robert
Valuable Member
Macro Algae, turf scrubbers etc have become quite popular as a means of nutrient export.
A couple of years back, I ran into trouble on a propogation system with green hair algae, despite solid readings of 0 nitrate and 0 phosphate. The system was composed of three frag tanks and one display feeding into a series of four sumps. Total volume was well over 600 gallons and all tanks shared the same water.
Three of the four sumps were illuminated with two containing chaeto - the other held large colonies of wild zoa rocks and the fourth unilluminated, held the pumps, skimmers, dosers auto-top-off etc.
To get to the point...I let the chaeto go thinking my nutrients were in control - which lead to a massive GHA outbreak in the frag sump immediately downstream of the first chaeto sump. No other tank was affected with the GHA at first, but I noticed a bewildering decline in the heath of the corals in all of my tanks. Colonies which had been flourshing stopped growing and many died. SPS were a total loss, I lost many LPS and all but the most robust palys took huge hits. even BTAs shrank, split and bleached. Levels were checked across the board and I even tried several different brands of salt.
I manually removed buckets of GHA - got sea hares, foxfaces, extra tangs - but I couldn't get it under control - Nitrates 0 phosphates 0 .
It was as if my corals were being consumed remotely and converted to GHA and other nusience algaes in the sump.
Ultimately algaes did begin showing up in other tanks - at that point I ditched almost all of my chaeto - pretty much a garbage can full - and the crisis abated. I got control back.
What happened?
How and why did corals die in tanks which were free of algae and had no nutrient overload while GHA - chaeto and other algaes flourished in my sump?
How did removal of the chaeto correct the problem - or did it - was it coincidence?
Has anyone else been overrun with algae while reading 0 nitrate and phosphate? If so any bleaching stn or explained coral deaths?
A couple of years back, I ran into trouble on a propogation system with green hair algae, despite solid readings of 0 nitrate and 0 phosphate. The system was composed of three frag tanks and one display feeding into a series of four sumps. Total volume was well over 600 gallons and all tanks shared the same water.
Three of the four sumps were illuminated with two containing chaeto - the other held large colonies of wild zoa rocks and the fourth unilluminated, held the pumps, skimmers, dosers auto-top-off etc.
To get to the point...I let the chaeto go thinking my nutrients were in control - which lead to a massive GHA outbreak in the frag sump immediately downstream of the first chaeto sump. No other tank was affected with the GHA at first, but I noticed a bewildering decline in the heath of the corals in all of my tanks. Colonies which had been flourshing stopped growing and many died. SPS were a total loss, I lost many LPS and all but the most robust palys took huge hits. even BTAs shrank, split and bleached. Levels were checked across the board and I even tried several different brands of salt.
I manually removed buckets of GHA - got sea hares, foxfaces, extra tangs - but I couldn't get it under control - Nitrates 0 phosphates 0 .
It was as if my corals were being consumed remotely and converted to GHA and other nusience algaes in the sump.
Ultimately algaes did begin showing up in other tanks - at that point I ditched almost all of my chaeto - pretty much a garbage can full - and the crisis abated. I got control back.
What happened?
How and why did corals die in tanks which were free of algae and had no nutrient overload while GHA - chaeto and other algaes flourished in my sump?
How did removal of the chaeto correct the problem - or did it - was it coincidence?
Has anyone else been overrun with algae while reading 0 nitrate and phosphate? If so any bleaching stn or explained coral deaths?
