How to get rid of algae: what is your goal for managing algae?

[Peace River]

How to get rid of algae: what is your goal for managing algae?

Nuisance algae needs to go! It needs to be eradicated, right? Or does it? Certainly, the goal for some reef keepers is to get rid of all nuisance algae, while others deal with it as it shows up and try to make sure that it doesn’t get out of control. Still others focus more on establishing balance because quickly removing one type of algae can create an opening for another type of algae to fill the new gap in the ecosystem. Whether you use snails, urchins, tangs, chemicals, or some other way to combat nuisance algae, what is your goal for managing algae? Are you a hunt-it-down-and-kill-it type or do you take another approach? Please let us know in the following thread.

Photo by @WWC


This QOTD is sponsored by: www.worldwidecorals.com

“We differentiate ourselves from other vendors by offering our customers full transparency into our facility and practices. Setting the industry standard for shipping techniques, accurate high-quality photos, hard to find corals, and customer service. For some hobbyists buying live coral online can seem like a risky endeavor. At WWC our staff takes the worry out of the equation by culturing extremely healthy corals, giving you a hassle-free guarantee, and providing you with a full online customer service team to ensure you are completely satisfied with your purchase.”

 

[Sleeping Giant]

I need to do some algae management

 

[Reefer Matt]

Letting some algae stay in the display tanks is fine for me, depending on the species. But I do actively try to eradicate it from my frag tanks so others don't have to deal with it.

 

[SPS2020]

I remove as much as possible either manually or by CUC (thank you Tuxedo Urchins). So, while it is present it isn't really visible...except on the glass every other day.

 

[Miami Reef]

My goal is management. I know I will have pests in my tank (bubble algae, aiptasia). I control what I can with herbivores. I accept what I cannot control. Vermitids don‘t bother me at all. I will not bother trying to eliminate them.

I sometimes use algae to prevent other algaes. For example, I dose silicate to grow diatoms to prevent cyano and dinos.

 

[Court_Appointed_Hypeman]

I let that stuff overrun my tank, and only pluck it out when easily removed. I am too fascinated with the microfauna to destroy their habitat, but they do a good enough job of that on their own. My hair and turf algae covered almost every surface, now there isn't much left letting the pods do their thing.

 

[Doctorgori]

I watch algae more than fret over nitrate/phosphate numbers (to a point) …
I try to manage and observe whats going on with the glass and adjust/adapt from there. (This is assuming mature tank with establish CUC)
-Every tank has at least 1 urchin 1 blennie and a assortment of snails (combo of Nerite, Turbo and trochus) … plus tangs if big enough

I will watch for and manage coraline algae and whatever that “hard green” stuff is (again, whatever it is) and if both types are thriving and appearing on the glass daily, then I call it a win.. If I’m dealing with a coating of brown diatoms or worse; that stringy green stuff, then I look for causes and take action

 

[Court_Appointed_Hypeman]

My goal is management. I know I will have pests in my tank (bubble algae, aiptasia). I control what I can with herbivores. I accept what I cannot control. Vermitids don‘t bother me at all. I will not bother trying to eliminate them.

I sometimes use algae to prevent other algaes. For example, I dose silicate to grow diatoms to prevent cyano and dinos.

I had a huge explosion of vermetids, and somehow they along eith their tubes disappear, I see none now and I never touched them. I think my feather dusters took too much of their food.

 

[Treefer32]

When I first started my 340 I had an outbreak of Briopsys in a few areas. I wasn't testing phosphates or nitrates at the time and even if I did it wouldn't have mattered, it kept coming back as I plucked it. I eventually did Reefflux treatments in the display, it whithered away and never came back!

For me the algae on whether it stays or not is what type is it? I've had no outbreaks of hair, bubble, or filamentous algae since the Briopsys in 5 years. I've had phosphates as high as .66 ppm (confirmed with ICP and Hanna ULR). I've had nitrates as high as 65 ppm (Hanna High range Nitrate tester).

Algae never broke out in the display. An algae turf scrubber is one of the first things I put on the tank and don't regret it at all. All Hair algae grows on the scrubber and not in the display.

The algae I'm tired of is film algae that grows on the glass. It starts growing in within hours of scraping no matter where my phosphates are. I've had phosphates down to .03 and Nitrates down to under 10. And film algae grow within almost minutes of scraping it on the glass.

I get all 4 sides nice and clean and the reef mat pulls the gunk out of the water column and 3 hours later I've got new green spots growing in. I've come to letting it grow in for 3-4 weeks. What's strange is it grows a nice solid green covering all 4 glass panels solidly. My fish love the stuff, pecking at it constantly, as do my snails. But then in about 2 weeks time, the film algae turns from a nice lime green color to a yellow and then solid brown. I don't know if it exhausts it's food supply and dies on the glass and turns brown. Or it just has a short life cycle. But. it gets really ugly if left on the glass.

 

[paragrouper]

I have five types of algae currently identified in my tank:

1. Chaeto in refugium. I pull a baseball sized chunk out weekly.

2. Coralline: spreading across the back, sides and rock work. I clean off front and side glass. Otherwise, I leave it alone.

3. Halimeda: a single bunch I planted when I first started the tank. It’s a slow grower, so mostly just observe. I’ll prune it if it gets too big.

4. Bubble: generally isolated to a couple of rocks on the left side of tank in small patches. I scrape/siphon what I find weekly. Recently added a few emerald crabs to work on the hard-to-get-to places.

5. GHA: limited to a few small patches on right side of tank. I pull what I can and my CUC eats it, as long as I keep it short.

that’s my management plan.

 

[i cant think]

How to get rid of algae: what is your goal for managing algae?

Nuisance algae needs to go! It needs to be eradicated, right? Or does it? Certainly, the goal for some reef keepers is to get rid of all nuisance algae, while others deal with it as it shows up and try to make sure that it doesn’t get out of control. Still others focus more on establishing balance because quickly removing one type of algae can create an opening for another type of algae to fill the new gap in the ecosystem. Whether you use snails, urchins, tangs, chemicals, or some other way to combat nuisance algae, what is your goal for managing algae? Are you a hunt-it-down-and-kill-it type or do you take another approach? Please let us know in the following thread.

Photo by @WWC


This QOTD is sponsored by: www.worldwidecorals.com

“We differentiate ourselves from other vendors by offering our customers full transparency into our facility and practices. Setting the industry standard for shipping techniques, accurate high-quality photos, hard to find corals, and customer service. For some hobbyists buying live coral online can seem like a risky endeavor. At WWC our staff takes the worry out of the equation by culturing extremely healthy corals, giving you a hassle-free guarantee, and providing you with a full online customer service team to ensure you are completely satisfied with your purchase.”

I let algae grow in my tanks with fish that eat it. I just think of it as an extra way to keep the fish fat and healthy.

 

[Doctorgori]

When I first started my 340 I had an outbreak of Briopsys in a few areas. I wasn't testing phosphates or nitrates at the time and even if I did it wouldn't have mattered, it kept coming back as I plucked it. I eventually did Reefflux treatments in the display, it whithered away and never came back!

For me the algae on whether it stays or not is what type is it? I've had no outbreaks of hair, bubble, or filamentous algae since the Briopsys in 5 years. I've had phosphates as high as .66 ppm (confirmed with ICP and Hanna ULR). I've had nitrates as high as 65 ppm (Hanna High range Nitrate tester).

Algae never broke out in the display. An algae turf scrubber is one of the first things I put on the tank and don't regret it at all. All Hair algae grows on the scrubber and not in the display.

The algae I'm tired of is film algae that grows on the glass. It starts growing in within hours of scraping no matter where my phosphates are. I've had phosphates down to .03 and Nitrates down to under 10. And film algae grow within almost minutes of scraping it on the glass.

I get all 4 sides nice and clean and the reef mat pulls the gunk out of the water column and 3 hours later I've got new green spots growing in. I've come to letting it grow in for 3-4 weeks. What's strange is it grows a nice solid green covering all 4 glass panels solidly. My fish love the stuff, pecking at it constantly, as do my snails. But then in about 2 weeks time, the film algae turns from a nice lime green color to a yellow and then solid brown. I don't know if it exhausts it's food supply and dies on the glass and turns brown. Or it just has a short life cycle. But. it gets really ugly if left on the glass.

I know what you are talking about… I don’t have a answer per se but I do have one tank in four with this issue and oddly enough its the one with the tightest readings (10 Nitrate, Phosphate .02)….
also noteworthy it has slow/no coralline growth on the glass AND the only coralline is the light purple type and only on the rocks, I see no pink anywhere … a few bubble algae. …

 

[Gumbies R Us]

I need to do some algae management

I probably should do some myself as well

 

[PhishMonger84]

I have a CUC and wipe down the front and one side panel every other day. i let algae grow on any non viewing surface, looks less sterile and more natural IMO

 

[Treefer32]

I know what you are talking about… I don’t have a answer per se but I do have one tank in four with this issue and oddly enough its the one with the tightest readings (10 Nitrate, Phosphate .02)….
also noteworthy it has slow/no coralline growth on the glass AND the only coralline is the light purple type and only on the rocks, I see no pink anywhere … a few bubble algae. …

Wow! This is interesting! Coraline has been excruciatingly slow growing for me as well. None at all on the glass. Some on the bulkheads of my returns and overflows. It's white, light pinkish. my rocks are covered in mostly white / pinkish coraline as well. Glass won't grow any coralline. It's been 5 years and there's no coraline to remove on my glass at all. heh. My back panel is painted black, I believe that inhibits coraline growth on the back glass. The sides may get scraped enough that it won't grow I don't know. I do have a spot at the surface, it's in the front corner. Nearly impossible to see, (which is probably why I missed it) that is a thick 1-2 inch patch of deep purple coraline. Parts of it are out of the water but the gyres splash it enough that it stays alive.

But yeah, sounds identical.

My calcium is always around 500 and alk stable at 8-9 most days. Magnesium I test once a year and it's always in the 1500 range (I dose intermittently not based on test results.).

 

[randomfishdude]

I'm trying to get algae right now.
But once it starts getting bigger. The 4 inch sailfin and the 4inch foxface would be delited to eat it. Along with the turbosnails and hermit crab.

 

[Badboy GP]

Tangs...

 

[zheka757]

I want algae in my tank, my tangs are happy for algae.

 

[fodsod]

I'm literally in the middle of a battle with GHA. It's not really bad yet but it will be if I don't address it now. I've got a lot of Coralline on the rear glass and rocks and I'm good with that. The GHA is starting to show up on in random locations. I'm physically removing it and pulled some rocks out to dip in peroxide but it keeps showing up in other places. I've yet to spot treat in tank with peroxide but I may not have a choice.

It's very frustrating because I test and my Phos is .03ish and Nit is 10 or below but I have algae growing so it's giving me false readings on my nutrient values. I've been feeding the same amounts for years and slowly been trying to stabilize my values for "optimal" conditions for a mixed reef (does this exist? lol) and as always in this hobby, curveball inbound.

I don't want to dose anything that will hurt any of my corals so I'm avoiding that at the moment. I've got 3 fish that eat algae and added a bunch of new snails (3 different kinds).

 

[Seansea]

Dont like nuisance algae in my display. Corals get irritated by it. I have ats and it does mostly a good job of keeping from display but get cyano and dinos from time to time. Blow it off rocks and use fish net to scoop it out.
Some bubble algae but overall not a real problem.

Vermitid snails are my bane. They irritate the heck out of my corals with those webs. Especially my euphelia. I eliminate them on site but have a couple in a hard to reach spot that are annoying my zoas.