NoPox and Hair Algae??

[Oaks]

Hi reefers.
Has anyone used Red Sea No3Po4-X before?

I have been cycling a new tank for a week now (Fluval evo 13.5) with live sand and live rock ther is about 12 gallons of water volume. I got the NoPox free with my Red Sea Coral Pro Salt. I’m dosing about 0.5ml daily and just recently today noticed a outbreak of hair algae (some parts green and some brownish in color). I’ve read that this can be normal in the early stages of using the product but I am worried that the algae will continue to grow or take over. Thoughts? Advice?

Water tests at
PH 8.2
Ammonia .50ppm
Nitrite 0ppm
Nitrate 5.0ppm
Salinity 1.025
Temp 80-81 Fahrenheit (without the heater on as my apartment stays pretty warm

 

[Katrina71]

Nopox can be risky in a small tank. I would not use it period without a skimmer. Can cause a bacterial bloom and suffocate your tank. I know this from experience.

 

[Katrina71]

On a positive note, it did kill my gha.

 

[IslandLifeReef]

You have to run a skimmer if you use NoPoX.

 

[g5flier]

Only a week, give it lots of time to properly cycle w/o adding anything.

 

[Oaks]

I do have the Fluval skimmer ps2 that’s perfectly fits in this tank.
As well as I have a small fan blowing air across the top of the water for better surfaces aeration.

 

[Oaks]

Only a week, give it lots of time to properly cycle w/o adding anything.

Are you saying I should stop dosing the NoPox? Red Sea said it’s not a bad idea dose while cycling.

Also I have thought about keeping the lights off or reduced to only an hour a day on for the remaining cycle and see if that helps with the algae

 

[IslandLifeReef]

Are you saying I should stop dosing the NoPox? Red Sea said it’s not a bad idea dose while cycling.

Also I have thought about keeping the lights off or reduced to only an hour a day on for the remaining cycle and see if that helps with the algae

If you are following the Red Sea cycling program, I would do what they say. There are many different ways to cycle a tank. Pick one and stick with it. If you start combining different methods, you could introduce problems IMO.

 

[Gil03]

If you're using nopox you need to be wet skimming, however your tank is so new that no matter what you do outside of waiting to get a CUC you're just jumping the gun.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

The nopox is an organic carbon source. It directly feeds the good bacteria.(and likely the gha as well) You started with live rock and live sand. You already have bacteria and a bio filter. It’s actually already cycled. You are just waiting for the water to mature a bit (build bacteria in the Wc).
I would hit the gha with a toothbrush , use filter floss to get it out and shop for some snails.
Ninja star snails , small turbos , turbans.