Green hair algae And Cyanobacteria

vax1

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Hey there!

I’ve been dealing with green hair algae and Cyanobacteria for over four months now. I was thinking of removing as much green hair algae as I can by hand and then doing a three-day blackout. Do you think that’s a good idea? Will it hurt any of my corals or fish?

If you have any other suggestions, I’d love to hear them! IMG_6374.jpeg IMG_6375.jpeg IMG_6376.jpeg
 

LittleRhodyReefs

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There could be a few reasons you are getting hair algae. Do you know what your parameters are? does the tank get any sun light hitting it though the window? I do not think that a black out for three days would effect the GHA enough to rid it off the rocks.

The best method of removal is going to be manual removal by pulling it out by hand or removing the rock and brushing it off outside the tank. If you have your nitrate and phosphate numbers that would help some too.
 
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vax1

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The tank doesn’t have direct sunlight, and it’s 2.5 years old.

Phosphate: 0.15
Nitrate: 10.7
 

LittleRhodyReefs

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The hair algae is going to give you a lower reading as it is trapping nutrients. I would imagine that your No3/Po4 is higher than it is. I would remove as much as you can manually and then work on getting your phosphate down using some type of phosphate reducer. getting your Po4 under control will take the fuel away that the GHA needs to grow.

you really are looking to outcompete the GHA with the other beneficial bacteria and other organisms that will coat your rock. it will take some time to get it under control, don't go crazy trying to lower it quick. Remove manually as much as possible before adding your Po4 remover and you should start seeing some results. Rinse and repeat until your Po4 is around 0.05 constantly you should start to see the GHA subside.
 

Mr. Mojo Rising

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I've never heard of a blackout being successful, if the underlying issue is not solved, it always comes back

How is the water movement in the tank? Algae loves low flow, and the water surface looks flat.

How many fish do you have? How much do you feed them What type of filtration is on your system? Hair algae is the result of nutrient rich water, so how is the import vs export?

I see a few snails, but snails should increase as the algae increases. Turbo snails are the best for hair algae IMO
 
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I've never heard of a blackout being successful, if the underlying issue is not solved, it always comes back

How is the water movement in the tank? Algae loves low flow, and the water surface looks flat.

How many fish do you have? How much do you feed them What type of filtration is on your system? Hair algae is the result of nutrient rich water, so how is the import vs export?

I see a few snails, but snails should increase as the algae increases. Turbo snails are the best for hair algae IMO
I have good flow the pumps were juste off when I took the picture

2 clownfish
1 Banggai Cardinalfish
1 lawn mower

For filtration I have filter floss

I feed 2-3 block a day

I’m doing a 5 gallon water change each week IMG_6378.jpeg
 

Mr. Mojo Rising

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You are way overfeeding.... I have 3 tanks and 20 fish total, I feed one cube total divided between 20 fish. If you feed a whole cube each time, most of the food ends up rotting at the bottom of the tank, this creates high level of organics in the water and fuels algae growth.

I would feed only half a cube per day for your 4 fish, divided into 2 or 3 feeding. Thaw a half cube and keep it in the fridge and give a little bit of food each time throughout the day until its gone
 
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You are way overfeeding.... I have 3 tanks and 20 fish total, I feed one cube total divided between 20 fish. If you feed a whole cube each time, most of the food ends up rotting at the bottom of the tank, this creates high level of organics in the water and fuels algae growth.

I would feed only half a cube per day for your 4 fish, divided into 2 or 3 feeding. Thaw a half cube and keep it in the fridge and give a little bit of food each time throughout the day until its gone
Perfect I will change that right away thank you very much
 

LittleRhodyReefs

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If what is next to the quarter is "one block" I would try going with half of one. All the food should be gone in under a minute. if its still floating around after that its a good sign that its a little to much. it will just get trapped and break down.

Good Luck!
 
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If what is next to the quarter is "one block" I would try going with half of one. All the food should be gone in under a minute. if its still floating around after that its a good sign that its a little to much. it will just get trapped and break down.

Good Luck!
It’s 1/2 a block
Thanks
 

exnisstech

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The hair algae is going to give you a lower reading as it is trapping nutrients. I would imagine that your No3/Po4 is higher than it is. I would remove as much as you can manually and then work on getting your phosphate down using some type of phosphate reducer. getting your Po4 under control will take the fuel away that the GHA needs to grow.

you really are looking to outcompete the GHA with the other beneficial bacteria and other organisms that will coat your rock. it will take some time to get it under control, don't go crazy trying to lower it quick. Remove manually as much as possible before adding your Po4 remover and you should start seeing some results. Rinse and repeat until your Po4 is around 0.05 constantly you should start to see the GHA subside.

I'm having doubts that higher levels of PO4 are the main driver of gha. I have 3 tanks with one that has been a mess for a year and a half due to gha. PO4 has been consistently low often 0 then I dose so they are at least detectable. This is a week after vacuuming it off the back wall. I don't even waste my time pulling the rocks and scraping them any more.
PXL_20250107_214201098.jpg


One of my other tanks runs P04 at 0.45-0.25 and I have zero gha.
I wish I new what the main driver is of the GHA in my system but it isn't high PO4 which is the first thing that people say is the main cause.

The tank with high PO4
PXL_20240907_233051740.jpg
 

LittleRhodyReefs

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I'm having doubts that higher levels of PO4 are the main driver of gha. I have 3 tanks with one that has been a mess for a year and a half due to gha. PO4 has been consistently low often 0 then I dose so they are at least detectable. This is a week after vacuuming it off the back wall. I don't even waste my time pulling the rocks and scraping them any more.
PXL_20250107_214201098.jpg


One of my other tanks runs P04 at 0.45-0.25 and I have zero gha.
I wish I new what the main driver is of the GHA in my system but it isn't high PO4 which is the first thing that people say is the main cause.

The tank with high PO4
PXL_20240907_233051740.jpg
Every tank is different and there are a lot of things at play. we are trying to recreate the largest ecosystem in a small box. If you have undetectable levels of Po4 and the ants has any GHA there is for sure Po4 I the system; it needs it to grow along with light.

the lights we use are made to mimic the spectrum of light that the sun puts out, which grows things. We are not only growing coral but algae and bacteria. Your other tanks with no GHA have other organisms outcompeting it for the space.

as for adding Po4 into the tank with GHA you are only feeding it. I wouldn't add it if you have a GHA issue imo. I would remove as much as possible and start with a Po4 remover and really try and dial in P04 as well as dosing MB7 or some other type of beneficial bacteria like MB clean.

There are other additives that you could use but I feel like they are last ditch efforts for me astray always cause a rebound effect in another way or another.
 

exnisstech

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Every tank is different and there are a lot of things at play. we are trying to recreate the largest ecosystem in a small box. If you have undetectable levels of Po4 and the ants has any GHA there is for sure Po4 I the system; it needs it to grow along with light.

the lights we use are made to mimic the spectrum of light that the sun puts out, which grows things. We are not only growing coral but algae and bacteria. Your other tanks with no GHA have other organisms outcompeting it for the space.

as for adding Po4 into the tank with GHA you are only feeding it. I wouldn't add it if you have a GHA issue imo. I would remove as much as possible and start with a Po4 remover and really try and dial in P04 as well as dosing MB7 or some other type of beneficial bacteria like MB clean.

There are other additives that you could use but I feel like they are last ditch efforts for me astray always cause a rebound effect in another way or another.
Been down the bacteria route. I actually used MB7 daily for almost a year. When I started my acro tank I dosed it daily along with bi weekly doses of zeobac. I started dosing the problem tank at the same time with both. I also have added old live rock, some ocean rock harvested 9 years ago from when I first started the hobby. Been down the Flux rx route as well at one point. It worked OK but then cyano came and it just continued. Like I said I really have no idea what is causing the issue in this particular tank but I feel like it isn't related to high PO4 levels. I've not dosed in a few months and PO4 levels have been 0.01-0.03 and the gha is still thriving.
I'm getting ready to tear that tank down and move everything out. For curiosity sakes after I remove the coral and fish I'll keep it running and leave the rock in and strip the PO4 using gfo and see if the gha dies off. I'm not a science guy but it may be a fun experiment if nothing else.
 

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