Red algae

[fishlovergirl]

HELLO EVERYONE:

I AM NEW HERE AND I THANK YOU ALL FOR ALLOWING ME TO BE HERE I HAVE TWO 55 GALLON TANKS. 1 IS FW AND 1 SW. I HAVE BEEN HAVING SOME PROBLEMS WITH MY SW I HAVE RED ALGAE GROWING. I HAVE ADDED A NEW POWER HEAD AND HAVE DONE A 10 PERCENT WATER CHANGE THIS WEEK AND I AM HOPEING TO CHANGE ABOUT 10% EVERY WEEK AND GET SOME TURBO SNAILS AND EVENTUALLY ANOTHER POWER HEAD AND PROTEIN SKIMMER. ANY SUGGESTIONS UNTIL I AM ABLE TO AFFORD THESE CHANGES?

 

[melosu58]

Read this from our site articles.

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/articles/articles/20/1/Cyanobacteria-AKA-Red-Slime-Algae-/Page1.html

 

[BucJason]

Always check your phosphate levels if you have algae problems. If you have high phosphates the water changes will help and you can buy products to help reduce them.

You can also try cutting down the amont of time your light is on.

 

[roka64]

I find it is hard to get a phosphate reading when cyano bacteria is present.
What/how much and hot often do you feed?
How long do you run your lights?
Are you using RO/DI water?
Do you have a filter or anything that has foam/sponges?

 

[Ziggy953]

Test your source water for phosphates and nitrates.

How long has your tank been set up? Roka asked some good questions. Give us a little more information about your setup.

If you are not using RO/DI, you may want to look into getting a unit. You can pick one up for about $100 shipped from ebay.

 

[fishlovergirl]

red algae

I usually try to limit my lights to about 8-10 hours a day i have cut back on my feeding but i do not own a phosphorus testing kit but i am planning on purchasing one soon i use tap water mixed with RO from wal-mart but the nearest wal-mart that has RO-DI water is about 24 miles away and with the way i work i have some trouble getting there but do plan on getting some red slime remover and some phospure within the next week and i am hoping that this will cure my problem. It is already somewhat better due to adding another powerhead to increase water flow.

 

[melosu58]

i use tap water mixed with RO from wal-mart

Read this about tap water

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/jan2004/chem.htm

 

[BucJason]

Yeah , if you have to drive 24 miles just to get r/o water , I would invest in a 100 dollar r/o filter on ebay. Just the money you'll save in gas alone you will recoup in no time.

 

[roka64]

Just a side note, get a phosphate test kit, not a phosphorus kit.

 

[panza]

yeah the chemi clean red slime remover worked great for me. thats always an option to get rid of it

 

[Jimbo7]

be sure you follow the instructions carefully because it can be pretty potent stuff. But first and foremost i would try and solve the problem naturally instead of treating it with chemicals so that you dont just get cyno again a couple months down the road
JM .02

 

[Ziggy953]

Adding any chemical to take care of a problem is only a temporary solution. The red slime remover will work but it can have adverse effects on the tank as well. Personally I would increase PWCs, reduce feedings, reduce photo period (to 5-6 hours). Make sure your skimmer and all filtration is clean of detritus. If you have sponges in your filtration make sure to rinse them out when doing your PWCs. Siphon out as much of the cyano as you can while doing PWCs.

 

[fishlovergirl]

red algae

THANKS TO ALL WHO RESPONDED! I HAVE FINALLY PUT IN A PROTEIN SKIMMER AND HAVE FOUND SOME CHEAP PHOS-X AND NOW MY PROBLEM IS SOLVED. I WAS JUST WANDERING IF ANYONE KNOWS IF THIS PHOS-X WILL HARM MY ANEMONE IT HAS NOT BEEN COMING OUT AS FULLY AS IT NORMALLY DOES. IT IS STILL EATING AND EVERYTHING I AM JUST WORRIED.

 

[melosu58]

What type anenome is it? What kind of lighting? What are your water test results?