Hair Algae: Dangerous, or just ugly?

[Nasabeau]

I have asked this question numerous times in other threads but always secondary to the main point, so I figured to get a solid answer, I would make it the main topic of the thread. Is Hair algae actually dangerous to the tank, or is it just unsightly. to be honest, I think it looks neat, and I wanted to know if there was a reason it should cause me concern if it shows up. I have a coral beauty, and a crab (planning on putting in more crabs too) which will eat hair algae. is there a reason that a small amount of hair algae growing in the tank would be bad for the fish, assuming it was kept under control and all the parameters of the water were fine?

 

[Paulie069]

H just ugly And because you see it but you have to remember or reefs have hair algae growing on them. That’s why all those fish are there where else does all your algae eating fish come from think about it so to me little algae in a tank not really a big deal plus I’m a mother nature let it kind of guy and I don’t do any quarantines or chemicals ever

 

[uhgster1]

If fish only, it’s no big deal unless it gets so bad your fish actually have to swim through it and it clogs up all your equipment. Coral is different because now you have competition for light and nutrients. Algae covered sps and lps will die without light or nutrients getting to them. Hope that helps.

 

[X-37B]

Its not dangerous but it will overtake most tanks pretty quick once it gets a hold.

 

[Nasabeau]

If fish only, it’s no big deal unless it gets so bad your fish actually have to swim through it and it clogs up all your equipment. Coral is different because now you have competition for light and nutrients. Algae covered sps and lps will die without light or nutrients getting to them. Hope that helps.

I suppose that's good info, I hadn't even thought of how it might effect corals once I get them in there

 

[Nasabeau]

Its not dangerous but it will overtake most tanks pretty quick once it gets a hold.

so what you're saying is its not likely to be a small amount of controlled algea?

 

[xxkenny90xx]

H just ugly And because you see it but you have to remember or reefs have hair algae growing on them. That’s why all those fish are there where else does all your algae eating fish come from think about it so to me little algae in a tank not really a big deal plus I’m a mother nature let it kind of guy and I don’t do any quarantines or chemicals ever

Totally agree. Algae is natural and even important imo. It's all about stocking your tank in a way that everything is balanced.

Algae=free food

 

[Nasabeau]

Totally agree. Algae is natural and even important imo. It's all about stocking your tank in a way that everything is balanced.

Algae=free food

I suppose that's good, because I actually like the way it makes my rocks look. makes me feel like the whole tank is a living thing

 

[Nasabeau]

Totally agree. Algae is natural and even important imo. It's all about stocking your tank in a way that everything is balanced.

Algae=free food

speaking of stocking, would you mind weighing in on this thread? https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/what-rule-to-use-when-stocking.776116/#post-8205903

 

[X-37B]

so what you're saying is its not likely to be a small amount of controlled algea?

Its hard to contain a small amount in a tank. It spreads pretty fast and thats why most try to keep it out of their system.

 

[xxkenny90xx]

speaking of stocking, would you mind weighing in on this thread? https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/what-rule-to-use-when-stocking.776116/#post-8205903

Got you covered!

 

[Nasabeau]

Its hard to contain a small amount in a tank. It spreads pretty fast and thats why most try to keep it out of their system.

I had hoped between adding fish that eat algae, snails and crabs it might be controllable cause I do actually like the look. I will keep in mind though that it tends to spread quickly

 

[xxkenny90xx]

I had hoped between adding fish that eat algae, snails and crabs it might be controllable cause I do actually like the look. I will keep in mind though that it tends to spread quickly

Although I don't mind algae you don't want it to overrun your tank. I like to manually remove it here and there. When you do that you are literally manually removing phosphates from your tank (another benefit imo)

 

[Nasabeau]

Although I don't mind algae you don't want it to overrun your tank. I like to manually remove it here and there. When you do that you are literally manually removing phosphates from your tank (another benefit imo)

when I do my water changes every other week I've been sucking up any algae or cyano I can easily get to with the siphon hose just cause I figured it would be better to take it out to prevent nitrate or phosphate build up. good to know I am on the right track there XD

 

[glb]

Algae comes from excess nutrients in the tank. In and of itself, it’s mostly just ugly. But high nutrients can cause problems once you get coral in the tank.

 

[Nasabeau]

Algae comes from excess nutrients in the tank. In and of itself, it’s mostly just ugly. But high nutrients can cause problems once you get coral in the tank.

well I just added my first skimmer so hopefully that won't be a huge problem, but I will keep that in mind. Right now my plan is for an anemone tank with maybe a few corals. I love the look of the long wavy arms

 

[Paulie069]

H just ugly And because you see it but you have to remember or reefs have hair algae growing on them. That’s why all those fish are there where else does all your algae eating fish come from think about it so to me little algae in a tank not really a big deal plus I’m a mother nature let it kind of guy and I don’t do any quarantines or chemicals ever

As a matter of fact I just got this little yellow tang today to help mow the lawn and I came home dumped out water it came in , put him in a tupperware with My tank water and in 5 mins dumped him into tank. No quarantine or chems needed ever

 

[Nasabeau]

As a matter of fact I just got this little yellow tang today to help mow the lawn and I came home dumped out water it came in , put him in a tupperware with My tank water and in 5 mins dumped him into tank. No quarantine or chems needed ever

I don't quarantine the fish, my store will set them in their own tank away from other fish if you buy them in advance and pay a little fee, but I do acclimate. I put the bag in the water 15 minutes, then dump him into a small container that sits in the water to keep temps matching. test salinity of my water and store water, then add a half cup of my tank water to the store water every 5 minutes until the water in the small container doubles. I suck out half and repeat until the salinity is within a few ppt (my local store keeps their tanks around 30, mine is about 34-35, I try to get the water to at least 33-34) then I net the fish and put them in my tank