Is this something I should be concerned about?

[sladeclan]

The following are some pictures of things growing in my 7 month old tank. Are these things I should be worried about. All my levels are good except for my Nitrate is at 20.

 

[evolved]

Photos 1 & 2: Cyanobacteria
Photo 4: sponge

I'm unsure what you are trying to capture in photo 3.

 

[SantaMonicaHelp]

what is the phosphate?

 

[sladeclan]

Here are some more pictures. It is a hard white forming on the rocks.

Could it be salt? I just notice my Salinity is at 1.026 I usually keep it at 1.023

 

[sladeclan]

I do not have a way of testing my phosphate. I know this is something I need to still get.

 

[tyler1503]

Is the white stuff encrusting on the rock?
Urchins are known to mow down on algae so is it possible that the urchin has striped that section of rock and the white is the actual rock showing through?

 

[evolved]

^ Yup, the white is bare rock left behind from the pencil urchin.

 

[sladeclan]

That would make sense . He was sitting at that spot all day yesterday. Does that mean I should feed him more so he does not eat all my rocks?
That takes care of one of my issues. Does anyone know about the three others?

 

[Irsug1]

Chicle an treatment may help cyano. Try to siphon some out of you can.

 

[Irsug1]

Sorry. **** spell check. Chemiclean, is what you want.

 

[tyler1503]

That would make sense . He was sitting at that spot all day yesterday. Does that mean I should feed him more so he does not eat all my rocks?
That takes care of one of my issues. Does anyone know about the three others?

He won't actually eat the rocks, just some of the types of algae that grow on them. From my experience most urchins won't accept prepared food so you'll just have to make sure you have some algae in the tank at all times. Some urchins will supposedly eat nori though.
As for the red stuff, that's Cyanobacteria. It can spread pretty rapidly throughout the tank and be a real pain to get rid of. There are chemical cures out there to kill it off, I've heard old things about the chemiclean mentioned above, but have never used it myself. You should try siphoning it out, keeping up with general husbandry and a possible lights out period and see how you go.

Oh, and salinity at 1.026 is not a problem That's where I keep all my tanks at.

 

[sladeclan]

Thanks for all the help. I think I will just get rid of the rock with red on it. It is a small rock and I did not like it much anyway. I hope I got it before it spreads more. Is the Green stuff the same situation? What is a good Phosphate tester?

 

[tyler1503]

Thanks for all the help. I think I will just get rid of the rock with red on it. It is a small rock and I did not like it much anyway. I hope I got it before it spreads more. Is the Green stuff the same situation? What is a good Phosphate tester?

No worries.
That should work I'm not sure if the spores can travel through the water or if they spread across the rock though. If they can travel through the water, they could still settle elsewhere and grow again.
The green stuff is hair algae. Most people have no trouble getting rid of it. I had some issues with it a while ago and couldn't get rid of it though.
To start with you should just try to remove it by hand if you can and siphon it out. A lights out period will help with this too. Keeping up with water changes will help to reduce nitrates and phosphates and this will starve the algae.
What sort of CUC do you have?

 

[sladeclan]

I have a 50 gal tank. My CUC are 2 turbo snails, 7 narcissus snails, 4 Astrea Snails, 2 large blue legged crabs, 1 baby blue legged crab, 5 red legged crabs. I recently lost my cleaner shrimp and emerald crab.