hey everyone, i know its algae, but my question is where is it coming from? my parameters seem ok, my skimmer is skimming like a champ, yet every 4 or 5 days i get huge amounts of build up on my glass and sand. its green and red and very unsightly. I have to clean it with a magnet to clear it but it just keeps coming back. any idea what kind it is and how to treat it? will it go away on its own? or just worsen? i wanna do a 50% water change now out of fear its due to something in the water....someone please help!
green and red build up on glass and sand
- Thread starter Krazykarl
- Start date
- Status
xxmurrxx
Active Member
- Joined
- Nov 30, 2010
- Location
- Windsor, Ontario
phosphates?
A little over feeding of fish possibly, or quality of top off water being used?
A little over feeding of fish possibly, or quality of top off water being used?
I am currently recovering from a similar situation. Also had hair algae growing. I cut back my lighting by a few hours and now only run for 8 hours. Scrubbed the algae off the glass and stirred crushed coral substrate every day. Then did a water change daily, but the water that I was removing went through some coffee filters then returned it back to the tank via an extra power head. Also switched to bi weekly water changes.
Less then 2 weeks later, I only have a small amount on my glass daily that is removed by my glass magnet. There is none appearing on my substrate. Rocks are clear of algae as well. Still keeping the lighting time at 8 hours.
Less then 2 weeks later, I only have a small amount on my glass daily that is removed by my glass magnet. There is none appearing on my substrate. Rocks are clear of algae as well. Still keeping the lighting time at 8 hours.
my water is my own ro system although could contain trace elements maybe? my lighting is about 9 hours a day, ill cut back on hour. I keep getting green in my sand and red on the glass right above the sand line. its almost like dust but doesn't look like diatoms. It is not on my rock or coral either, only glass and sandbed...im running cheato in sump to control nit and phos and a skimmer. im going to perform another 10 gallon water change this week and see if it helps. did a 5 gal last week. im stumped as to what might be causing this. i feed once daily brine shrimp cubes and veggie flake. maybe those contain high phos? whats a good food to feed fish that doesn't contain phosphates? thanks
J
jerryvan
Guest
Hello---Very difficult to get rid of. I find a tank will seem to get better after a couple of yrs. I believe it takes that long for everything to fall into place. Time and good maintainence will fix the problem. My opinion ----Jerry
S
Salty1
Guest
I can't tell by your pictures but it sounds like you have cynobateria not algae. Perform water changes, reduce light, reduce amount of feeding and try to stay on top of it. Sounds like you have all the right equipment. Have you tested your replacement water prior to water changes? Sometimes your R.O. membrane can start failing causing phosphate to rise. Also your liverock may be a stored source of phosphates. Keep up the fight, eventually it will go away.
F
fishit
Guest
this is kinda normal if it stays to a minimum you will get the green and brown red scum on you glass i get it at certain times of the year then it goes away just clean you glass with the magnet you will be fine some times i get it when a tank is 2 new also don't worry just use ro water and don't stir your sand bed to much like torex told you this stirs all the shit in your sand bed into your water and can raise levelsÂ
Thanks for the help and suggestions guys. It's just a pain in the ass. If I don't keep up on it it turns into bright green stain on the glass and doesn't scrape off wit the magnet. Not even sure if the two are relates but I'm getting more and more every day....
Krazykarl - How old is this system?
Krazykarl link said:
Yeah the system probably just needs more time to settle in. The Red cyano is usually caused by low flow and high nutrients. It likes to grow in low oxygen areas.
Some people have had luck getting rid of it by leaving their lights off for a few days. It wont hurt any of your corals or fish. But if you have poor water quality it will most likely come back.
S
shayneh
Guest
Also look into carbon dosing or vsv. I have heard this will speed up the process and help clear the cyano. I currently dose my Biocube with the vsv formula from glassbox (or glasscages) and my water clarity has never been better and polyp extension on my sps is crazy.
- Status