sick tank?

[special lighting]

can anyone help me get rid of my algea?
its just horribble i leave my tank lights on for 5 hours 6 bulbs of 46 watts each.
3 fillters 2 bio wheels and a fluval
the tank looks clean with the lights off but when i turn it on it looks and starts to get algea
please help.

 

[thincat]

Please tell us more about your tank:
Size, age, sandbed, fish and the water parameters...ammonia, nitrite, PH, nitrate...for now...

 

[special lighting]

well 60 gallon
1 year old
3 Fish royal gramma, cinnamon clown, green wrasse
evry peremeter is good cause i did a 10 gallon water change yesterday

 

[thincat]

What color is the algae? any pics?
What is Good...#'s?

 

[melosu58]

evry peremeter is good cause i did a 10 gallon water change yesterday

I hope you are not saying that just because you do a 10% PWC that all your water parameters are OK. BTW what type of water are you using?

 

[special lighting]

thincat: ill try to put some pics later on.
well ammonia is 0.00
nitrite is 0.00
ph is 8.3
and nitrate im about to check

 

[special lighting]

melosu58: i did say it cause of the water change at first but then i went ahead and cheked them and they seemed good lol i am using rodi water from my lfs and salt water that they prepare themselves for my wc

 

[mfdrookie516]

when you say good, what are the actual numbers? to one person, one thing might seem good, when in actuality it isnt...

 

[special lighting]

when you say good, what are the actual numbers? to one person, one thing might seem good, when in actuality it isnt...

well ammonia is 0.00
nitrite is 0.00
ph is 8.3

 

[mfdrookie516]

do you test your nitrates?

 

[special lighting]

yup let me test them ill post them in about five minutes

 

[special lighting]

nitrate = 0.00
what do i do know?

 

[InfernoST]

Did you check your phosphates and silicates?

 

[melosu58]

Read this.

FantasyReef Databases-Viewing item "10 Step Plan for Nuisance Algae Control"

 

[special lighting]

ok heres what i have done.
1. yes atleast i think cause there 0 in my test kits
2. i do 5 gallon every sunday or sat i have a 60 g tank
3. i cant pull it is on my glass, the algea on the rocks are slimy, and on the sand its like a carpet.
4. i do five hours a day yesterday i did about 1 hour and a half beause i really want to get rid of it. i have a polyp of a coral lol
5. i have about three emerald crabs and three hermit crabs i think thats what they are.
6.i feed my fish 2 to 3 times a day
7. how do i do that?
8.refugium? macro?
9.i use The Sea Store - Brightwell Alkalin 8.3 Liquid Buffer (Powered by CubeCart) to raise my ph on my fresh water, and i used to give my corals Brightwell Aquatics PhytoGreen-S - Green Phytoplankton (Small) 1-2 micron 500ml / 17oz cause my lfs said it was food for them
10. whats a protien skimmer?

 

[thincat]

1) your test kit is reading 0 because your algae is using up the nutrients
2) 5g is not enough...10 or better yet 12g is better
3) sounds like cyano or diatoms
4) Okay
5) You need some snails
6) Wow, that is way to much. Once every other day is plenty!
work on these and I'll check what #7 is..hahahahlol

 

[factorboa]

once i read through everything i was gonna say he needed snails get some they help u with the algae problem in the end

 

[special lighting]

i did 10 yesterday

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

A few things...

The overfeeding isn't helping. Cut back to at MOST once per day. And when you feed, just put a little in and let them eat it all, then put more in... let them eat it all... you get the idea. Don't just dump a cube of food in and walk away. You could even cut back your feeding to once every two days and your fish won't suffer.

No need to buffer fresh water. When doing top offs, just use the RO/DI water straight - don't add anything.

What kind of corals do you have? Depending on what corals you have, the phyto might be useless to them and just fouling up the tank.

What's a protein skimmer? Probably something you should have. It removes organic waste from the water before it can break down into nitrates. Here's a good start for looking into one: http://www.google.com/search?q=protein+skimmer

Can you get a picture of the algae? That would help us know what we're dealing with...

 

[special lighting]

A few things...

The overfeeding isn't helping. Cut back to at MOST once per day. And when you feed, just put a little in and let them eat it all, then put more in... let them eat it all... you get the idea. Don't just dump a cube of food in and walk away. You could even cut back your feeding to once every two days and your fish won't suffer.

No need to buffer fresh water. When doing top offs, just use the RO/DI water straight - don't add anything.

What kind of corals do you have? Depending on what corals you have, the phyto might be useless to them and just fouling up the tank.

What's a protein skimmer? Probably something you should have. It removes organic waste from the water before it can break down into nitrates. Here's a good start for looking into one: protein skimmer - Google Search

Can you get a picture of the algae? That would help us know what we're dealing with...

yeah i surley will cut back on feeding
well i turn off the light for about 2 days and it dissapears but when i start up the light in 2 or 3 days it grows again
so if i add the water with no buffer the ph wont go down?
i have a polyp only lol