Green hair algae has taken over. PLEASE help!

[Reefbuds]

Green hair algae has taken over my reef lately resulting in losses. 0ppm ammonia, oppma nitrite, 10 to 15 ppm nitrate, unknown phosphate. I did have a salinity spike to .032 which I know is terrible and may be the cause of losses but the green hair remains. ANY tips or help would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks guys!

 

[Gareth elliott]

Without knowing your phosphate i would have to guess its also raised.

I would manually remove what you can first, i use a hard bristle tooth brush. Then do a water change 20% maybe. Get nutrients down a touch and remove the hair algae you just scrubbed off.
The next steps need a little bit more info.
How long has tank been up?
How many fish?
Tank size?
How much food each day?
What clean up crew?

 

[mcarroll]

Green hair algae has taken over my reef lately resulting in losses. 0ppm ammonia, oppma nitrite, 10 to 15 ppm nitrate, unknown phosphate. I did have a salinity spike to .032 which I know is terrible and may be the cause of losses but the green hair remains. ANY tips or help would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks guys!

That's wicked bad on your biofilter....I've head that nitrifying bacteria's tolerance is only up to about 1.030. Good you are not seeing ammonia or nitrite but are your test kits expired by any chance? Those are oddballs that don't usually get used very often.

I agree that the salinity spike caused the problem. The algae probably were unbothered so they simply took advantage of available:

• nutrients
• space
• lack of (or too small) cleanup crew

...as well as the disturbance itself. A disturbance is always required.

Get things back to stable and knock down the algae – either by hand or with an upgraded CUC, or both.

I'm curious about your answers to Gareth's questions too.

 

[Reefbuds]

Without knowing your phosphate i would have to guess its also raised.

I would manually remove what you can first, i use a hard bristle tooth brush. Then do a water change 20% maybe. Get nutrients down a touch and remove the hair algae you just scrubbed off.
The next steps need a little bit more info.
How long has tank been up?
How many fish?
Tank size?
How much food each day?
What clean up crew?

Well all of this started with a small patch of cyano a few weeks after I introduced a carpet nem. Everything was imaculate until this. The nem, I feel, added such a bioload that it threw everything out of wacky over the next few months. Of course the salinity is my fault, I payed so close attention to nutrients that I didn't even think of salinity , as I've never had issues with it.
Been up 22 months, 5 fish + carpet nem, 55 gallon, half a cube of frozen a day, a good bit of snails, hermits, coral banded shrimp and just recently introduced 4 emerald crabs. I did have am arrow and emerald but they perished a few months ago sadly.

 

[skiergd011013]

Well all of this started with a small patch of cyano a few weeks after I introduced a carpet nem. Everything was imaculate until this. The nem, I feel, added such a bioload that it threw everything out of wacky over the next few months. Of course the salinity is my fault, I payed so close attention to nutrients that I didn't even think of salinity , as I've never had issues with it.
Been up 22 months, 5 fish + carpet nem, 55 gallon, half a cube of frozen a day, a good bit of snails, hermits, coral banded shrimp and just recently introduced 4 emerald crabs. I did have am arrow and emerald but they perished a few months ago sadly.

Others may disagree, but I think your overfeeding there, and I would cut back. Im not going to post how much I feed because ill probably get yelled at haha, but i was starting to have some algae issues. I cut way back on feeding (not that I was overfeeding to begin with) and my algae problem has really diminished. do you rinse the frozen food in a net thoroughly before feeding it? The liquid the food is frozen in is basically fertilizer for algae. And dont rinse/prepare it in those fine mesh brine shrimp nets. Use a more open net. Mike palletta showed on youtube how much gunk will not rinse through those fine nets. I would take all advice that has been said, and maybe get a lawnmower blenny too.

 

[Gareth elliott]

Maybe a bottle of dr. Tims or other bacteria supplement? Or start dosing a carbon source, ie white vinegar.
I found turbo snails if dont have one the best for gha. But thats just my experience with them, i put one in my 20 gallon, glass clean and gha gone. He actually kept it too clean and ended up passing.

 

[brandon429]

a great step for you to do is clean your entire tank from the bottom glass to the top, a full water change, detailed rock cleaning, detailed sand cleaning, all skip cycle, reassemble the tank purely free of GHA, then do all manner of algae prevention only after work has replaced hesitation. not trying to be too direct but the reverse of hesitation will fix your tank, we've cataloged many. post full tank pics. there are also myriad ways of waiting more weeks for water-only actions to work, many ways to approach agreed. I like to cover the get it done now angle, it has specific benefits.

 

[rob safron]

Several years ago I stopped maintenance on my tank and ended up with green hair everywhere. Decided to get back in, I pulled as much hair out as I could every few days. Did some regular water changes and most importantly started vinegar dosing. Nitrate were as high as 60-80 when I started. Took 3 months and around 60 mls of vinegar per day in my 125 gallon. Today I run a low nutrient system.

 

[Flexin]

Where is the picture of the problem tank?

 

[S.O.MLemos]

I had a really bad outbreak of GHA in my last tank due to I was using tap water instead of R/O but I got it under control with first scrubbing most of it off with a toothbrush, water changes with R/O water, turned my white lights down to only 6 hours a day, running carbon and phosphate remover in a reactor and adding a couple turbo snails and I don’t have any GHA anymore thankfully. But that’s just what worked for me

 

[mcarroll]

I payed so close attention to nutrients

But wait you said phosphates where unknown.

Anemones can actually put a very large drag on phosphates. Have you tested them recently at all if so what did you get? Can you test phosphates now and compare? You made me curious again.

 

[Reefbuds]

Before adding anemone and after. Added anemone in september. Before pic is day after adding after is today. It's been slowly down hill once the bioload got to much. I dose vodka and do water changes, I dose Prime as well every couple days. I cut down in feeding for a few months but it didn't help much. I don't have a phosphate test ( I know i need one ) . I've used a whole bottle of Dr Tims and use live aquaria Nitrifting bacteria.

P.S. sorry for crap cell pic

 

[Reefbuds]

But wait you said phosphates where unknown.

Anemones can actually put a very large drag on phosphates. Have you tested them recently at all if so what did you get? Can you test phosphates now and compare? You made me curious again.

To everything but phosphates, I don't have the kit. Haven't had the extra funds to get one as the ones I've seen cost a bit... I know how can I afford a reef but not a phosphate kit.. gimme a break on that

 

[Reefbuds]

Where is the picture of the problem tank?

Posted ^^

 

[Reefbuds]

Several years ago I stopped maintenance on my tank and ended up with green hair everywhere. Decided to get back in, I pulled as much hair out as I could every few days. Did some regular water changes and most importantly started vinegar dosing. Nitrate were as high as 60-80 when I started. Took 3 months and around 60 mls of vinegar per day in my 125 gallon. Today I run a low nutrient system.

For months after adding I did my hardest to control the nem nutes but it seemed like nothing was enough, water changes dosing everything. I don't have cyano anymore but the hair algae has gone wild. Doesn't help that I'm stressed at work lol, which may have led to a little less intense maintenance the past month or so.

 

[Reefbuds]

But wait you said phosphates where unknown.

Anemones can actually put a very large drag on phosphates. Have you tested them recently at all if so what did you get? Can you test phosphates now and compare? You made me curious again.

Never had algae problems at all until I added that nem, so I've never had to check them. Actually I've never had any problems at all until then but I want nothing more than a nem and clown combo

 

[mcarroll]

Definitely going to need more flow if there's only one power head in there. At least get a second one like you have, but lemme know if you want some other ideas.

Use timers to run them as a nice little tide simulator. Corals will be happy. Run one pump for 3-5 hours, then run the other pump for 3-5 hours. Repeat.

Low flow could be part of the problem, BTW.

To everything but phosphates, I don't have the kit. Haven't had the extra funds to get one as the ones I've seen cost a bit... I know how can I afford a reef but not a phosphate kit.. gimme a break on that

Come on man! How can you afford a reef tank but not a phosphate kit! Give me a break on that!!

(Irresistible.)

But seriously, can you at least take a sample to the LFS? If not, I'd at least get a drip test for phosphate...like Salifert or whatever. You can still get useful info from it, just not precise readings. That's OK.

And can you post the rest of your recent test results that you do have kits for?

I dose vodka and do water changes, I dose Prime as well every couple days.

Lay off the Vodka.

What's the Prime for?

I've used a whole bottle of Dr Tims and use live aquaria Nitrifting bacteria.

Lay off of this stuff too.

For months after adding I did my hardest to control the nem nutes

You may have been going in the wrong direction....were you trying to take nutrients DOWN instead of trying to maintain them for use by your animals?

 

[Reefbuds]

Definitely going to need more flow if there's only one power head in there. At least get a second one like you have, but lemme know if you want some other ideas.

Use timers to run them as a nice little tide simulator. Corals will be happy. Run one pump for 3-5 hours, then run the other pump for 3-5 hours. Repeat.

Low flow could be part of the problem, BTW.



Come on man! How can you afford a reef tank but not a phosphate kit! Give me a break on that!!

(Irresistible.)

But seriously, can you at least take a sample to the LFS? If not, I'd at least get a drip test for phosphate...like Salifert or whatever. You can still get useful info from it, just not precise readings. That's OK.

And can you post the rest of your recent test results that you do have kits for?




Lay off the Vodka.

What's the Prime for?



Lay off of this stuff too.



You may have been going in the wrong direction....were you trying to take nutrients DOWN instead of trying to maintain them for use by your animals?

I have significantly more flow now since I've heard this could have been a problem. Prime is used to keep nurients intoxic until it can be filtered.
I can take a sample for phosphate which I may do, altho I will proboly get a tester very soon after all this.
I was trying to keep nutrients as low as possible as to keep the carpet nem happy, but have since learned these guys are incredibly hardy.

 

[Reefbuds]

Definitely going to need more flow if there's only one power head in there. At least get a second one like you have, but lemme know if you want some other ideas.

Use timers to run them as a nice little tide simulator. Corals will be happy. Run one pump for 3-5 hours, then run the other pump for 3-5 hours. Repeat.

Low flow could be part of the problem, BTW.



Come on man! How can you afford a reef tank but not a phosphate kit! Give me a break on that!!

(Irresistible.)

But seriously, can you at least take a sample to the LFS? If not, I'd at least get a drip test for phosphate...like Salifert or whatever. You can still get useful info from it, just not precise readings. That's OK.

And can you post the rest of your recent test results that you do have kits for?




Lay off the Vodka.

What's the Prime for?



Lay off of this stuff too.



You may have been going in the wrong direction....were you trying to take nutrients DOWN instead of trying to maintain them for use by your animals?

0ppm ammonia 0ppm nitrate 10 to 15 ppm nitrate 8.0 to 8.2 ph

 

[Chris Villalobos]

15PPM is a whole lot of Nitrate for a reef tank filled with algae.

You are gonna need to remove all of that algae before you can even get close to an accurate read on your phosphate. I would take out every rock and scrub them. I had the same issue happen to my tank. It was beautiful and the coral were growing super fast then GHA started taking over and I couldn't do anything to stop it. By the time I bought a Hanna Checker there was hair algae everywhere.