Algae Outbreak!!!

[brandon429]

That lines up with 20 years of algae invasion posts even going back to the late 90s

"if your VHO bulbs are not rotated every 7 months, they'll shift into a phase of algae production"

found in hundreds of posts bc its true... these invaders belong on a reef and to be free of them is abnormal, that's why we try all these variable control means to affect something a real reef would never be....algae free. Yours is the hard work option, works across anchored invaders.

If we took any reef tank on this forum and showed up at the home with a 6500K high pressure sodium plant bulb and aimed it right low above their reef, green hair algae by Friday, even though the tank in its current stasis was algae free under the blues.

Your tank having been forced clean is now in the ideal position to have all common methods for prevention attempted, it's a clean palette.

 

[brandon429]

In my opinion your thread represents a blending of old and new school.


You old schooled this into compliance by simple disallowance.

Today's trending is towards pod addition, diversity, true micro competitors, and you're in balance for it now.

Add pods... No need to clean anytime soon... Adjust n and p to the ratios of the year, all after the invader is forced out.

To me this is the best known method of algae control at the expense of effort


anyone willing to undertake it can force their tank clean, if required. If willing. We didn't even use fluconazole back when your challenge started... In time the market will make things easier but there will always be a catch ( fluc is good on all of a few species restricted) it's neat to see a reliable method carried through.

 

[Msteven1]

I just did what Brandon thread suggests. Total tear down of my Biocube 29. New rinsed sand. Still need to spot treat some corals but my hair/turf is gone as well as cyno. My tank was only a year old. I don’t have before pics because I was so disgusted to take any. I was about to give up until realizing that a fresh start is all I need.
All rock removed and sprayed with 3.5% peroxide. Gravel gone. Rinsed 25 lbs new substrate outside with garden hose for at least 45 min. (Luckily it got up to 50 F that day!). Wiped down a cleaned everything with peroxide.
Everything back in with fresh saltwater. Everything survived and no cycle!


Here is what it looks like now.