Bad Hair Algae Day...GFO? NOPOX?

[Bob_Loblaw]

I have a 68 gallon tank and a 22 gallon sump that have been up and running for a couple of months. I have four fish and a few frags and a CUC in it at this point. I had a flare up of hair algae about a month in but the CUC pretty much cleared it up. Then a couple of weeks back it came back with a vengance while I was out of town for a week. I added a skimmer last week and it is doing its job.

All water parameters look good. Nitrates are near zero (pure yellow). Phosphates test "zero" on an APi test kit but I know the API phosphate kit is pretty useless for reefing. So what do I do? Get a good phosphate kit and go from there? I guess my thinking is that phosphate have to be high since nitrates are low and I have all this algae.

I have a bottle of NOPOX that I bought without knowing how it worked. Well I do now and if I understand what I've read, it might be a mistake to use it with the nitrates so low. Do I intentionally overfeed to drive up nitrates and use the NOPOX to drive them and the phosphates down? Or do I just bite the bullet and get a GFO reactor?

 

[CodyRVA]

Have you considered beefing up your CUC or manual removal? If it was something more stubborn like bryposis, maybe I would consider going the biological or chemical route, but you can get ahold of many critters that eat GHA.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

If you have no no3 or Po4 , I wouldn’t prepair to strip either.

If it’s a new tank , the alge is competing with the bio filter for food. Alge can pretty much eat the ammonia producerd by the fish directly.
Its the ugly phase.

I’d keep cleaning and perhaps consider bacterial treatments like dr tims etc , and maybe a tiny amount of the nopox.

 

[jda]

You have N and P. The algae is telling you this... what is left over on a test kit will not help you much since you have more than enough import and also stuff soaking it up. Don't sweat a test kit number - you have plenty of throughput. Cleaner feedings and letting the skimmer and CUC go to work will be the end game. Keep up on your water changes. There is no easy or fast solution to this.

Manual removal is awesome. Consumers are next best. My tank has very low N and P and I would have an algae outbreak if I did not have fish, emeralds, snails and a few urchins to keep them knocked down.

 

[cracker]

@saltyfilmfolks Will Dr Tims help a mature tank? will increase bio diversity or more bacteria . I mean short of vodka dosing

Bob, I hope You get your algae outbreak under control !

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

@saltyfilmfolks Will Dr Tims help a mature tank? i not what will increase bio diversity I mean short of vodka dosing

As I understand it from me Farley and others, bacterial strains over time will compete with each other until one becomes dominant. One and only is I belive seven strains.
When it happens if it happens eats Ian pretty much impossible to test for naturally, so it’s a bit of a shotgun approach.

Carbon dosing could help boost the bio filter but possibly only the dominant strains. Weather that’s bad I’d highly doubt.

nopox vodka and vinegar as well as vitamain c (citric acid) are all organic carbon sources for feeding bacteria.

A quick fwiw for the op as well. Carbon dosing (nopox specifically)in new tanks like under the Red Sea nature program has very often resulted in cloudy water and slime because the bacteria is mostly in the water still and hasn’t yet really penetrated the rocks.

Randy teased me once in a thread when I observed the two little fishies Marine snow gave me cyano.
I was using it as a supplement to my phyto and zoo planktons.
It smells a bit like lemons.

 

[Bob_Loblaw]

You have N and P. The algae is telling you this... what is left over on a test kit will not help you much since you have more than enough import and also stuff soaking it up. Don't sweat a test kit number - you have plenty of throughput. Cleaner feedings and letting the skimmer and CUC go to work will be the end game. Keep up on your water changes. There is no easy or fast solution to this.

Manual removal is awesome. Consumers are next best. My tank has very low N and P and I would have an algae outbreak if I did not have fish, emeralds, snails and a few urchins to keep them knocked down.

I've spent hours and hours pulling algae out of this tank but I'll keep it up. Off to buy more snails and crabs!

 

[Gareth elliott]

What type of clean up crew do you have?

Excess Algae is always a sign things are out of balance, not enough of that, too much that.

On newer tanks, often its not enough desirable creatures to take up the nutrients or wasted food. Or in your case it could be not enough nitrate. And perhaps a little excess phosphate.

Some ideas, GHA can be consumed by CUC but not if its long. Scrubbing your rocks with a tooth brush and adding some more snails might help slow it down. Try getting nitrate detectable afterwards, i use kno3 for this.

Adding some more corals or macro algaes. The more creatures you want that consume phosphate, the less the ones you dont want will have to use.

 

[Bob_Loblaw]

If you have no no3 or Po4 , I wouldn’t prepair to strip either.

If it’s a new tank , the alge is competing with the bio filter for food. Alge can pretty much eat the ammonia producerd by the fish directly.
Its the ugly phase.

I’d keep cleaning and perhaps consider bacterial treatments like dr tims etc , and maybe a tiny amount of the nopox.

What would a tiny amount of NOPOX be for 75 gallons? Less than 3ml?

 

[Bob_Loblaw]

What type of clean up crew do you have?

Excess Algae is always a sign things are out of balance, not enough of that, too much that.

On newer tanks, often its not enough desirable creatures to take up the nutrients or wasted food. Or in your case it could be not enough nitrate. And perhaps a little excess phosphate.

Some ideas, GHA can be consumed by CUC but not if its long. Scrubbing your rocks with a tooth brush and adding some more snails might help slow it down. Try getting nitrate detectable afterwards, i use kno3 for this.

Adding some more corals or macro algaes. The more creatures you want that consume phosphate, the less the ones you dont want will have to use.

I have about a dozen each of assorted snails and hermit crabs. I know that is not enough. I have chaeto in the refugium but to has hardly grown in a month.

 

[jda]

Do not underestimate an urchin. Lettuce Nudis are great too, but they do not like much flow at all.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

What would a tiny amount of NOPOX be for 75 gallons? Less than 3ml?

You’d have to look at the directions.
Then estimate. 1/3 1/4 etc.

 

[Gareth elliott]

Do not underestimate an urchin. Lettuce Nudis are great too, but they do not like much flow at all.

I recently picked up a dwarf angel as a fish option for medium sized tanks. BUT i also know they are not always coral safe. Some point if takes a liking. i might have to decide between selling back or admit i cant have LPS. But it is a gorgeous fish [emoji23]

 

[Gareth elliott]

I have about a dozen each of assorted snails and hermit crabs. I know that is not enough. I have chaeto in the refugium but to has hardly grown in a month.

3 possibilities (sure there are more lol)
-The light on the macro isnt enough. (Too much ime chaeto bleaches pretty quick)
-Chaeto need more nitrate than the gha
-need some more iron in the water.

 

[cracker]

Got a bunch of Ha in the refugium also ?

 

[Bob_Loblaw]

Got a bunch of Ha in the refugium also ?

Please tell me what Ha is?

 

[Bob_Loblaw]

You’d have to look at the directions.
Then estimate. 1/3 1/4 etc.

Thanks

 

[cracker]

@Bob Loblaw Sorry Man Ha means Hair algae . didn't realize you were a member & just starting out .
Welcome to R2R !

 

[Bob_Loblaw]

@Bob Loblaw Sorry Man Ha means Hair algae . didn't realize you were a member & just starting out .
Welcome to R2R !

Thanks. HA i not a problem in the refugium. Ive found a few strands starting to grow but pulled them. I guess the filter sock is catching whatever is floating around.

 

[cracker]

Ok I had a bunch in my refugium. Chaeto would just withered. event hough I had this ( ha ) in the tank also I dosed " little bit " of No3 & Po4 . Chaeto blew up & starved the all the ha in the refugium & a little in the tank.