Please ID

[Vitaly S]

Hi,

I think this is green hair algae but not 100% sure. It growth in the sand, when I remove it by hand, sand seems to be bound by it in clumps. However, this affects only sand, my rock-work and glass do not have this growth.

During last month my Phosphates were as high as 0.16, and as low as 0.04. Yesterday test shows them at 0.08
During last month my Nitrates were as high as 8 and as low as 4. Yesterday test shows them at 4

I have not changed water for 3 weeks, NO3 and PO4 were not high enough, I am doing 5gal water change tonight, tank size is 55gal display and 11gal sump.

Please see pictures below. I've taken them with orange filter to help reduce blue color:

and overall shot of these spots:

 

[Samina]

Looks like hair algae by the zoas and the second pic with the shell. Also see diatoms and detritus collecting in those other spots you are referring to.

 

[45ZoaGarden]

+1 on hair algae around the zoas. Could be dinos in other places

 

[Vitaly S]

Any recommended course of actions?

So far I've been manually removing sand that is stuck together due to algae. Also started using vibrant (10ml once a week, 2nd week).

I feed 4 times a day using automated feeder. 2x one turn and 2x two turns. one turn feeds about 10-20 grains of Hikari small dry food. Every other day or two I also feed half a cube of frozen mysis shrimp, same brand.

I have 6 fish, 2x clowns, 2x azure damsel, 1 anthias and 1 blenny, also a cleaner shrimp, a bubble tip anemone and a brittle starfish.

 

[45ZoaGarden]

A sand sifter might help. How’s your pod population?

 

[Vitaly S]

I've tried diamond goby, but it decided to go carpet surfing the very first night =( I do have cover, but he found a small area somehow.

I do have good amount of pods, they crawl around the sand, rocks and bottom of glass.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Gha turning to bryopsis. Pull what you can by hand and ive had great success battling this with use of liquid vibrant

 

[hyprc]

Gha turning to bryopsis. Pull what you can by hand and ive had great success battling this with use of liquid vibrant

I second this post. Although a Foxface got rid of my bryopsis long before I ever heard of Vibrant (although Vibrant is awesome stuff)

 

[45ZoaGarden]

I’ve also heard tangs and fox face’s eat that **** like candy. I have a 45 gallon cube so I just use fluconzanole whenever I get byropsis

 

[hyprc]

I’ve also heard tangs and fox face’s eat that **** like candy. I have a 45 gallon cube so I just use fluconzanole whenever I get byropsis

Just do what I do and perpetually loan a yellow tang from the LFS. When it starts to get larger than about 3", trade it in for another juvenile

 

[45ZoaGarden]

Just do what I do and perpetually loan a yellow tang from the LFS. When it starts to get larger than about 3", trade it in for another juvenile

My lfs is stingy and Nickel n dimes me. They would make me pay half the price of the tang every time I wanted to trade it in LOL

 

[hyprc]

My lfs is stingy and Nickel n dimes me. They would make me pay half the price of the tang every time I wanted to trade it in LOL

My LFS gives me about 1/3 the price so I get it. The natural pest control plus added bioload are both very much worth it to me, especially since I only have to trade in once a year or so and if I upgrade, no trade needed, just another tang lol.

 

[45ZoaGarden]

Tangs eat pests? Like wrasses? I though they just ate algae... I was eye balling a baby yellow eye kole at my lfs last weekend ....if I knew they ate pests...

My LFS gives me about 1/3 the price so I get it. The natural pest control plus added bioload are both very much worth it to me, especially since I only have to trade in once a year or so and if I upgrade, no trade needed, just another tang lol.

 

[hyprc]

Tangs eat pests? Like wrasses? I though they just ate algae... I was eye balling a baby yellow eye kole at my lfs last weekend ....if I knew they ate pests...

No, sorry, I meant pest algae. I think of it as a pest just like the others lol. Honestly Wrasses can be hit and miss anyways. My Six Line never touched a flatworm when I had them, he just ate my pods and killed off my nicest fish (7 total...). Hoeven's or Yellow Coris are pretty much the only ones I'd consider really and I think they both require sand beds.

Yellow Tangs are sometimes more versatile than given credit for, though. My very first one had a fair appetite for bubble algae.

 

[45ZoaGarden]

No, sorry, I meant pest algae. I think of it as a pest just like the others lol. Honestly Wrasses can be hit and miss anyways. My Six Line never touched a flatworm when I had them, he just ate my pods and killed off my nicest fish (7 total...). Hoeven's or Yellow Coris are pretty much the only ones I'd consider really and I think they both require sand beds.

Yellow Tangs are sometimes more versatile than given credit for, though. My very first one had a fair appetite for bubble algae.

I was looking at a fairy or flasher wrasse. I had a sixline with no problems. He unfortunately didn’t leave the top of the rock work when I did a wc . I still need an aglae eater anyway, I’ll look into some yellows

 

[Vitaly S]

Thank you for suggestions. I will keep using Vibrant, also ordered Flux Rx.

Interesting idea of "loaning" tangs, always thought my tank was too small What size should yellow tang should I get? 2-3 inch?

 

[hyprc]

Thank you for suggestions. I will keep using Vibrant, also ordered Flux Rx.

Interesting idea of "loaning" tangs, always thought my tank was too small What size should yellow tang should I get? 2-3 inch?

Under 3", you're looking for a fresh juvenile or as close as you can possibly get to it. I would avoid anything 3" or over. Mine's juuuust about there after a year in the tank, getting ready for a 4' x 2' shallow tank to transfer him into soon. He's starting to get anxious lately, darting around and kicking up sand (which my clown has taken after now and have a bunch of bare spots in my sand bed now lol)

 

[Vitaly S]

Got to see... I'm worried if he is really little, my fish might bully him. They already bullies one wrasse to death =/

 

[hyprc]

Got to see... I'm worried if he is really little, my fish might bully him. They already bullies one wrasse to death =/

I would only worry if they're huge and beefy. Yellows have a barb on their tail they can use for defense and most other fish respect it. But if you have something that bullies a six line (devil incarnate IMO lol) to death, that's one bad fish.