Algae question

OCJoeR · Jun 5, 2022

I still consider myself new to saltwater tanks so I'm posting here. I've had my tank up for about a year now. I have a Clown and a Blue Chromis happily swimming around. The tank is about 50 gallons and I have a 29 gallon sump with a skimmer and a Hygger pump. I have a Hygger light with a 24/7 timer on it that brings the light up from a dim orange early in the morning through a full brightness and then down to a blue that gets dimmer until it goes off at night. Originally I was getting a lot of algae build up on the rocks and walls of the tank so I switched that mode off and just put the light on during the day. I picked up a wave maker gizmo and put it just under the overflow box and have it running at about half speed and put the light back on 24/7 mode. The wave maker seemed to have cured the algae issue.

My local saltwater store (a Reef Lounge store) thought I'd need more light to keep invertebrates so I picked up another Hygger and set it to the same 24/7 mode. I'm now getting algae on the small shells that you see in the front of the tank. It's not that much, or too horrible looking, but would putting another wave maker somewhere help?

Thank you for any help,
Joe

lapin · Jun 5, 2022

Not sure if it will help
Alage grows when light is present
Have you tried some snails or hermit crabs?

Milliganj · Jun 5, 2022

In short yes, wavemakers probably will help reduce dead spots, clear ditritus and lower nutrients though your tank looks good and I wouldn't be too worried about that if your parameters at correct. My advice is to get livestock/clean up crew that would eat algae to keep everything looking it's best.

OCJoeR · Jun 5, 2022

Thanks for the replies. I'm going to stop by the store later today and pick up a few hermit crabs. I've also read that Tangs eat algae. I was thinking that I might add another fish or 2 to the tank so they might too. If I put another wave maker in the tank would it be better to put it lower than the one that's there now?