Another Hair Algae thread....

[SeeDemTails]

Well I have about reached the end of my rope......

I have tried everything to get rid of HA.....

I added a polyfilter to my tank, and I am still having nothing but trouble with hair algae. It is starting to become a real headache and is in all my zoa colonys choking them out, and coveres my sand in a matter of a week after removing it. Every rock has atleast some on it as well.

It seems like I just cannot win this battle. I stopped adding phyto, I use only ro/di water for changes and have never used anything else.

How long does it take to starve out hair algae?...Could it be because I am using CF lighting? Could it be surviving on just the light?...I am planing on upgrading to MH soon, will the help or make worse the problem?

I keep SPS frags in my tank so I am hesitant to shorten the lighting cycle, I run 10 hours right now.

It is almost to the point I want to take the tank down and start over...it is nothing more than an eyesore I cannot seem to beat.

No Nitrates, no phophates.....nothing....I just dont understand why it continues to grow and spread.


What should I do?

 

[roka64]

You might be able to get the lighting down to 8 hours, over about a 2 week period. I would suggest more PWCs. How old are your lights?

 

[Sadielynn]

while it is only only a bandaid till you can fix it you may wish to try a phosphate sponge

 

[SeeDemTails]

I have been doing two 10% pwc's twice a week.

I dont think phosphate is feeding it...I have none in my water...and I know my source water has none.

The bulbs are new, maybe 3 weeks old.

I am going to do even more PWC's and cut my lights back to 8 hours.

I am planning on upgrading to MH very soon...will this help the problem or make it worse?

 

[melosu58]

Are you feeding every other day? Also have you checked your PWC water for nitrates or phosphates.

 

[weemanpow3]

hey I have been battleing it for 4 months and finally its going away. what I did was add another power head and 8 hours a day light and feed every other day. I did this for 2 months and its gone.

 

[melosu58]

Weeman it `s good to hear those good results.

 

[roka64]

hey I have been battleing it for 4 months and finally its going away. what I did was add another power head and 8 hours a day light and feed every other day. I did this for 2 months and its gone.

That's great to hear another person's success! Great job!

 

[fishman]

Well on the flip side of the coin I have been working on eradicating my algae for 3 YEARS and still have it....not as bad as I once did but its still in patches!! So dont feel bad! I feel your pain! I have tried everything listed here by people as well as LFS and had even people tell me they dont have a CLUE as to why I still have it. SO with this said Im still staying after it and WILL win the battle!

 

[Guest]

I defeated almost all of my HA in 3-4 weeks. I am no expert on this subject but here is what I did. I also think you do have phosphates or extar nutrients because you get it on your sand. Many only get it on pieces of LR and believe it is because of phosphate/nutrients built up inside the LR.

1. Cut back light from 11 hrs to 9 hrs
2 Purchased RO/DI unt
3. Reduced feedings to every other day and less. Shut PH off while feeding and only feed as it gets eaten.
4. Manual removal is very important IMO. I had no results until I kept removing.
5. Increased skimmer to produce more wet skimmate.
6. Emerald Crabs (3) I know their are conflicting opinions but all I can say is what I witnessed. They will not touch it if it is long but if I removed the long stuff, all the short HA was eaten up. Watch them after with some corals but if kept fed they shouls be ok. Mine have been great.
7. Upped my Cerith, Nassarius snail population. You can say what you want about what snails eat what but cleaning up detrius and aerating the SB helps from collection of waste.


There was my plan. Good Luck and let us know.

 

[melosu58]

That`s a great battle plan Mike. Here is one that is a little bit more extensive

http://www.fantasyreef.com/showthread.php?t=478

 

[SeeDemTails]

I use RO/DI source water that I know has no po4/no3.

I feed every two days...I only have one neon dottyback in the tank. I have a bunch of snails and hermits. I might try a crab but I am a little leary about it.

I have been manually removing it with an airhose syphon every time I do a water change. I suck it up the syphon and then pinch it off at the base and suck it out of the tank.

I forgot to mention I have been battleing it for about a year now.

I took put a peice of red coquina looking rock I have had in my tank for a long time yesterday....I think it might be leaching po4, even though the poly filter is removing it now so the test doesnt detect it.

I have tried everything I know of...I will keep battleing it I guess!

 

[Guest]

Ha

I actually did check out that link when I started. Alot of great ideas.

I am considering using mostly base rock in my upgrade because I feel the LR has alot to do with it depending where it is from, however I have no evidence to prove this, just my own theory.

It mostly grew on the same two pieces even after adding flow and then spread from there. I have about 4-5 different kinds of LR and some never got a piece on it.

Anybody have opinions on this?