A Simple Guide To Common Problematic Algae And The Means To Control It..

[rockstarta78]

It's very ugly looking. At first I thought is dino. So I was about to go all lights out and covered for next three days. I guess now I'll just scrub the rock, do I 50% water change and go from there.

 

[brandon429]

Just as my own personal way, I'm a meticulous rock guider

Lifting out and scrubbing clean as a cheat, vs hooking up things to affect the water + indeterminate wait is what I do. When things coat with purple coralline the work lessens and though I worked more initially, my reef simply never has an ugly phase they are fully optional. If someone finds the ideal nutrient conditions and feed inputs/outputs then no guiding w be needed. CUC can take care of minor growths in a balanced system and any number of preventatives can be tried for results

 

[brandon429]

first time I've seen a reef tank with periphyton on the rocks in a while

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/live-rock.248668/


This is how natural reefs look when we scuba dive. The ultra purple, sps encrusted not a plant or bryozoan in sight is the unnatural look we want in our tanks...it's true these communities are nutrient sequestering communities and they present incredible diversity.

 

[rockstarta78]

I think you've convinced me to give it a good scrub. Only fear is, I hope it doesn't come unglued. The putty weren't strong enough to begin with.

 

[rockstarta78]

BTW will the scrubbing destroy the beneficial bacteria? I'd think so.

 

[brandon429]

http://reef2reef.com/threads/the-of...ead-aka-one-against-many.230281/#post-2681445

Everything's a minimum three pages - web nerding


rinsing removes detritus, the target, and some bacteria incidental but the adhered ones remain on/in interstices our rinsing didn't affect. It's a surface area/convolution issue, and that our rinses don't use antibiotic agents. We are rinsing in clean saltwater surfaces that are so folded and holey we are simply rising 1% of the surface area at work, and probably 20% or less of our total surface area is needed to manage the bio load we present. The rest is just holding detritus perpetually lol

After 20 hours, even the incidental loss bacteria have been replaced.


All typical reef tanks are vastly over filtered/surface area abundant, so rinsing of a tiny portion of active area simply makes no measurable impact. this will help us frame the nature of established marine bacteria for tank care boundaries:

When a cycle is complete, nothing you do to your tank shy of antibacterial medication dosing will make a measurable impact loss (cause ammonia to stop being processed) and this includes:

-Long periods of not feeding your tank and rocks, they still get food via natural means eons established

-Big cleaning events. Stirring up rotting unexported waste and seeing ammonia doesn't imply a loss of bac. It's overtaking the resident bac. The bac are the most adapted, resistant to fluxes communities in our tank. We should see them as first to come, last to go, in any event.

-Air exposure, desiccation takes a long time in these protected folded rocks. My own reef stays drained for 25 mins, the whole reef, many threads.

-Small insults from overdoses of this or that, temp or salinity mistakes, it takes a dedicated course of action to impact them

-Being fallow for a long time while fish are excluded. You might have to feed other animals in the tank, but not bacteria, even though that's posted required online. Excessive surface area clogged with detritus makes fine holdover conditions


The reason it's such a worthy task detailing all about filtration bacteria is because we can see it directly sets the boundaries for your tank care options. We just went from encumbered to "rinse as madly as you like" so enjoy that lasting tank freedom I sure do.
B

 

[rockstarta78]

Cool. I need to drill my tank anyway. So I'll take out all the rock and give it a good scrubbing.

 

[Heather w]

Thank you very much for the information. I have green hair algae and my tank fell to a little known bacterial infection called white slime disease. It is caused by airborne ammonia such as candles and air fresheners. It strips the oxygen from the water and literally suffocated all but one of my fish. Didn't do a flipping thing about the hair algae. Thanks again for the info!!

 

[eric.schnack]

Just wanted to say thanks what a great thread. Started in 2012 and still helping me today.

 

[DinoS]

What type of algea is this and should I try to remove it? It's starting to grow on the stems of coral.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

What type of algea is this and should I try to remove it? It's starting to grow on the stems of coral.

oh yes. thats nasty.
You should start a thread please, and we can help Id it and work out some slightly more customized treatments. That's an unusual one.
itll help us all learn and you to get rid of it.

 

[SantaMonica]

Something died there and is supplying nutrients to it.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Something died there and is supplying nutrients to it.

Hey. Check out his others thread.
Your prob right. The Po is 2.
But the rest of the tank looks clean.
I'm actually starting to think it's a sponge or mat ofsomething else. I haven't seen anything else like it.

 

[reeftilldie]

thank you

 

[Dizzirn]

@Steven R
Thank you for the great info!!!

Can you help me with green dust algae? It's driving me crazy!!

 

[Undertaker]

I have a cotton candy looking algae starting up in my tank. Any ideas of what kind it is and how to get rid of it. I can't hit a good pic of it. But, it pink with a short fuzzy look to it.

 

[SantaMonica]

That's usually bryopsis, which has "roots" to get to nutrients in the rock and can therefore last longer even when water tests "zero". But enough export will pull phosphate from the rock, and eventually the algae will let go and cover with coralline.

 

[Dominic Prezwanski]

Hi guys, I’ve read through. And want to confirm your thoughts.

Is this diatoms? It’s in my sump, only in the middle section of 4 stages.

One of the posts says it’s a result of high carbon. Subsequently this part of my sump is where the bag of carbon sits.

Sorry about the pic of the rock out of water. It’s almost like an anemone in appearance when in the water.

Dominic

 

[Dominic Prezwanski]

And I snuck my head to find more

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Hi guys, I’ve read through. And want to confirm your thoughts.

Is this diatoms? It’s in my sump, only in the middle section of 4 stages.

One of the posts says it’s a result of high carbon. Subsequently this part of my sump is where the bag of carbon sits.

Sorry about the pic of the rock out of water. It’s almost like an anemone in appearance when in the water.

Dominic

Looks like sponges to me.
IMO ime , sponges appear in newer tanks for the same reason diatoms do. Higher silicates. Once the silicates are slightly depleted , the sponges like the diatoms will slow down in growth.