Algae Identification Help

[Daniel Vickery]

New tank setup about 4 weeks in. Made it through the. Brown diatoms. Next rocks and glass got a green film. Cleaned the rocks daily and have done a few water changes. Now green only on the rocks and only where direct light hits. Rubbing a toothbrush on the rocks does not remove it. Any idea what this is? Is it ok to just let the cleanup crew (8 snails, 4 crabs & one sea urchin) handle it. Any other measures I should consider? Tank is a Max E-170, I have a 20 gallon sump and am trying to establish a fuge with Cheto and an alternate light cycle. Ammonia - 0 Nitrites - o Nitrates < 5. Temp 78 and stable, PH 8.1. Changing Filter Sock 2x week, reef octopus Skimmer 24x7, reactor with carbon and GFO.

Any thoughts appreciated!!

 

[Dancingmad]

Looks like the beginnings of coraline developing IMO. I've never had an urchin before but I hear they are voracious. Previous disclaimer noted I'd recommend making sure that guy/gal has plenty to munch on (supplemental algae).

 

[GoVols]

New tank setup about 4 weeks in. Made it through the. Brown diatoms. Next rocks and glass got a green film. Cleaned the rocks daily and have done a few water changes. Now green only on the rocks and only where direct light hits. Rubbing a toothbrush on the rocks does not remove it. Any idea what this is? Is it ok to just let the cleanup crew (8 snails, 4 crabs & one sea urchin) handle it. Any other measures I should consider? Tank is a Max E-170, I have a 20 gallon sump and am trying to establish a fuge with Cheto and an alternate light cycle. Ammonia - 0 Nitrites - o Nitrates < 5. Temp 78 and stable, PH 8.1. Changing Filter Sock 2x week, reef octopus Skimmer 24x7, reactor with carbon and GFO.

Any thoughts appreciated!!

Probably just going threw the ugly's stage like the diatom stage and it's perfectly normal.
Keep up with the CUC and I always keep an urchin in my reef.

 

[Idoc]

I have the same thing on my rocks post-cycle. It started as soon as I turned on my lights. No matter how many cuc (or types) I add, it doesn't go away and can't be removed from the rocks with hard scrubbing. Nothing filamentous is growing from it... but I do have a lot of cerith, nerite, and astraea turbo snails in the tank now. Parts of it actually looked more smooth and lighter green color... kind of thinking this type might be coralline growth.

 

[Ace6090]

I have the same thing with an Urchin for a few years now. No idea what type of algae it is but doesn't seem to cause an issue.

 

[Daniel Vickery]

@Dancingmad and @GoVols and @Ace6090

Based on Dancingmad’s comments on urchin,s being voracious eaters how much and how often should I be supplementing with seaweed? Do you supplement with nori? How about for crabs? I’d like to ultimately have a couple urchins and a few crabs. Ever see any issues with urchins and corals?

@everyone thanks, hoping this is the beginnings of good corraline starting just seems early

 

[GoVols]

@Dancingmad and @GoVols and @Ace6090

Based on Dancingmad’s comments on urchin,s being voracious eaters how much and how often should I be supplementing with seaweed? Do you supplement with nori? How about for crabs? I’d like to ultimately have a couple urchins and a few crabs. Ever see any issues with urchins and corals?

@everyone thanks, hoping this is the beginnings of good corraline starting just seems early

Daniel,
I have really mature reef so my sea urchin has enough coralline algae to eat off the live rock if there's not enough green algae for it.

I bet they would eat seaweed strips if you feel the need. You could just rubber band the strips to a small rock.

They are "reef-safe" but they can topple over your corals if they have not encrusted the live rock or puttied down.

 

[Dancingmad]

I have really mature reef so my sea urchin has enough coralline algae to eat off the live rock if there's not enough green algae for it.

I bet they would eat seaweed strips if you feel the need. You could just rubber band the strips to a small rock.

They are "reef-safe" but they can topple over your corals if they have not encrusted the live rock or puttied down.

^^This right here. @Daniel Vickery Also, just as an opinion but it looks like you're doing right by your CUC. A lot of folks go absolutely buck wild on their CUC when they get into their first "ugly phase" bump or algae bloom. e.g. purchasing a 100 pack of whatever or a giant "clean up crew bundle". I'm a firm believer in starting slow as you have. Otherwise you end up with a bunch of dead snails/crabs/etc that feed into the problem when there isn't enough food available to them (or in that 100 pack you don't pick out the dead ones, which is an endeavor because there will be some deadies!). A mistake I made ten years ago, and I wont forget it.

Zen Moment: There is no "completing the cycle" its about balancing the cycle. Just my two coppers!

Also, I see you only have a few posts to your name - Welcome to R2R bud! Lots of awesome people out here to help. Some legit science type folks and people that have been in the hobby for decades. You'll find reading through the boards there are plenty of paths to success.

Happy Reefing!

 

[Daniel Vickery]

@Dancingmad thwnks for the warm welcome! Yes completely new to reefing - have been absorbing everything I can off YouTube and many forums for months but nothing really is a substitute for experience. Any sources or books you would personally steer to a hungry novice?

Yea for my CUC I’ve tried to hold back, want to approach from the too few side, and increase — this seems more balanced. That said I lost two blue hermits shortly after introduction.

Anything special I should think of for my urchin? He is super popular in the household, and thinking of a second.

Soon plan on introducing a pair of clownfish and a Goby pared with a shrimp. Am planning on ordering for arrival next week and am planning on keepin in my 10g quarantine for 3-4 weeks.

Regards,

Daniel

^^This right here. @Daniel Vickery Also, just as an opinion but it looks like you're doing right by your CUC. A lot of folks go absolutely buck wild on their CUC when they get into their first "ugly phase" bump or algae bloom. e.g. purchasing a 100 pack of whatever or a giant "clean up crew bundle". I'm a firm believer in starting slow as you have. Otherwise you end up with a bunch of dead snails/crabs/etc that feed into the problem when there isn't enough food available to them (or in that 100 pack you don't pick out the dead ones, which is an endeavor because there will be some deadies!). A mistake I made ten years ago, and I wont forget it.

Zen Moment: There is no "completing the cycle" its about balancing the cycle. Just my two coppers!

Also, I see you only have a few posts to your name - Welcome to R2R bud! Lots of awesome people out here to help. Some legit science type folks and people that have been in the hobby for decades. You'll find reading through the boards there are plenty of paths to success.

Happy Reefing!

 

[Idoc]

Soon plan on introducing a pair of clownfish and a Goby pared with a shrimp. Am planning on ordering for arrival next week and am planning on keepin in my 10g quarantine for 3-4 weeks.

I went with 2 clowns as my first fish to a new tank. That's a good choice since they seem like very hardy fish. But, you may want to consider the Goby/shrimp combo first to help clean the sandbed, though. Your tank is about to go thru some really ugly stuff on the sandbed as it matures. Then, a month or so later add the clowns.

 

[Dancingmad]

Anything special I should think of for my urchin? He is super popular in the household, and thinking of a second.

I'd just make sure these is algae available for them - I've never had any urchins, but I've read a bit on them. My understanding is they are hungry, hungry critters. I can advise that with invertebrates they can slowly starve to death over months without you really knowing (slow metabolisms and soforth). Again - I've never owned 'em, but I think you're probably good w/ one in a 40G.

Any sources or books you would personally steer to a hungry novice?

I really enjoyed Paul B's Avant-garde Marine Aquarist as a source. Very down to earth approach, humorous and quick read. There are tons of excellent sources on youtube, but I'll say this regarding those: If they have an online store remember the ultimate goal is to sell you something (nothing wrong with that, just a fact). Like I mentioned in the previous post there are tons of paths to success(check out the article...something like parameters of the master). You'll find there are some beautiful tanks out there that have different nutrient levels, lighting options and filtration settings.

My pointer as an average joe reefer would be just take it slow. Plenty of folks will tell you that "nothing good happens overnight in reefing". That is the truest statement out there.

I went with 2 clowns as my first fish to a new tank. That's a good choice since they seem like very hardy fish. But, you may want to consider the Goby/shrimp combo first to help clean the sandbed, though. Your tank is about to go thru some really ugly stuff on the sandbed as it matures. Then, a month or so later add the clowns.

^^Despite being an OSU fan Idoc here has got some great advise (Boomer Sooner!). Usually a dirty sand bed makes most of us crazy. I'd start with that goby/shrimp idea first.

 

[Ace6090]

I had an urchin in a 40b for multiple years without issue, definitely a crowd favorite. They will eat a lot of alage, so don't expect to see tons of it around. If you get growth on the glass then there should be plenty for it to eat.