Help with algae

[SpencerT82]

I continue to water change every week like normal and siphon the sand but this algae keeps coming back. My tanks 112 gallons and phosphates are 0.02 and nitrates 1.6. I need help iding it and how to stop it from continuing to return

 

[Lavey29]

Need better pics under white light. How old is the tank? Your nitrates are very low. Need complete parameters, lighting and flow.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

If this is a very new tank, you might just need to let the "algae cycle" take its course. Several different kinds of algae will appear, with each (hopefully) outcompeting the previous one for nutrients, etc. As long as it's just a moderate amount, I would not try to remove much at this stage, at least not manually. Assuming the tank is cycled and has no ammonia, you should start adding some cuc. These will consume some of the algae.

*I do agree that we need to know more about the tank in general... age, lighting, flow, filtration... And pictures under white lights will also help.

*Nitrates may be too low, but depending on what the algae is consuming, they may be fine.

 

[Spare time]

You simply need stuff to eat it

 

[BanjoBandito]

There are no algae problems only herbivore problems!

 

[Dav2996]

Maybe diatoms??? Yea let it run it’s course if it’s new. Had plenty of ugly stages when starting up.

 

[Garf]

I continue to water change every week like normal and siphon the sand but this algae keeps coming back. My tanks 112 gallons and phosphates are 0.02 and nitrates 1.6. I need help iding it and how to stop it from continuing to return

Is the tank 8 months old? (Going off your join date)

 

[vetteguy53081]

please post pics under white lighting. Impossible to see anything

 

[sixty_reefer]

It’s diatoms, fairly common in new tanks

 

[SpencerT82]

Is the tank 8 months old? (Going off your join date)

Roughly a little close to a year around 11 months I would say

 

[SpencerT82]

It’s diatoms, fairly common in new tanks

It’s 11 months old

 

[SpencerT82]

please post pics under white lighting. Impossible to see anything

 

[Garf]

It’s 11 months old

Looks like a typical maturity delay caused by dry rock sand start up.

 

[SpencerT82]

If this is a very new tank, you might just need to let the "algae cycle" take its course. Several different kinds of algae will appear, with each (hopefully) outcompeting the previous one for nutrients, etc. As long as it's just a moderate amount, I would not try to remove much at this stage, at least not manually. Assuming the tank is cycled and has no ammonia, you should start adding some cuc. These will consume some of the algae.

*I do agree that we need to know more about the tank in general... age, lighting, flow, filtration... And pictures under white lights will also help.

*Nitrates may be too low, but depending on what the algae is consuming, they may be fine.

11 months old, 3 hydra 32s with blue Chanel’s and 100 and purples and whites at 30 - 0 through day, 10 hour photperiod. I have a redsea reef mat, Red Sea skimmer (not running currently to increase nitrates because no fish in tank treating for ich in qt). And a Fuge but looks like my macro algae is beginning to die off( turning white) I’m trying to feed half a cube of misis a day. I have trocus snails blue leg hermits and astreia snails. 2 mp 40s at 50 percent reef crest. Tons like tons of bio media in sump. And I am running about 10x tank turnover

 

[Garf]

11 months old, 3 hydra 32s with blue Chanel’s and 100 and purples and whites at 30 - 0 through day, 10 hour photperiod. I have a redsea reef mat, Red Sea skimmer (not running currently to increase nitrates because no fish in tank treating for ich in qt). And a Fuge but looks like my macro algae is beginning to die off( turning white) I’m trying to feed half a cube of misis a day. I have trocus snails blue leg hermits and astreia snails. 2 mp 40s at 50 percent reef crest. Tons like tons of bio media in sump. And I am running about 10x tank turnover

Forget the macro algae, until you need it. Even then, it’s not required.

 

[SpencerT82]

Looks like a typical maturity delay caused by dry rock sand start up.

How do I stop the algae from growing on the sand it pretty much doubles in size every day

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

How do I stop the algae from growing on the sand it pretty much doubles in size every day

If there is no coral, you can try a blackout. I think 3 days is the general recommendation.
You can try to increase flow to the lower part of the tank - not enough to blow the sand around, but enough to discourage algaes that like low flow.
You can research here or on other sites about the kind of snails that consume the different algaes, as well as those that stir the sandbed.

Curious, is this the first algae outbreak since starting the tank? If so, like @Garf said, it's probably a delayed "ugly phase" and waiting it out might be the best way to proceed.