Phosphate, algae, and ugh

[Syntax1235]

I have a Reef overcome with algae of varying types of which have not been identified….yet.

I had a nice clean tank until I started having acro issues back in February and it has been a roller coaster since then. I have finally figured out my tank issues and the acros are growing and coloring up once again.

One of my troubleshooting tasks involved cleaning out my nasty algae ridden sump with a sand bed. I scooped out the sand over the course of a week and cleaned the sump. For a week or so my tank and sump were free of algae. Well, that didn’t last long! My tank is now covered, chaeto I recently purchased won’t grow for some reason, and my cleanup crew is inadequate to deal with this mess. I lost a bunch due to interceptor treatment t a few months ago. Why did I clean the nasty sump? The little voice in head was telling me to leave it alone. I should have listened.

My phosphate shot up to .27 after an oxolinic acid treatment and I’ve been using Rowaphos to slowly bring it down so I can begin to tame this beast. After about a month I ran out of Rowaphos and decided to get the big guns - brs high capacity. I started with 6 tbs with a phosphate level of .15, and within 24 hours I was at .1. I Turned down the reactor to a trickle. Several hours later the phosphate was .06. I turned off the reactor and the phosphate rose to .08 after about 8 hours.

Anyway, the phosphate dance is annoying: test, fill reactor, turn off ato, purge dust from the gfo into a bucket, top off tank, turn on ato, and finally adjust flow. Done, right? Wrong. Test several hours to a day later, if too low turn off the reactor and wonder how long it will take for the water to stagnate and start producing hydrogen sulfide, overthink it a litttle, and then try and adjust the reactor to a drip. Test and rethink whether reactor should be turned on. This is all so exhausting.

Am I the only one who goes through this thought process? There must be a better way?

Thanks for reading. I’ll take any advice as well

The tank is 5x2x2, about 155 gallons.

Phosphate: .08 (currently and changing by the minute). Tested via Hanna

Nitrate: 12

Other parameters are probably not that important to this issue.

 

[Rtaylor]

I think you’re messing with stuff too much. Those levels are really low, stop testing multiple times per day. Don’t test more than twice a week. Remove the gfo if it’s taking phosphate to zero. Chaeto likes higher nutrient levels, so that’s probably why it won’t grow.

I think you need to invest in a new cuc. 1-3 snails/crabs per gallon. That will probably take care of most of the algae in a couple weeks.

 

[Syntax1235]

I think you’re messing with stuff too much. Those levels are really low, stop testing multiple times per day. Don’t test more than twice a week. Remove the gfo if it’s taking phosphate to zero. Chaeto likes higher nutrient levels, so that’s probably why it won’t grow.

I think you need to invest in a new cuc. 1-3 snails/crabs per gallon. That will probably take care of most of the algae in a couple weeks.

I agree. I need to go back to testing phosphate once a week and just back off the micro management. I’m working on getting some snails from a semi local reefer, just haven’t had the time to make it happen.

Thanks for the common sense advice.

 

[Rtaylor]

I agree. I need to go back to testing phosphate once a week and just back off the micro management. I’m working on getting some snails from a semi local reefer, just haven’t had the time to make it happen.

Thanks for the common sense advice.

Reefcleaners.org is also great when you need a lot of cuc

 

[Syntax1235]

Reefcleaners.org is also great when you need a lot of cuc

I’ve ordered from John before. He seems to have the best prices; however, he won’t ship to me free anymore due to doa issues using usps. I have to pay an extra $40 or so to ship ups overnight. It’s a pain, but I might go that route if I can’t get enough from the guy I’m visiting Friday.