What is the red stuff on coral? Purple stuff?

[Mark Derail]

I assume it is Cyano bacteria - but it's not going away. Phosphates are down to / at 0.03, it's the second treatment of Chemi-clean (50% WC in between after 2 days).

The purple would be coralline? I have some rocks that are 90% coverered with it. Looks nice, but do I want that much?

Trying to solve this issue before bringing fish back from QT in a month from now.
Also before buying anything else.

 

[reef heaven]

I assume it is Cyano bacteria - but it's not going away. Phosphates are down to / at 0.03, it's the second treatment of Chemi-clean (50% WC in between after 2 days).

The purple would be coraline? I have some rocks that are 90% coverered with it. Looks nice, but do I want that much?

Trying to solve this issue before bringing fish back from QT in a month from now.
Also before buying anything else.

Both look like coraline to me. My understanding is they come in purple, red and green. I have both as you do also. You could get an urchin to eat the coraline if you don't like it also.

 

[Mark Derail]

I don't want to buy more chemi-clean, it's expensive and I didn't buy it - came with first rescue tank - lady got rid of everything.
I know I did have cyano at one point, when phosphates were much higher, it would coat the bottom sand.
I hardly have any sand left, as I kept vacuuming it out.

When I use a turkey baster on it to blast it with water, the red & purple don't move.

I have an urchin, the short-haired version that everything sticks to. He likes licking the glass, even though I have 8 snails that do that.
He even seems to have a hitchhiker feather duster.

 

[Leslie Tabor]

It is coralline. It comes in several colors.

 

[Mark Derail]

Thanks for the help Leslie. I've been thinking of getting another urchin, a LFS has a baby long spine one.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

+1. Both are coralines , the red is a slow grower as does well at low and high light levels. The purples do not.

 

[ReefEco]

Hey Mark - yup, its coralline. How large is your tank? The only reason I ask is that it might be hard to sustain two urchins in a tank, unless you have a rather large well established tank, or target feed them. Cool hitchhiker on your urchin - looks to be a stalk of xenia or similar, rather than a feather duster, but it is hard to tell from the photo.

 

[SashimiTurtle]

+1 coralline. I'd love to have some red, but I have pink and purple in my nano. Pink is lower, purple is higher up. By higher up I mean the tank is 13" tall... The pink is also fluorescent under Kessil 0% color on the growth edge.