Is this GHA?

[purple_jeep]

Hi Friends!

So I am having a bit of trouble with the ugglies in my 120G mixed reef tank. I had an outbreak of what looked like GHA which I manually removed most of and it seemed to get better until I went away for 4 days and had an Auto Feeder setup. Getting back the tank didn't look too good but instead of green hair Algae it looks more pale colored and also does not pull off the rock work in the same way. A tooth brush did a number on the original GHA but doesn't seem to want to touch this stuff...

I figured too many nutrients assuming my auto feeder was set too high so I did a 20% water change and removed as much as I could by hand, changed filter socks before and after to make sure I got all the loose stuff. Cleaned my skimmer. Check parameters last night and I am at 0.00 Phosphate, 0.0 Nitrate, 1.024 salinity 8.5 PH (dkh is reading 5.5 but I think I need new Reagents) all tests using Hanna Digital Testers.

I am wondering if I actually have the opposite problem and I have too low a nutrients, maybe I need to feed more and turn down the skimmer or refugium.

Tank:
120 G 4x2x2
Trigger Sapphire Sump
Nyos 160 Skimmer
Cheato Refugium (cheap amazon refugium light 14 hrs a day)
Main Tank Lights 4xT5 and 2 x Hydra 32's
Carbon Reactor (3/4 cup carbon)

Critters:
2 x clowns
1 x Lawnmower Blenny
1 x High Fin Goby (and pistol shrimp)
2 x Banggai cardinalfish
5 x Green Chromis
1 x 6 line wrasse
1 x Flame Hawkfish
1 x Fire Shrimp
1 x Tuxedo Urchin
4 x Emerald crabs
Snails
Hermits

Cheers

Chris

 

[Fish Styx]

No, not GHA. The "G" being "green". Could be white hair algae or bacterial. Have you tried manually removing it? Is it slimy? Stringy?

 

[Lavey29]

I'm curious what your magnesium is. High magnesium can turn GHA white. Your nutrients are bottomed out and alk is low. Is your tank a fowler? If so cut the lights for a few weeks. Fish don't need lights.

 

[purple_jeep]

Its a bit of both and yes tried manually removing it, thats whats left after me trying. The previous green version came off the rockwork easily, this feels like its attached much stronger.

Cheers

Chris

 

[purple_jeep]

As I said I think Alk is wrong as I measured fresh Tropic Marin Reef Pro and it also measured that low.

I don't have a Manesium test kit yet but I can get one!

Tank is to be a Mixed reef, coral frags are currently in a 20G quarantine tank for a few weeks before going into this tank.

Tank is about 5 months old

 

[Snowxcross]

Hey Purple! In any event if you're reading zero Phos and zero Nitrate that would indicate a pretty clean tank. That's where if you see algae, it's competing and giving you false numbers. You can try turning your skimmer off for a few hours at night. That's a good way to see if you can detect those phosphates and nitrates... test them 24-48 hours after you do that. Regardless you do want those numbers detectable. You already mentioned your Alk being the reagent... I think you know what to do... you're there!

 

[Fish Styx]

I will Defer to @Lavey29 for his wisdom here.

 

[Lavey29]

As I said I think Alk is wrong as I measured fresh Tropic Marin Reef Pro and it also measured that low.

I don't have a Manesium test kit yet but I can get one!

Tank is to be a Mixed reef, coral frags are currently in a 20G quarantine tank for a few weeks before going into this tank.

Tank is about 5 months old

Sonif you don't have coral cut the lights for a few weeks and help kill off the algae and make it easy to remove.

 

[Lavey29]

I will Defer to @Lavey29 for his wisdom here.

We've all had these algae battles so I'm sure most have some similar ideas that they can offer including you Sir.

 

[Fish Styx]

As I said I think Alk is wrong as I measured fresh Tropic Marin Reef Pro and it also measured that low.

I don't have a Manesium test kit yet but I can get one!

Tank is to be a Mixed reef, coral frags are currently in a 20G quarantine tank for a few weeks before going into this tank.

Tank is about 5 months old

We've all had these algae battles so I'm sure most have some similar ideas that they can offer including you Sir.

Yeah, never white and I was unaware of magnesium levels bleaching GHA. I mean, back in the day I used Tech-M to kill bryopsis, but it disintegrated over time and never bleached. I learned something today. Thanks!

Namaste.

 

[purple_jeep]

I can certainly cut the main lighting, what about the refugium?

Is there any value in dosing Nitrate and Phosphate? I have NeoPhos and NeoNitro?

Which Magnesium test kit should I get?

 

[Lavey29]

Yeah, never white and I was unaware of magnesium levels bleaching GHA. I mean, back in the day I used Tech-M to kill bryopsis, but it disintegrated over time and never bleached. I learned something today. Thanks!

Namaste.

When I had my GHA jungle I ran mag at 1500 and the ends of the GHA turned white and it pulled off like nothing off the rocks.

I suspect he may have high magnesium level which is also why his alk level dropped. If no corals in the tank there really shouldn't be hardly any alk or cal consumption maybe for coralline but otherwise it's just a fowler so I'm curious what his level might be

He said he was gone for a bit and discovered white algae on returning. Don't know if it started out green and turned white or perhaps as you thought it might be a bacteria bloom of some sort.

 

[Lavey29]

I can certainly cut the main lighting, what about the refugium?

Is there any value in dosing Nitrate and Phosphate? I have NeoPhos and NeoNitro?

Which Magnesium test kit should I get?

Well if you intend to add corals to your tank you need appropriate nutrients levels. So feed more, cut back export and or dose as needed. Fuge light can stay on but give your main tank 2 weeks and see if that stuff dies off for removal

 

[vetteguy53081]

Hi Friends!

So I am having a bit of trouble with the ugglies in my 120G mixed reef tank. I had an outbreak of what looked like GHA which I manually removed most of and it seemed to get better until I went away for 4 days and had an Auto Feeder setup. Getting back the tank didn't look too good but instead of green hair Algae it looks more pale colored and also does not pull off the rock work in the same way. A tooth brush did a number on the original GHA but doesn't seem to want to touch this stuff...

I figured too many nutrients assuming my auto feeder was set too high so I did a 20% water change and removed as much as I could by hand, changed filter socks before and after to make sure I got all the loose stuff. Cleaned my skimmer. Check parameters last night and I am at 0.00 Phosphate, 0.0 Nitrate, 1.024 salinity 8.5 PH (dkh is reading 5.5 but I think I need new Reagents) all tests using Hanna Digital Testers.

I am wondering if I actually have the opposite problem and I have too low a nutrients, maybe I need to feed more and turn down the skimmer or refugium.

Tank:
120 G 4x2x2
Trigger Sapphire Sump
Nyos 160 Skimmer
Cheato Refugium (cheap amazon refugium light 14 hrs a day)
Main Tank Lights 4xT5 and 2 x Hydra 32's
Carbon Reactor (3/4 cup carbon)

Critters:
2 x clowns
1 x Lawnmower Blenny
1 x High Fin Goby (and pistol shrimp)
2 x Banggai cardinalfish
5 x Green Chromis
1 x 6 line wrasse
1 x Flame Hawkfish
1 x Fire Shrimp
1 x Tuxedo Urchin
4 x Emerald crabs
Snails
Hermits

Cheers

Chris

This is Not GHA but a filamentous nuisance alga known as Chrysophytes and you will have to pull rock and place in container of tank water and scrub with a firm toothbrush or automotive detail brush. It should release easily once fibers are loosened and be sure to agitate the rock after cleaning to avoid loose particles to enter the tank.
After cleaning. lower white light intensity and add cleaners listed to help with control:
Chiton snails
Ninja star snails
Pitho crabs
Female emerald crabs
Pencil urchin
8-10 carribean blue leg hermits
Lg astrea snails

 

[purple_jeep]

I have ordered an ICP test as well as new reagent for the dkh checker. So turn off the lights on the Main completely?

 

[purple_jeep]

This is Not GHA but a filamentous nuisance alga known as Chrysophytes and you will have to pull rock and place in container of tank water and scrub with a firm toothbrush or automotive detail brush. It should release easily once fibers are loosened and be sure to agitate the rock after cleaning to avoid loose particles to enter the tank.
After cleaning. lower white light intensity and add cleaners listed to help with control:
Chiton snails
Ninja star snails
Pitho crabs
Female emerald crabs
Pencil urchin
8-10 carribean blue leg hermits
Lg astrea snails

Yikes, I need to remove all the rock work?

I have:
Blue Leg Hermits
East African Cerith
Nassarius Vibex
Trochus Snail

Is a Pencil Urchin ok with a Tuxedo Urchin

 

[vetteguy53081]

Yikes, I need to remove all the rock work?

I have:
Blue Leg Hermits
East African Cerith
Nassarius Vibex
Trochus Snail

Is a Pencil Urchin ok with a Tuxedo Urchin

It will be impossible to remove this without removing rock and getting all of it. The cleaners mentioned cannot keep up with its rate of growth and you dont want to risk release of the strands into the tank to have this re-emerge all over again.

 

[purple_jeep]

It will be impossible to remove this without removing rock and getting all of it. The cleaners mentioned cannot keep up with its rate of growth and you dont want to risk release of the strands into the tank to have this re-emerge all over again.

Its also on the back wall of the tank...

 

[vetteguy53081]

Its also on the back wall of the tank...

That you can scrape off into a net with an old credit card or similar tool into a net- As you see, this stuff can spread quickly. Reducing white intensity or number of hours of white light until this subsides.
You can also at night add 1.5ml of 3% hydrogen peroxide per 10 gallons at night to sump to help weaken and oxidize any hidden strands

 

[purple_jeep]

Dang this is not going to be fun! my poor shrimp goby is going to be sad... When you say 1.5ml / 10 gallons is that total system volume or sump volume? what about my cheto?