algae question

[ericosuave]

Is there another way to get all this algae off of my rocks without having to remove all the rocks and scrub them, because its really a pain!! is there a way that i could maybe starve the algae so it will eventually all die and dissappear? or is there something that i can add to my tank that will slowly kill all this nasty algae? i got a lawn mower blenny... but i think he ate too much of this algae and exploded! and my hermits are helping a little.. but at this rate it will take them 10 years! Please someone help!! i am very sick of this algae situation! everybody keeps laughing at me

 

[mle421]

do you have any snails? try cutting down on your lighting time. and what type of water are you using? tap or RO? have you checked for phosphates?

 

[ericosuave]

i use RO/DI water from wallmart.. i fill up those 5 gal. buckets and do water changes like that... i have snails .. but i dont think they eat the really long algae stuff.. plus i have this plant algae thats growing.. it looks like small little palm tree leaves... my lighting time is about 7 hours a day..

 

[DeNero1331]

Have you considered a refugium? It can make a world of difference. I still get a little algae in my main tank but not nearly as much as I use to.

 

[ericosuave]

yeah.. ive considered one.. but as of right now.. im low on cash money! I will definetly invest in one for the future though..

But as of right now! i need to get rid of this NASTY algae!!

 

[DeNero1331]

What else have you got in the tank? Before I stocked up on lr and such I used to get rid of cyano by cutting back the lighting.

 

[Wooster]

how many hermits do you have?

 

[ericosuave]

i have about 10 hermits.. in a 40 gal aquarium

 

[douggiestyle]

i was able to get rid of algae this way. obviously a couple snails and crabs will help. the lighting is not an issue leave it alone. in fact maybe bump it up to twelve hours. make sure all filter material is clean or replaced. remove the carbon for a while. do weekly 10% water changes. if you have a dsb vacuum the top layer when doing the water changes and only do half the gravel per week. if you have a ssb then vacuum to the glass and do half per week. eliminate all addatives like coralvite and phytoplex and such. cut feeding of fish to what they can consume in a 5 minute period and feed every other day. unless using nori for tangs then i would everyother day and for a few hours. do this and be patient and in about 2 months your algae will be gone, without scrubbing. you can then up feedings if needed and add some additives but increase slowly and always keep an eye on your algae.

also those green mythrax crabs are great at cleaning rock. people say that they can cause problems but ive never experienced any. and that is fact not hearsay.

also i would recomend replacing filter material (if used) and not cleaning. an exception may be those filter socks as they are expensive, but then i would investigate an alternative. and replace filter material each week.

 

[Smo]

Very good advice!
One more thing you should add are some astrea snails.
I bought my reef complete and used from a friend. He let it go and the tank was full of hair algae. You couldn't even see through the glass.
What I'm getting at is I have 6 astrea snails and they love algae. I thought I was gonna have to move them around the tank, to rock by rock, and make sure they cleaned it up well. Boy, was I wrong. They sniff out algae and attack it like Roseanne Barr on a cupcake.

Also, what type and how old are your lights?

Try to pick off what you can by hand, by reducing it's numbers now, the quicker the eradication will become.

Oh, another thing, patience. Been starin' at green rocks for 5 weeks now and it is nearly gone. Mine should be abolished in 3 more weeks.

 

[spongeynip]

ok, i hear algea problems, and my lfs sold me some really cheap Kent Marine Poly-Ox. I haven't started applying it yet, but I hear it makes severe results (like 3 of the twice a day treatments leave a dry tank). It isn't bad for anything unless I overdose, but I suddenly got a HUGE cyano outburst when I switched to 50/50 lights and a longer lighting period, and I'm thinking of doing it soon. Should I? Or should I go with the snails (keep in mind every rock is densly covered in cyano)
btw-I use RO/DI water from my lfs, and spring water for top offs.

thanx
-Trent

 

[douggiestyle]

do as i said.