Hair algae

[cartery]

Hello, I'm having a break out of some kind of green hair algae or turf algae. See the attached pics, including of my Tomini decidedly not eating it.

It's a 75 gallon DT and 40 gallon sump.

Parameters:
Nitrate 4.1
Phosphate .23
Alk 9.6
Calc 395
Mag 1230
Salinity 1.025

My Lfs said the issue is probably low nitrates. Nitrates actually seemed to go to zero at one point.

I feed heavily both pellets and frozen since I'm trying to keep nitrates up. That's probably why Phosphate is where it is.

I have 8 fish, including the Tomini and two court jester gobies that should be a little interestee in algae. I have an unknown amount of hermits, one turbo, probably 5 astrea, and an urchin.

I run GFO and Carbon in two separate mini reactors. My entire sump is a refugium with a good amount of chaeto and rock, but I only do 4 hrs of light per night for the sake of the nitrates.

Any advice would be very appreciated! This stuff is bumming me out. Thanks in advance!

 

[Matt L]

I’d bump up the snail and crab count, maybe another urchin or two. Could also be a type of byropsis.

 

[cartery]

I’d bump up the snail and crab count, maybe another urchin or two. Could also be a type of byropsis.

Will do! I read cerith snails could be good? Any particular crabs? Pithos?

 

[Matt L]

Will do! I read cerith snails could be good? Any particular crabs? Pithos?

As far as species, I’d just look into which are better for hair algae and compatible with your livestock. My personal preference is a lot of astrea snails (1 per gallon), and about 5 urchins. I like snails and pincushion urchins over crabs because they clean the rock and the glass.