Unable to get rid of algae

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asome_one

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Alrighty, 13 days after the addition of UV sterilizer + a full cleaning the tank has returned 100% to the original state posted. As I've acquired a larger cube tank and am going through the process of upgrading my stand, pumps, and equipment to accommodate this. I am going to do the peroxide rock treatments.
So, reading back through everything I still have a couple of questions...and some new ones. @brandon429

If I remove rock and treat it with a 3% Hydrogen peroxide spray, do I need to rinse that rock with fresh saltwater outside of the tank prior to placing it back into the tank?
The proper application of peroxide is simply spraying it onto bare rock surfaces correct? Not onto coral or areas not visually infested with algae?
Should i expect a very big spike in levels after killing the algae due to their dieoff in the tank?

Additions of snails will be acquired after the move is completed.

Really wanna do this right as I'm spending a considerable amount to upgrade the system.
 
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So i did a test rock about 3 days ago and am having problems.
My method here was large water change, as normal, scrub off all rocks and remove as much algae as possible manually. Then removed my test rock and got to work. I manually removed as much algae as i could see along with all these vermetid snails that i wasn't aware I had...so that's nice. Then i applied 3% hydrogen peroxide directly to the rock since this rock had no coral on it. Let it sit outside of the tank for about 10 minutes. rinse x3 with new saltwater. Added back to the tank. So while I do see a loss of coraline, which was expected, Algae is quickly repopulating the surface of the rock. While i understand since I haven't eradicated it from the rest of my tank this was to be expected in a given time I was under the impression that it would take a bit longer.
Was the point of the test rock to simply see if i could initially get rid of the algae on that rock? Or to test how long before it needs treated again.
I'm doing all this because as soon as I can get this rock at least stable without algae everything is moving to an upgraded tank. Also, no I don't want to start fresh because I don't want 2 saltwater tanks and have too much time invested to let this one crash and burn.
 
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Went ahead and made a last-ditch effort prior to breaking the tank down and dosing everything with peroxide method. I have used vibrant for reefs in the past. At that time I was still trying to run a fuge and it killed all my chaeto so I stopped. Since then I changed the sump setup and removed the fuge since it wasn't combating my algae problem and I didn't have money for a more powerful fuge light. So we tried vibrant again.
Normal process of cleaning, scrub all the rock, siphon out 3/4 of the water of the display tank. Replace. This time however I used vibrant before leaving my apartment for a week. Normally I'd come back and all surfaces of the glass and rock would be covered in algae. However, this time around I used vibrant. I'm very happy to report a significant reduction in overall algae. While there is still green algae growth in some areas of the tank the bubble algae is very reduced. I expect to see a decline in the growth of my gsp and xenia but I'm okay with that as initially, I wanted this to have big zoa populations...they just never were able to thrive. I'll post a photo next week. That would be 2 weeks of dosing by then and due for a water change and another round of dosage. I'm hopeful that I will continue to see improvement and reduction in algae.
As can be seen in the photo taken 1 week after cleaning this is a drastic improvement vs the original state 1 week post clean. Yes I know my birdsnest is likely failing. Attempted to clean the green algae off the skeleton have been unproductive. I assume as I continue to make reduction in overall algae it may give whats left a chance to rebound. 20210418_125355.jpg
 
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Good advices but he only have a crab as his cuc? You need to get some snails and hermit.
Stop dosing or use all sort of chemicals.
add the cuc and stop feeding frozen food for a while.
 
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Good advices but he only have a crab as his cuc? You need to get some snails and hermit.
Stop dosing or use all sort of chemicals.
add the cuc and stop feeding frozen food for a while.
Well the only chemical I ever have dosed is vibrant. I Feed sparingly. and test within normal ranges. It was more a problem I let get out of hand and couldn't seem to get a handle on. I am planning on reintroducing a cuc but didnt want to do it until my algae problem was at least somewhat solved. I like emeralds. Keep in mind this is a tank I've been reducing to a bare bottom over about 6 months. Its my understanding most hermits like sand. Furthermore I rarely feed frozen (maybe once a week) since my fish readily accept pellets and snag them before they get to my overflow. My schedule doesn't permit me to feed frozen on a regular basis. I have a larger tank Im wanting to upgrade into but needed to not bring all the algae along with the tank move.
 
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So i think i figured out what the problem was during my transition. Due to needing my original tank to run on its own while I setup the new tank for about 12 hours....I found that the fluval pump used to pump water from the back chambers to the main tank was so pathetic its action. So, while I had very large turnover rate from my return to the sump, maybe 1/8th was actually getting to the tank. this was an oversight and one which I think will be majorly mitigated in the upgraded tank. This is now a 35gal tank with a sump. I have 2 pumps plumbed into my return which creates quite a high sump / tank turnover rate. I also currently have a fluval 20 and a hipagrow 30w light on this tank. I am waiting on an AI prime Hd to arrive along with more powerful wavemakers.
I am still dosing vibrant as I moved everything over as is. I had reduced algae but still present. The current tank is a barebottom with eggcrate to cushion the rock. I have a bunch of astrea snails to eat various things.

20210512_003631.jpg
 

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I have been dealing with algae in my salt water tank pretty much since I set it up. Used cycled rock from an inferior tank and got it, rookie mistake I know. So the tank has been up and running for 1 year and 7 months. I always hoped that the algae would solve itself over that time as I just try to keep things stable. it is a total system volume of about 20 gallons give or take. 15 gal main tank with a 5 gal sump. I run an oversized skimmer that was running in a 150 gal. I use purigen and carbon in reactors. Mechanical filtration is a 25 micron sock. Got a lot of rock in the sump. Ive been using instant ocean but just purchased reef crystals which I'll be transitioning to. Not new to fish keeping but this is my first and only salty tank.
I try to change about 10 gallons every week (basically when I need to clean the algae from the glass I do a water change). Sometimes it ends up being 2 weeks but never longer than that. Premix the salt in a container, heated, and circulated. Use only rodi water tested for ppm.
During water changes I will scrub the rock with a toothbrush and get everything I can out of the tank. It begins to pop back up about 2 days after the water change with it completely obscuring the front glass within 2 weeks. The photos were taken right before a water change, about 1.5 weeks had passed since the last. I scraped the front glass so it was possible to see in.
Anyway,
Ammonia 0 Nitrite 0 Nitrates 25-50, depends when I test in the water change period. Phosphate 0 calcium 400 gh 400 kh 180 I use salifert kits all within the expiration date.

I definitely have some bubble algae in there and green algae.
Only inhabs are an emerald crab, 2 clowns, and a 6 line wrasse. Various corals. I have an auto feeder for pellets but it only feeds about 6-10 pellets per day. The fish eat them almost immediately. I give a small piece of frozen food about once a week.

I have tried chemi clean in the past to no effect. blackout works but only for a short while. I don't have a very big bio load and I oversized my skimmer to help with nitrates but they always stay above 15 and normally about 25. I tried to grow chaeto but it slowly shrunk away. I figured it was due to my light so I used an asta 20 on the white channel and it still withered away.
Its frustrating as this is my favorite tank out of all of em. I dont understand why the nitrates go up as high as they do with such small fish and limited feeding.
Thanks yall
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kalel454

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Well the only chemical I ever have dosed is vibrant. I Feed sparingly. and test within normal ranges. It was more a problem I let get out of hand and couldn't seem to get a handle on. I am planning on reintroducing a cuc but didnt want to do it until my algae problem was at least somewhat solved. I like emeralds. Keep in mind this is a tank I've been reducing to a bare bottom over about 6 months. Its my understanding most hermits like sand. Furthermore I rarely feed frozen (maybe once a week) since my fish readily accept pellets and snag them before they get to my overflow. My schedule doesn't permit me to feed frozen on a regular basis. I have a larger tank Im wanting to upgrade into but needed to not bring all the algae along with the tank move.
trust me dose with vodka it will work just be patient.
 
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So its been 4 days since the move. Had some problems namely a leaky bulkhead that I overtightened. Whiiiich ended up snapping off and prompting me to do a run around emergency trying to find matching bulkheads....thank you tractor supply.
Other than that its been great I upgraded the light to a prime HD and added in a nero 5 pump. A credit account with BRS is always a dangerous thing. Either way, it seems that the algae that moved over has been mostly staying the same and being reduced by the cuc. The top of my highest rock is all cleaned up and it continues to reduce. I will eventually rescape and add a bunch more rock to not look like a mound in my tank. After a rescape I will introduce a bunch of new zoas and various other corals. Im curious to see how my current limited coral population responds to the new lighting and tank conditions. If they explode I'll be more likely to add a more varied population of zoas vs just 1 or 2 types. The egg crate bottom is kinda lame but I'll take it over using nothing and cracking my glass.
That heater on the right side is just in there to ensure my current heater can take on all the requirements of the larger tank. Just a safety measure.
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