Kragart
New Member
Hi all,
I have a 7 year old 90 gallon, which used to be a reef but now has basically become a fish only with live rock. I have not had much time or interest in maintaining it over the past few years. But now with quarantine, I am able to spend more time on it and I would like to get it back into shape. The main problem is that I have a bit of an algae problem I would like to get cleaned up before I start in on corals again. I tested Nitrite and it was 0, Nitrate was low, about 0.5ppm. I presume the nutrients are going into the aglae.
Current filtration:
--Carbon and GFO in a canister in the sump. Change out every other month or so, less so in the past but will switch to monthly now.
--Elos PS200 protien skimmer. I have been lazy about dialing it in well, but am keeping on top of it now. Cup gets about 10% full each day with good skimmate when I keep it tuned.
--A couple of bags of some form of rocks in the sump which water passes through. I think these were supposed to be very porus for bacteria growth, but I honestly don't remember what they are.
--Thin sandbed, small aragonite oolite.
-- 90 lbs of Reel Reef live rock. about half covered in various types of algae.
--Lighting is an old Elos aquatop LED. Many of the bulbs are burnt out. I will probably replace it with an AI Hydra, but only if I get algae under control first.
Plan:
--Getting some filter socks to add to the sump. I figure if I stir up / scrape things when I do water changes, a filter sock will help catch some of this. I plan to wash it weekly.
--Getting a new RO/DI from Airwaterice. Old system is about 5 years old, so I think it is probably not doing much now. This will hopefully help by putting 0TDS water in when I top up and do changes.
--Water changes, 10 or 15% each week. I have only been doing this monthly or every other month, so perhaps this will help.
--Getting a refresher pack of reef cleaners. Ordered from reefcleaners.org, pack of snails, hermits, a couple of emerald crabs. Hopefully this will make a dent, as I do not have many snails now.
--Pay attention to the skimmer and carbon/Gfo, cleaning and tuning them more often.
--Feed the fish a bit less. I don't think too much goes to waste, but I will cut back some. I do care about the fish though. Load is not heavy at all, only 4 fish.
Questions:
--What else can I do to get algae under control? Some of it is the red algae on the sandbed, which seems to go away every night but come back each day.
--Should I try Vodka or Vinegar dosing? I have an old dosing system around from when I used to add 2-part for SPS. I know this used to be very popular, but are people still doing it actively?
--Should I invest in an algae scrubber? Since I am buying a new light I would rather not also spend a few hundred dollars on something else for the sump, so I would like to try other options first.
Any suggestions would be appreciated. I have not been on the forums much the last few years so I am concerned I might be missing something.
Thanks!
I have a 7 year old 90 gallon, which used to be a reef but now has basically become a fish only with live rock. I have not had much time or interest in maintaining it over the past few years. But now with quarantine, I am able to spend more time on it and I would like to get it back into shape. The main problem is that I have a bit of an algae problem I would like to get cleaned up before I start in on corals again. I tested Nitrite and it was 0, Nitrate was low, about 0.5ppm. I presume the nutrients are going into the aglae.
Current filtration:
--Carbon and GFO in a canister in the sump. Change out every other month or so, less so in the past but will switch to monthly now.
--Elos PS200 protien skimmer. I have been lazy about dialing it in well, but am keeping on top of it now. Cup gets about 10% full each day with good skimmate when I keep it tuned.
--A couple of bags of some form of rocks in the sump which water passes through. I think these were supposed to be very porus for bacteria growth, but I honestly don't remember what they are.
--Thin sandbed, small aragonite oolite.
-- 90 lbs of Reel Reef live rock. about half covered in various types of algae.
--Lighting is an old Elos aquatop LED. Many of the bulbs are burnt out. I will probably replace it with an AI Hydra, but only if I get algae under control first.
Plan:
--Getting some filter socks to add to the sump. I figure if I stir up / scrape things when I do water changes, a filter sock will help catch some of this. I plan to wash it weekly.
--Getting a new RO/DI from Airwaterice. Old system is about 5 years old, so I think it is probably not doing much now. This will hopefully help by putting 0TDS water in when I top up and do changes.
--Water changes, 10 or 15% each week. I have only been doing this monthly or every other month, so perhaps this will help.
--Getting a refresher pack of reef cleaners. Ordered from reefcleaners.org, pack of snails, hermits, a couple of emerald crabs. Hopefully this will make a dent, as I do not have many snails now.
--Pay attention to the skimmer and carbon/Gfo, cleaning and tuning them more often.
--Feed the fish a bit less. I don't think too much goes to waste, but I will cut back some. I do care about the fish though. Load is not heavy at all, only 4 fish.
Questions:
--What else can I do to get algae under control? Some of it is the red algae on the sandbed, which seems to go away every night but come back each day.
--Should I try Vodka or Vinegar dosing? I have an old dosing system around from when I used to add 2-part for SPS. I know this used to be very popular, but are people still doing it actively?
--Should I invest in an algae scrubber? Since I am buying a new light I would rather not also spend a few hundred dollars on something else for the sump, so I would like to try other options first.
Any suggestions would be appreciated. I have not been on the forums much the last few years so I am concerned I might be missing something.
Thanks!
