Algea with 0 nutrients

[Griff]

I'm not understanding why I have some hair algea and cyano when my nitrates are 0-.25 and PO4 is 0. Red Sea nitrate test kit and Hanna low range PO4 checker. I'm frustrated because I'd like to bring them up some but if I'm getting algea at 0 not so sure I should be feeding so heavy. Currently feed one cube Brine shrimp on weekdays two on weekends. Small sheet of algea for tangs every few days. Pinch of coral frenzy daily. Few squirts of oyster feast every other day. Currently 55 Sps frags 11 euphyllia frags/heads. 6-10 small mushrooms. One small green toadstool. 1 hippo tang, 1 yellow tang. 1 six line wrasse, two clowns.

Alk 8.4
Calc 400
Mag 1300
Salinity 1.024-1.025

The hair algea is growing under a couple of the rocks where no direct light hits. The cyano is just a pink dusting about 8inches by 4 inches in one spot and 3x5 in another spot.

I run skimmer only at night with fuge light at same time. Skimmer is rated for 150 gal heavy load
Tank is reefer 525xl
Carbon hasn't been changed in a month but I'm hesitant to change it days before I go out of town.
Not running any kind of gfo as I'm using a fuge.

Just did 25 gallon water change 2 nights ago problem still progressing but at a very slow pace.

Tank has only been running a 4-5 months.
Suggestions please.

 

[nicholas.babb@gmail]

Check your RODI water with a TDS meter.

 

[Griff]

Check your RODI water with a TDS meter.

I'm running a tds meter on my RODI unit and a DI resin. I did just change my DI so hopefully that will help. I'm measuring 2 ppm on the outflow before it gets to the DI resin.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Tank has only been running a 4-5 months.
Suggestions please.

ugly phase. Bio filter is not up to speed, be patient.

Honestly for most who haven't experienced it. A two year old tank is much different than a six month old tank.

80 corals and 6 fish in a four month old tank.

scrub with a tooth brush and siphon out, and clean the corals before they go in the tank to avoid nasty algaes.

 

[dc4]

The algae could be soaking up the nutrients, which could be why you are getting a negative reading with test kits. Also, with new tanks, it will usually go through ugly stages within the first year.

 

[Griff]

I have a biopellet reactor I could add. Reef octopus bio churn. Should I add?

 

[cromag27]

Test your rodi product water with a high quality hand held meter. You could be over feeding g. that's not a lot of fish. Is it necessary to feed two cubes on the weekends?

 

[Griff]

Test your rodi product water with a high quality hand held meter. You could be over feeding g. that's not a lot of fish. Is it necessary to feed two cubes on the weekends?

They eat the entire cube at each feeding. On weekends they get one in the morning and one at night. I never seem to get up early enough on days I have to work to feed in the morning. i could switch to half morning and half at night. My concern then would be my nassarus snails would never get any food.

I've been feeding the coral frenzy and oyster feast so often because levels are reading 0. I don't want my corals to starve with no nutrients in the tank.

 

[dankreef]

Experiencing the same issues. This is what I'm planning. I'm stopping oyster my belief is that there is some silicates or something in it . I am adding more fish. I believe with the right amount of fish oyster reef chili ect isn't needed. I also think I od my aminos a little bit. I'm at 1 no3 and 0 po4 and having same issue. I'm hoping with more fish and less random stuff going in will fix. Tanks same age. Fish poop is all you really need I think . My stuff never looked better when I was just doing That.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

I think no matter what you do your going to wind up scrubbing. Keep in mind I have my own algae probs I'm scrubbing too.
Or you'll wind up using peroxide and then scrubbing.
I wouldn't do anything major before I left jus cuz.
The algaes are remember a. Refugium so they're pullingbfood out of the water as fast as GFO.
So just keep the fish fed they will poop and feed the corals. And then you'll scrub algae. No mater what the numbers are telling you.

 

[brandon429]

Griff

the reason you get algae with no nutrients isn't because the sparse algae you have is removing it over and over without being exported, just ask any ATS or refugium seller.

algae grows just fine in low nutrient environments says our giant tank correction threads where ULNS people were getting invaded by caulerpa.

Do ATS sellers run a few tufts of brown algae, some cyano, and call it a day or is it continual export driving the low numbers? harvesters they are. foresters.

You have no detectable nutrients, or you have test errors, and you have algae still it happens in the ocean all the time. posters want to see a few patches of stable gha and slime as ultimate nutrient sequesters and they are not, you can have sparse algae because you have low nutrients, it'd be worse growth if you had high ones.

if you were harvesting handfuls of algae out of the tank daily, then low nutrients via fixation would add up.

Since algae will come about with no detectable nutrients in the pristine real reef waters, scientists box off areas of the reef from grazers...urchins, fish etc, and algae grows in the boxes as proof, goog it

now that doesn't mean a stasis change in a tank cant kill off a community of adapted organisms, it can. just gfo some set-in green hair algae and mostly it'll go white


but for long term balance, algae adapt to lesser and lesser conditions without grazers, that's how nature made them. The sole intention of writing that is that aquarists who want to be algae free have to hand-work the tank sometimes to be that way. others wont, they'll get lucky with GFO or grazers and seem to never have an algae challenge.

even lighting issues can cause probs alone...todays blasting white LEDs keep us busy fixing tanks

*low nitrate and phosphate and low nutrient sinks we agree are important for algae control or you'll be hand working so much it wont be fun. just don't use them as the final say, we either farm algae or we don't on purpose, some work harder than others, all can have the exact same clean tank outcome.

 

[Griff]

I've pulled all my rock and scrubbed with h202 because it started to get bad. Things were great for a couple of weeks now it's back. Not as bad as before but if I wait another week it probably would be. I've tested nutrients as well and everything is at 0.

I'm also running a phosban 150 with half carbon half phosguard. Still getting algae.

I guess I'm going to scrub again but I don't want to be scrubbing rock every 2 weeks.

I have 2 tangs and an orange spot blennie with about 30-50 snails. Thinking of adding 15 ceriths, 15 asteas and 15 nerite snails.

 

[lion king]

Tell us about your lighting; if leds what's your settings, other lighting how old are the bulbs.

 

[brandon429]

Griff

Check that kicked up thread, rasping vs scrubbing

 

[Griff]

3 hydra 26hd's

I understand rasping vs scrubbing. I was hoping the battery powered grout scrubber would be strong enough. Maybe not. I have 3 kids 4 and under and my wife and I both work. Time is limited. Any suggestions on what to use to rasp vs scrub quickly but effectively.

 

[brandon429]

I literally take a steak knife and stab it while pulling back. leaving gouge marks in the wake

plus, my cleanup chem is 35% peroxide which alone would have done the job

that dangerous stuff is avail in healthfood stores

 

[Ocean Lotion]

I'm not understanding why I have some hair algea and cyano when my nitrates are 0-.25 and PO4 is 0. Red Sea nitrate test kit and Hanna low range PO4 checker. I'm frustrated because I'd like to bring them up some but if I'm getting algea at 0 not so sure I should be feeding so heavy. Currently feed one cube Brine shrimp on weekdays two on weekends. Small sheet of algea for tangs every few days. Pinch of coral frenzy daily. Few squirts of oyster feast every other day. Currently 55 Sps frags 11 euphyllia frags/heads. 6-10 small mushrooms. One small green toadstool. 1 hippo tang, 1 yellow tang. 1 six line wrasse, two clowns.

Alk 8.4
Calc 400
Mag 1300
Salinity 1.024-1.025

The hair algea is growing under a couple of the rocks where no direct light hits. The cyano is just a pink dusting about 8inches by 4 inches in one spot and 3x5 in another spot.

I run skimmer only at night with fuge light at same time. Skimmer is rated for 150 gal heavy load
Tank is reefer 525xl
Carbon hasn't been changed in a month but I'm hesitant to change it days before I go out of town.
Not running any kind of gfo as I'm using a fuge.

Just did 25 gallon water change 2 nights ago problem still progressing but at a very slow pace.

Tank has only been running a 4-5 months.
Suggestions please.

In my mind that is a lot of food. I would be eager to change my carbon if I am leaving for a few days for added help with pollutants while I am gone.

 

[Griff]

That vacation was in Sept oct. I'm just still dealing with it

 

[Ocean Lotion]

That vacation was in Sept oct. I'm just still dealing with it

I know your pain. I am going to order some Vibrant for reef aquariums. I hope.it will knock out my hair algae.

 

[Griff]

It's enough to make me want out of the hobby. It's been strangling my corals.