Hair algae?

[Jacobsal91]

Ow can i remove such an ugly substace from my live rock? This hairy green algae wont just pull off and im afraid to scrub because of the coraline and other creatures growing off the rock. My phosphates are zero. And water is basically perfect

 

[bskerrichard27]

Remove rock and scrub it with a brush

 

[Craigj247]

Have you tried a different test kit cause hair algae means that your phosphates or nitrates are high...

Well there are a couple of things you can do...

1. Get a tooth brush and keep lightly scrubbing the area while trying to syphon as much of the algae that that is breaking off... Keep this up and after a while it will keep reducing and disappear.

2. Use some kind of an object to block the light from hitting that area if the rock... The algae needs light to survive... It will starve itself to death.

3. Increase the water flow to the area... Algae mainly forms in dead spots in the tank where dirt mat settle and start to decompose...

4. Clean out your filters regularly... If you have live rock that matches your water volume (1 pound per gallon) and if you have ceramic beeds or bio balls then take them out as they are not needed and they can cause lots of algae problems in the tank.

5. Install a tv sterilizer this kills harmful algae causing bacteria.

6. You can also try introducing an emerald crab to the tank.

Hope this helps and good luck!

 

[Jacobsal91]

Have you tried a different test kit cause hair algae means that your phosphates or nitrates are high...

Well there are a couple of things you can do...

1. Get a tooth brush and keep lightly scrubbing the area while trying to syphon as much of the algae that that is breaking off... Keep this up and after a while it will keep reducing and disappear.

2. Use some kind of an object to block the light from hitting that area if the rock... The algae needs light to survive... It will starve itself to death.

3. Increase the water flow to the area... Algae mainly forms in dead spots in the tank where dirt mat settle and start to decompose...

4. Clean out your filters regularly... If you have live rock that matches your water volume (1 pound per gallon) and if you have ceramic beeds or bio balls then take them out as they are not needed and they can cause lots of algae problems in the tank.

5. Install a tv sterilizer this kills harmful algae causing bacteria.

6. You can also try introducing an emerald crab to the tank.

Hope this helps and good luck!

Ive tried 2 test kits. Phosphate is good. Whats a tv sterilizer? I have an emerald crab that likes to dissapear from time to time i should probably get a few more. And as far as warerflow goes is this why people buy powerheads? I bever really borthered to buy one honestly.

 

[Craigj247]

Stick to one emerald crab they can get territorial... Sorry i meant "UV Sterilizer" it is an add on to the tank... Well I am not a fan of power heads in marine tanks as it tends to
Blast water instead of add all-round circulation... Do you have a wave maker in your tank? You can try changing the angle a bit or adding another one...

Personally I have found blocking the light to work best for me...

 

[Jacobsal91]

Ohhh did u mean a UV sterilizer? I hear those are terrible and the replacement bulbs are expensive. I just ordered the biocube skimmer for my tank hopfully this can get rid of some
Nasty stuff

 

[Craigj247]

Well it depends on the type of uv you have... I have a boyu and it works great... Yeah skimmer should help with it too...

 

[Jacobsal91]

Ok sweet, Ill see how my skimmer does and ill see if a uv will help at all. Not really sire if my over flow can fit both

 

[Craigj247]

Yeah I guess since you have already got the skimmer see how it goes... And do the light blocking for and see if it helps... Good luck!

 

[Readingexcalibur]

The reason your phosphates are coming back normal is because they are "in" the algae. This would make testing for them inaccurate. If your water was perfect, you wouldn't have hairline.

Consider a GFO reactor?

 

[melosu58]

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

A good battle plan for nuisance algea.

 

[Jacobsal91]

I cant really block the light or scrub because of my polyps.. I dont want to damage them. Just did a clean up it looks a little better im about to go out and buy some more crabs and snails. And i ordered the skimmer its not here yet.

 

[Jacobsal91]

So i went to a LFS and they had my buy mexican turbo snails to eat up a bunch of it. Did a lot of scrubbing and it
Looks a little better. Did a water change and hopefully the snails can do a good job