Help!! I need advice! About to throw in the towel!

[NakiFantaki]

Well guys the title says it all! I'm frustrated to the point of thinking about closing up shop on my tank. Please help me in not having to make that hard decision!
I have been dealing with the worst GHA for the past few months. Everything I have tried has not seemed to really work...

First some info on my tank:

I have a IM Nuvo 20 gallon that has been running for just about 7 months. Current stock is 2 ocellaris clownfish, Midas Blenny, Pom Pom crab, RBTA, and a slew of hermits and snails for a clan up crew. ( Turbos, astreas, nassarius, Nerite, margarita, cerith and red leg hermit crabs. None of which have touched the hair algae. I also just picked up a lettuce slug in hopes it would chow down but no dice. I'm going to return the critter to the store so he won't starve.
As far as corals go I keep softies and LPS.
Tank has about 20 pounds of reef saver rock and 20 pounds of tropic eden reef flakes.

As far as equipment goes I'm running everything pretty much stock. I have one AL Prime HD LED for my lighting, and I run poly filter and regular filter floss along with a bag of chemipure elite that I hang in one of the back chambers. I also run a single filter floss. For flow I have the stock return pump and I have one single powerhead/wave maker. I do not run a skimmer. I don't have sump of a fuge.

Now on to the issue. No matter what I have tried I cannot for the life of me get rid of this stuff. It's growing on my rocks and my sandbed. I have tried everything I can think of to include: reduce lighting, eliminating my red and green channels on my light, reduce feedings, H202 dosing, consistent water changes, raising my mag to 1600-1700, scribing my rocks out of the tank, picking away at the hair algae and a tank 2 day blackout. All of which haven't worked long term as it always comes right back. I also just tried dosing 400mg of fluconazole which hasn't shown any benefits. All of my fish and corals are happy and healthy. The only thing that looks unhappy sometimes in the nem.

Current water parameters are as follows:
Temp 78-79
Salinity 1.025
PH 8.2
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrates 20 ( it usually stays between 10-25.
Calcium 440. (I have been dosing calcium once a week because I was dealing with low levels, couldn't get it higher then 360ish)
Mag 1450
Alk 10
With all of that being said I know my water is very nutrient rich because I am seeing a lot of those q-tip sponges pop up.

I know I need to get my nitrates down. I have been trying to avoid using a skimmer becuase this tank is in the bedroom and I'm worried about it being too loud, however if that is what I need to do then I will do it. There are not a lot of skimmer options for this tank though.

So what do I try next? What should my next plan of attack be? I really enjoy my tank but all of this algae is really upsetting me since I cannot use my light like I want to my corals aren't growing as fast as I would like them too. I feel like I've run out of options.

The plan tonight is to scrub the rocks and pick out as much hair algae as I can (again) and do a large heathy water change while I clean the sand bed, change out all my socks, media and floss.

Other then that I'm at a loss... can anyone give any advice or tips or ideas? It would be GREATLY appreciated!! Thanks so much for reading! Sorry it was so long!! I'm desperate!

 

[Jack Eskay]

Look into NOPOX by red sea

 

[Marc.The.Shark]

Try dosing H2O2. My buddy has a 14g biocube & was having the same problem. I told him to get as much off by hand as possible and spot treat with H2O2 the rocks he could remove from tank, then dose H2O2 and it slowly receded & is almost gone a month later

 

[bif24701]

Vibrant Reef Aquarium Cleaner. It works! It binds up nutrients the algae consume and produces with bacteria.

What I think you need is a good fuge with cheato and a powerful grow light for it. That's how I keep all algae in check. Unless you can maintain <1ppm NO3 and <.03 PO4 some other way algae is going to grow. If you grow it in the fuge it stays in the fuge. You have a powerful light over your tank, your going to need one on the fuge too.

 

[bif24701]

How old is your tank? Because all of my tanks get a GHA bloom in the beginning and after I get nutrients controled it goes awAy after it's eaten or scrubbed off and doesn't grow back.

 

[Flippers4pups]

Diffidently leaching from your rocks.

I noticed you haven't tested for PO4. With the algae growth, it may not show on a test kit, but you need to know anyway what's in the water column.

You have two options: (maybe more)

1) Take the rock out and use muriatic acid on it. There's a ton of info out on the internet about how to do it.

2) Replace it with live rock.



I've used marine algae fix with good results on GHA. Takes a great deal of time and you should be careful not to over dose it. Or try vibrant.

Your mileage may vary.

 

[NakiFantaki]

Look into NOPOX by red sea

I did look into that stuff but it said I needed a skimmer to use it...

 

[Crashjack]

You didn't mention phosphate with your readings. You could start measuring and use something like Phosguard to reduce phosphates (Phosguard doesn't need a reactor). You will still likely need to remove the algae by hand but the reduction of phosphate and maybe larger water changes to help reduce nitrate might show good progress. A skimmer is also a good idea as you have a pretty decent bioload in that small tank. However, I would try to achieve some progress before adding the skimmer just for the simple reason that you probably want to spend as little as possible if you are teetering on giving up.

 

[NakiFantaki]

Vibrant Reef Aquarium Cleaner. It works! It binds up nutrients the algae consume and produces with bacteria.

What I think you need is a good fuge with cheato and a powerful grow light for it. That's how I keep all algae in check. Unless you can maintain <1ppm NO3 and <.03 PO4 some other way algae is going to grow. If you grow it in the fuge it stays in the fuge. You have a powerful light over your tank, your going to need one on the fuge too.

I would need a HOB fuge... correct? Can you recommend any? Also what type of light?

 

[NakiFantaki]

How old is your tank? Because all of my tanks get a GHA bloom in the beginning and after I get nutrients controled it goes awAy after it's eaten or scrubbed off and doesn't grow back.

Tank is just over 7 months old. It comes back every single time I remove it.

 

[NakiFantaki]

Diffidently leaching from your rocks.

I noticed you haven't tested for PO4. With the algae growth, it may not show on a test kit, but you need to know anyway what's in the water column.

You have two options: (maybe more)

1) Take the rock out and use muriatic acid on it. There's a ton of info out on the internet about how to do it.

2) Replace it with live rock.



I've used marine algae fix with good results on GHA. Takes a great deal of time and you should be careful not to over dose it. Or try vibrant.

Your mileage may vary.

Oops. I forgot to add phosphates. My phosphates always read at 0.03 although I know the hair algae is eating it up before I can test for it.

Muratic acid? Wouldn't that be a restart on y tank if I did that?

 

[NakiFantaki]

Oops. I also forgot to talk about my water. All of my water is reading at 0 TDS.

 

[NakiFantaki]

You didn't mention phosphate with your readings. You could start measuring and use something like Phosguard to reduce phosphates (Phosguard doesn't need a reactor). You will still likely need to remove the algae by hand but the reduction of phosphate and maybe larger water changes to help reduce nitrate might show good progress. A skimmer is also a good idea as you have a pretty decent bioload in that small tank. However, I would try to achieve some progress before adding the skimmer just for the simple reason that you probably want to spend as little as possible if you are teetering on giving up.

I will look into phosguard. Thanks. The chemipure elite I am using is a carbon and GFO mix. Is that much different that phosguard?

 

[Bugger]

I would do a whole redo. Spray the rocks that are effected with peroxide get rid of the sand shake out the rocks in a bucket full of water. And then STOP FEEDING THE TANK. If you feed the tank it will grow no matter what

 

[NakiFantaki]

I would do a whole redo. Spray the rocks that are effected with peroxide get rid of the sand shake out the rocks in a bucket full of water. And then STOP FEEDING THE TANK. If you feed the tank it will grow no matter what

When you say stop feeding the tank? You mean with good or light? Will the fish starve?

 

[NakiFantaki]

I have a dip all of the rocks in a water peroxide mix will that kill everything on the rock? Will the tank have to cycle again?

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

I have a dip all of the rocks in a water peroxide mix will that kill everything on the rock? Will the tank have to cycle again?

its not that bad.

Id look into a quieter skimmer like a tunze. You may want to look at fluconazole too. its pretty effective with gha it seems. we can ask some of the Fluconazole pros here if you'd like.

a good thing a guy said once. "Nothing good happens fast in this hobby only bad things happen overnight, if you think you go slow, slow down even more" - Diesel

so its a bummer, but it is not the worst tank I have ever seen.

so you know, you can strip the nutrints till the zoas die the algae wont.

feed the fish healthfully. the corals will eat poop, light and nutrints from the water.

The red yellow bla bla spectrum is Banana Sandwiches BTW. ocean plants like blue light. the ocean has blue light no?

its new tank stuff. dont panic.

 

[CamG]

I have heard good things about Phosfiltrum from Aquavitro... Apparently, it's a high-quality GFO that you don't need a reactor for.
I have a package on the shelf just in case I need it. Haven't used it yet though.

 

[3mm3]

I dont normally do this but I would suggest dosing a carbon source and bacteria starting slowly, while at the same time keeping cal, alk, mag stable. Your issue will go away.

But if you go this route once the algea is gone you will have to decide how you want to maintain lower nutrients.

oops omit my entire advice I just realized you have no skimmer..

 

[NakiFantaki]

I have used fluconazole with no luck