phosphates& algae

[Opabinia]

Hey all. currently dealing with an algae outbreak which im not even sure how to id (see photo below).
Now i know the cause is probably my negative phosphates, but what is the best way to increase them? ive turned my skimmer off as ive heard that helps but this algae is seriously annoying me as it coats my sandbed & my glass daily. I see some on the rock but it may also just be rock doing its weird thing. It isnt stringy (as of now) but i do see bubbles under the sand if thats related.
Ad info: tanks been up and running 4 months HOWEVER it is a move from a smaller tank i had running, with all the rock coming over from the old tank.
Is this just a weird ugly phase or something evil

Any id help would be greatly appreciated, along with any good phosphate increasing methods!
many thanks - reefer who cant catch a break with this tank

 

[Teddy99]

Best guess from a beginner: maybe diatoms?

For increasing Phosphates I dose Phosphates as a liquid, which i like best because I can estimate on how much I am raising phosphates. I did this daily until I could measure phosphates and then every week after measuring correct to 0.05 again. I had problems with mix of dinoflagalates and diatoms that disspeared on its own after dosing nitrate and phosphates and keeping it somewhat stable

 

[Opabinia]

Best guess from a beginner: maybe diatoms?

For increasing Phosphates I dose Phosphates as a liquid, which i like best because I can estimate on how much I am raising phosphates. I did this daily until I could measure phosphates and then every week after measuring correct to 0.05 again. I had problems with mix of dinoflagalates and diatoms that disspeared on its own after dosing nitrate and phosphates and keeping it somewhat stable

I did think maybe diatoms too, my tank isnt coral heavy or anything i dont know where my phosphates are going
thank you for your input

 

[Teddy99]

My phosphate went into the dry rocks or sand - I guess. As it was not full of corals then as well. It’s been running for 1 1/2 year and I still have to dose phosphates sometimes, because now I have more corals and not enough fish. So every tank might be different. Do you work with RODI water to keep out silicates during water changes ? Diatoms should disappear when silicate is all metabolized and you do not add any new.

 

[EnterName]

4 month old tank, so it's just part of the ugly phase.

Keep the skimmer running you want it for gas exchange.

While there is growth there is enough phosphate, but if you want to get them to detectable levels you can use the following DIY recipe: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/diy-phosphate-dosing-recipe.1109919/

Many would suggest overfeeding/ghost feeding but this increases nutrients very unreliably and increases multiple things at once, so it's probably not what you want right now.

Exact identification usually requires a microscope, but I assume it's either diatoms or dinoflagellates. Both of which are fine in a 4 month old tank even if they aren't welcome in established tanks.