Sea Hare For Hair Algae?

nathan

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Mar 27, 2016
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sarnia
Hi everyone . Does anyone have any experience using a sea hare for hair algae control. Please let me know your experience with this.
 

Joshbrookkate

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Apr 9, 2015
Location
Windsor
I had one for about a month. He did nothing for the hair algae, preferring the algae film on the glass. He slowly got thinner and thinner, despite lots of hair algae. Then one day I couldn't find him. I assume he died. That was in my first year of reefing. And even though he was so ugly he was cute, I resolved to not get another.
I have read that many others have had the same experience. OTOH, there are many who had a sea hare rid them of their hair algae. Just my experience.
Good luck.
 

nathan

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Mar 27, 2016
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sarnia
Ok thanks good to know and will keep that in mind.... thankyou
 

heath

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Oct 2, 2012
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Woodstock, Ontario
if you have hair algae there are a lot of options to get rid of it.. I had it super bad and I used the vodka treatment, worked like a charm and it doesn't harm anything in the tank.. super easy to do as well...
 

prism127

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Sep 21, 2013
Location
Chatham, Ontario
I had really bad hair algae my tank was covered about 1-1.2 inches long on most of it. I bought a one spot foxface and after about 2-3 weeks he had it well under control. He is one of my favorite fish.
 

nathan

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Mar 27, 2016
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sarnia
I have a 46 gallon tank .... don't think that would be fair to a fox face.
 

Salty Cracker

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Mar 10, 2012
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Rocky Mountains BC
GFO. Period. For long term absence of hair algae, slime, etc. GFO, changes monthly in a reactor will keep your phosphates down, otherwise you are almost sure to have a crash sooner or later.

Bulk ferric Oxide, no quick fix, just slow and steady. Hair algae will be a thing of the past.
 

reef keeper

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Nov 19, 2014
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Hamilton, Ontario
A warning about gfo: I put 1/4 of the recommended dose in a reactor, and Ho estly, within a week, my sps started to lighten up and I didn't have to Clean my glass for 2 weeks. I had to take it off, because my chaeto stopped growing, and started to look like it was starving. I'll use gfo with my new rocks if the P04 is high. Otherwise, I'll just plop some chaeto or macro in the fuge again
 

heath

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Oct 2, 2012
Location
Woodstock, Ontario
if you have hair algae there are a lot of options to get rid of it.. I had it super bad and I used the vodka treatment, worked like a charm and it doesn't harm anything in the tank.. super easy to do as well...
 

SamB

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Aug 9, 2015
Location
GTA
Some thoughts on how to get rid of it - or at least make a dent in it !
1. Pull it out
2. Water changes (to reduce Nitrate levels)
3. Decreased light
4. Add a phosphate sponge
5. Add Trocus snails, Mithrax Crabs, and a Yellow Tang
6. Add Macro Algae (sump)
7. Get a jeweled blenny (aka lawnmower blenny) or better yet get a black blenny (solid black and hard to get for some reason) The blenny is a good fish to have, lots of personality and is reef safe. It also cleans the glass and eats flake food.
 

jeffopentax

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Nov 11, 2013
Location
Brantford, Ontario
If the gha is out of hand, a large sea hare will take care of it in a hurry. Their lifespan, if i recall correctly, is only about a year. Buy a large one to get rid of the gha, then figure out what's causing it. They are cool to have in the tank. There is a notion out there that a dead sea hare will nuke your tank. I had a very large one die (presumably old age), and it had no ill effects on my tank.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

nathan

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Mar 27, 2016
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sarnia
Just a little update... I bought a sea hair from sea life central. ... it's doing an amazing job. .. I bought it on sunday and last night finally found the angle hair... this morning half of its gone.... now I talk ed the lady at sea life.... sea hairs need a supplement in order to survive. The algae in our tanks do not have enough nutrients. I have purchased that aswell. So for now it's doing a great job
 

nathan

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Mar 27, 2016
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sarnia
The problem was my lack of knowledge when i first bought my live rock from big als.... I relied on our sales guy for the best advice as I was brand new to hobby. One of my big pcs of live rock had hair algae all over it.... it's been a problem since.... now six months in I'm learning a whole lot more very quickly. And thanks to my new little friend in a couple days shoukd be all gone
 
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