A recipe for success: How do you manage algae in your tank?

[ナイトコア猫]

Algae is always present in a reef tank. Whether you have Diatoms, Red Algae, Green Hair Algae, or something else. ....

I don't have any "algae". Really. You can tell by looking at the pictures I posted on profile.

 

[Max93]

Tangs.

Other than that, I don’t really care about algae, only have bubble algae and coral eventually grows over it I don’t mess with it.

 

[Subsea]

Anyones methods may not work in anyone else's tank. Some people feed dry foods and some fresh clams, some use NSW (as I do) and some use fake sea water. Some have 3-2" fish in a 300 gallon tank and some have 18 groupers fish in a nano. There are just to many variables not to mention (as this thread shows) That some people feel algae is a harbinger of doom. It is not.

Algae grows on every healthy reef in the sea and if you SCUBA dive you will see that.

Remote Island in the South Pacific



When the herbivores disappear from the reef for whatever cause, algae takes over.
Normally there are millions of surgeonfish cruising over a reef which cut the algae very short, then urchins, snails, chitens etc, eat the rest.

Most of the oceans contain no fish as it is to dark and deep. We see a lot of fish because we only can see relatively shallow water but the ocean is 7 miles deep in some places.

Hawaii, rocks covered in urchins so no algae.



Urchins and a CUC won't work well in a home tank because they are not eliminating the algae, just recycling the nutrients back in the water so it grows again. A means to eliminate the nutrients like an algae scrubber is key.

So we want algae but we also want to limit it so it doesn't cover the corals. If a tank has absolutely no algae, it isn't a healthy reef. There is algae in the tissues of the corals which is needed by the corals to live.

I have quite a bit of algae in my tank which I view as a sign or health and which allows me to keep and spawn many types of fish because in that algae is the beginning of the food chain and is loaded with pods and all sorts of tiny worms and creatures which is the reason I can keep many dragonettes, pipefish and other small fish for their normal lifespan and have them spawn and never buy pods.

@Paul B
kudos to your post!

“Urchins and a CUC won't work well in a home tank because they are not eliminating the algae, just recycling the nutrients back in the water so it grows again. A means to eliminate the nutrients like an algae scrubber is key.“

Let’s park here and separate nutrient export from nutrient recycling.

In our mature tanks, the coral grows and absorbs nutrients. All CUC members absorb nutrients and produce detritus. ATS exports nutrients.

I like growing both ornamental/utilitarian seaweeds in my display tanks, as well as growout tanks.

 

[Subsea]

This was meant to be included in above post.

"Mulm" in a reef tank

I think one of the most important, and least understood or mentioned things in a reef tank is "mulm". That stuff that grows in the dark portions of a tank if it is set up long enough. "Mulm" is a combination of algae, sponges, bacteria, pods, worms, detritus, poop and any thing else that can be p...

wamas.org

 

[Freenow54]

After experiencing hair algae years ago ( luckily in an uninhabited tank I I eradicated it by removing the rocks one by one, and scrubbing them clean. After about 7 months it disappeared and never came back. Mind you I was new to the salt water experience lol. Also no clue about forums so I was on my own. I just drew from my own, and others experience's. I realized that the water conditions had to be a reason. I started using phosphate removing media. At one point I did find this forum. A lot of people said water changes were the key. While that must have helped it did not change what was in the substrate ( I have talked about this before it was a tank from someone else, and was a mess when I got it) I understood that the person before was a doser. I did not know what else they did so I could not reexamine anything I did ( this has helped in the past. ). I even tried vodka but it was too scary for me. Just carefully stirred the substrate a little at a time used phosphate remover ( just media) and Bio Guard cubes for Nitrates. Scrubbing rocks as stated, and patience.
For my new tank which I started from new ( a 90 gallon ) Just careful about what I do. maybe to a fault. I noticed algae build up on the glass, and in the substrate. A fine sand ( live ) was recommended to me ( big mistake ) I could not clean it without sucking it into my pump. So I just started removing it, and throwing it out. I have course sand sitting on standby, but I am unsure weather to put it in or not. I don't see the value. If anyone thinks otherwise I would like to hear from you. Anyway the algae also grows on the glass which I manually scrub off sometimes catching it in a net, I just keep doing that. I did get bristle worms that keep the rock clean. Just about migrated over all the rock. That said I am going to add coral soon, and am concerned about them eating the coral Any Thoughts?