeping, and I have been cycling my tank for about a week now and all my levels, salt, ph, ammonia, temp, seem to be at about normal, but on some of my live rock there has developed some type of red slime maybe? its got air bubbles stuck underneath it and i dont know what it is. Red slime algae? anyone know if this is normal, safe, or do i need to get rid of it.

Thanks.

Welcome to AA!
At first I thought diatoms which is normal after cycling. But with the air bubbles, that does sound like red slime/cyanobacteria. You are only a week in with the cycle so I would probably just wait it out until the tank is truly/fully cycled and see if it is still there. But, it wouldn't hurt to take it out now, if its cyano. Can you get a picture of it to help us ID it?
Do you have any filters, pumps, powerheads running?
What is your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate?

 

[thincat]

ryshark is on the mark here. I would like to know the method that you are using to cycle your tank? In saltwater tanks a little could mean allot, so we need the #'s on those readings to give you an accurate answer. About normal could mean anything.
PS:welcome to AA

 

[mrg02d]

About normal usually means perfect for algae/bacteria to thrive.

Any nitrates, phosphates, or silicates will feed algae. As you do your PWCs, youll remove the junk from cycling. That, along with sensible feeding, and you will be much cleaner.

Matt

 

[country24]

lol alright fellas ill try my best to get a good picture. also ill check all my levels a little later cause im a little busy at the moment, i also tried to clean it up a bit and it wasnt slimy or anything but its a dark red almost purple color and it was kind of a film sort of material...

anyway i have a biocube 8 with all the stock filters and internal running i have the light on about 10 hours a day, and like i said ill post my exact numbers a little later.

Thanks for the warm welcome and all the replies

 

[country24]

my ph level is 8.0
temp is 80 degrees F
nitrates and nitrites are both at 0
I dont have anything to test my ammonia levels though, but im planing on getting ammonia test kit tomorrow. its been cycling for about a week and a half now. i attached pictures i hope theyre sufficient enough

 

[ryshark]

That is cyano. Keep your light off until it is gone. Then after it is cycled do a big partial water change. And, what I would do and I'm sure others probably may not..... buy some Microbe Lift Special Blend Microbe-Lift Special Blend Supplement 16oz , it will help your tank cycle faster and it helps to get rid of cyano naturally with a beneficial bacteria. There is a thread on another forum which many reefers had luck using it to naturally get rid of cyanobacteria over time. I actually just bought some myself for a light dusting of cyano on parts of my sandbed.

 

[country24]

out of curiosity is there any crab, snail, or shrimp that may be able to eat that stuff?

 

[Ziggy953]

For the most part there isn't anything that really eats cyano. I've heard of people getting hermit or snail to pick at it but for the most part you have to eliminate the fuel source, ie nutrients. PWCs and filtration is the best method for ridding a tank of cyano.

 

[thincat]

IMO you are way to early in your cycling period to be adding additional chemicals to your tank. Cut the lights, get an ammonia test kit and just monitor your water for now.

 

[ryshark]

IMO you are way to early in your cycling period to be adding additional chemicals to your tank. Cut the lights, get an ammonia test kit and just monitor your water for now.

I wouldn't add chemicals either. Special Blend is not a chemical. In fact a lot of people use it to jump start their cycle.

 

[Ziggy953]

When you do your PWC siphon out the cyano and increase the flow a bit in your tank. I know it's a nano but you could put a small powerhead in to help keep things from settling on the rock and sand.

 

[thincat]

Good point Ziggy, I almost forgot about more flow. That is so on the money with cyano out breaks.

 

[country24]

thanks to everyone who has replied, for now im pretty broke, im just a college student

but im going to get a ammonia kit, i already turned my lights off and ill do a PWC over the weekend and clean up the rocks a bit.

Thanks again for everyones reply!