Red Algae?

dwilly · 08/05/2009, 02:56 PM

I am curious about what this is? Also, if it's bad, how do I get rid of it? I have a lot of it growing in my tank. I don't think it is cyano because I can't scrub it off w/ a brush and I tried Chemi-clean and lights out for 3 days which had no affect on it. When I had cyano in another tank a couple yrs ago it was kind of a slime and I could remove it w/ a toothbrush.
Here are my parameters:
calc 440
alk 10
mag 1320
sal 1.025
nitrates 0
phos undetectable (but no real way to test anyway w/ home test kit?)
I have a 75 gl tank w/ a 30 gl sump about 80 gls total. I do 10 gls weekly water changes (rc salt) and I mix kalk in my top-off. Tank is bb (fsb). I feed Rod's food and I use a turkey baster to clean the rocks on every wc.

aquariumclown · 08/05/2009, 03:23 PM

It is a type of red turf algae, I had it all over my rocks, it's ugly as hell. Here are the things I've done in the last 4 months and they are 75% gone.

- Started vodka dosing
- Decreased lighting schedule (used to run 11 hrs 3x 250 MH, now added 4 T5's that run 10hrs and MH run 4hrs.)
- Added very large turbo snails
- Added 2 long spined urchins (I believe these are the most effective of all of the above in combating this algae)
- Reduced Phos and Nitrates to acceptable levels.

Nanook · 08/05/2009, 04:24 PM

This thread has been moved to the current forum.

dwilly · 08/06/2009, 11:55 AM

Bummer this got moved out of the forum where I need the help from. Here no one has looked at it except one guy who can't read.
(He's convinced this problem will go away if I get my nitrates a lot lower than the 0 they are at - big help.) Mods, how can I get help with this if I can't post it in the correct forum?

Nanook · 08/07/2009, 12:21 AM

Algae does not equal sps.

sue711 · 08/07/2009, 05:26 AM

... what Aquariumclown said is correct I believe. I have this red turf algae too, and turbo snails really helped.

dwilly · 08/07/2009, 10:23 AM

It's an sps dominated tank and that is the forum where I spend my time and I was looking for some help on this issue. There's a lot of posts there that don't = 100% sps and they don't all get trashed.

aquariumclown · 08/07/2009, 10:37 AM

dwilly, you can try and start a new post in sps keepers forum directing them to this thread.

wmilas · 08/07/2009, 10:40 AM

I'm having the EXACT same issue. Its been driving me nuts. I was pretty much convinced it was turf but I wasn't sure. Mine is red, with a hint of orange/brown. It is NOT cyano as the stuff is wicked tough to get off the rocks. Its got a very slight fuzz. None of my tangs eat it and they literally destroy every other type of algae.

It started growing on my back wall first only over coralline. It won't grow on bare acrylic. I've taken to scraping teh back wall jsut to get rid of this stuff, and I HATE scraping the back wall. Over the last 3 weeks it has spread to a few of my rocks, and I'm starting to get worried. It doesn't look like its bothering my sps but the stuff is god awful ugly.

I'm a bit hesitant to try the urchins because my tank is acrylic. I could try some of the large snails though.

I vodka dose and at first I wondered if the dosing was causing this, although it doesnt resemble bacteria at all, but I wondered if the increased baterial load was somehow feeding it. I noticed an acceleration in growth when I took my GFO reactor off line. I didn't want to dose vodka and run gfo as my photometer was detecting < 0.01 ppm Phosphate.

I think this stuff grows if it can get ahold of even the tiniest bit of phosphate.

aquariumclown · 08/07/2009, 10:54 AM

I'm sorry to tell you but having turbo snails won't help you, they don't really eat the stuff. The reason I used them is when the urchins eat the red algae, the turbo snails eat any new green algae that grows on the bare spots, this helps to keep new red algae from growing back but turbos alone don't rid the red turf algae. You can try to lower your phosphates, but it will take a very long time for it to take affect, if I had to guess, a year or more.

I'm not sure, but if you want to try the long spine urchins like I did, if you make sure the sides of your acrylic is clean, the urchins won't be on the acrylic as there's nothing there to eat. It's a tough call and a risk, but I never see my urchins on my glass since it's always kept clean.

rendogg · 08/07/2009, 11:04 AM

My Scopas tangs would take care of that.

Nanook · 08/07/2009, 11:07 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by aquariumclown
dwilly, you can try and start a new post in sps keepers forum directing them to this thread.

Wrong again.

aquariumclown · 08/07/2009, 11:09 AM

Just from my experience, I have a large hippo, clown tang, purple tang, and unknown bristletooth black tang. None of them touches the stuff.

rendogg · 08/07/2009, 11:35 AM

^Try a Scopas tang, results may vary, I had red turf algae exactly like that on a piece of coral that was damaged, put it in the tank with 4 Scopas, it was gone in minutes. My Yellow tangs and Powder Blue even got involved in the frenzy. No algae except Coralline and Halimeda survive in that tank..... knock on wood. I also have a couple Rabbits and some snails to round out the crew.

wmilas · 08/07/2009, 11:35 AM

I have a Hippo, Scopas, and 3 yellows. The scopas and yellows pick at it, and they keep it very close cut. the problem is they can't yank all of it off the back wall and rocks so it still spreads, it just stays very well trimmed.

I'm going to slowly increase my vodka dosing and see if I can starve it out. I'll keep the urchin as a last resort kind of thing. I don't want to clean my back wall, I like the coralline look, even though its all scrubbed off atm. Its a black acrylic back so it wont show scratches, but still the scratch potential scares me

hyperfocal · 08/07/2009, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by aquariumclown
I'm sorry to tell you but having turbo snails won't help you, they don't really eat the stuff.

Sorry yours haven't, but mine do. I had a real problem with red turf algae; dropping my nitrates slowed it's spread, but it didn't start to go away until I added the turbos. They love the stuff.

impur · 08/07/2009, 04:49 PM

I have this stuff as well. Turbos just keep it mowed down. I'm working on a new tank and plan to cook all my rock before it goes into the new tank. I will also have to scrape it off the frag plugs i've got. Its gonna be fun!! I'll probably start dosing vodka as well. I hate this stuff.

08/05/2009, 02:56 PM	#1
dwilly Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Palatine, Illinois Posts: 475	Red Algae? I am curious about what this is? Also, if it's bad, how do I get rid of it? I have a lot of it growing in my tank. I don't think it is cyano because I can't scrub it off w/ a brush and I tried Chemi-clean and lights out for 3 days which had no affect on it. When I had cyano in another tank a couple yrs ago it was kind of a slime and I could remove it w/ a toothbrush. Here are my parameters: calc 440 alk 10 mag 1320 sal 1.025 nitrates 0 phos undetectable (but no real way to test anyway w/ home test kit?) I have a 75 gl tank w/ a 30 gl sump about 80 gls total. I do 10 gls weekly water changes (rc salt) and I mix kalk in my top-off. Tank is bb (fsb). I feed Rod's food and I use a turkey baster to clean the rocks on every wc. __________________ A little learning is a dangerous thing, but a lot of ignorance is just as bad. Bob Edwards Current Tank Info: 75 gl reef w/ 30 gl sump, Vertex In 100, 6 x 54w T5, 10 gl nano

08/05/2009, 04:24 PM	#3
Nanook Ancient Eskimo Legend Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: Saint Louis, MO Posts: 41,852 Blog Entries: 11	This thread has been moved to the current forum. __________________ The wind blew, the chit flew, and then they came two by two. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Current Tank Info: 375g Tanganyikan Tank & 470g mixed reef

08/06/2009, 11:55 AM	#4
dwilly Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Palatine, Illinois Posts: 475	Bummer this got moved out of the forum where I need the help from. Here no one has looked at it except one guy who can't read. (He's convinced this problem will go away if I get my nitrates a lot lower than the 0 they are at - big help.) Mods, how can I get help with this if I can't post it in the correct forum? __________________ A little learning is a dangerous thing, but a lot of ignorance is just as bad. Bob Edwards Current Tank Info: 75 gl reef w/ 30 gl sump, Vertex In 100, 6 x 54w T5, 10 gl nano

08/07/2009, 12:21 AM	#5
Nanook Ancient Eskimo Legend Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: Saint Louis, MO Posts: 41,852 Blog Entries: 11	Algae does not equal sps. __________________ The wind blew, the chit flew, and then they came two by two. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Current Tank Info: 375g Tanganyikan Tank & 470g mixed reef

08/07/2009, 10:23 AM	#7
dwilly Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Palatine, Illinois Posts: 475	It's an sps dominated tank and that is the forum where I spend my time and I was looking for some help on this issue. There's a lot of posts there that don't = 100% sps and they don't all get trashed. __________________ A little learning is a dangerous thing, but a lot of ignorance is just as bad. Bob Edwards Current Tank Info: 75 gl reef w/ 30 gl sump, Vertex In 100, 6 x 54w T5, 10 gl nano

08/05/2009, 03:23 PM	#2
aquariumclown Moved On Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Irvine, CA Posts: 3,356	It is a type of red turf algae, I had it all over my rocks, it's ugly as hell. Here are the things I've done in the last 4 months and they are 75% gone. - Started vodka dosing - Decreased lighting schedule (used to run 11 hrs 3x 250 MH, now added 4 T5's that run 10hrs and MH run 4hrs.) - Added very large turbo snails - Added 2 long spined urchins (I believe these are the most effective of all of the above in combating this algae) - Reduced Phos and Nitrates to acceptable levels.

08/07/2009, 05:26 AM	#6
sue711 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: MA, USA Posts: 270	... what Aquariumclown said is correct I believe. I have this red turf algae too, and turbo snails really helped.

08/07/2009, 10:37 AM	#8
aquariumclown Moved On Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Irvine, CA Posts: 3,356	dwilly, you can try and start a new post in sps keepers forum directing them to this thread.

08/07/2009, 10:40 AM	#9
wmilas Keep magnets 9" apart! Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Lemont, Il Posts: 1,023	I'm having the EXACT same issue. Its been driving me nuts. I was pretty much convinced it was turf but I wasn't sure. Mine is red, with a hint of orange/brown. It is NOT cyano as the stuff is wicked tough to get off the rocks. Its got a very slight fuzz. None of my tangs eat it and they literally destroy every other type of algae. It started growing on my back wall first only over coralline. It won't grow on bare acrylic. I've taken to scraping teh back wall jsut to get rid of this stuff, and I HATE scraping the back wall. Over the last 3 weeks it has spread to a few of my rocks, and I'm starting to get worried. It doesn't look like its bothering my sps but the stuff is god awful ugly. I'm a bit hesitant to try the urchins because my tank is acrylic. I could try some of the large snails though. I vodka dose and at first I wondered if the dosing was causing this, although it doesnt resemble bacteria at all, but I wondered if the increased baterial load was somehow feeding it. I noticed an acceleration in growth when I took my GFO reactor off line. I didn't want to dose vodka and run gfo as my photometer was detecting < 0.01 ppm Phosphate. I think this stuff grows if it can get ahold of even the tiniest bit of phosphate. __________________ 120x36x30 acrylic display, 1000 gallon sps with lots o fish

08/07/2009, 10:54 AM	#10
aquariumclown Moved On Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Irvine, CA Posts: 3,356	I'm sorry to tell you but having turbo snails won't help you, they don't really eat the stuff. The reason I used them is when the urchins eat the red algae, the turbo snails eat any new green algae that grows on the bare spots, this helps to keep new red algae from growing back but turbos alone don't rid the red turf algae. You can try to lower your phosphates, but it will take a very long time for it to take affect, if I had to guess, a year or more. I'm not sure, but if you want to try the long spine urchins like I did, if you make sure the sides of your acrylic is clean, the urchins won't be on the acrylic as there's nothing there to eat. It's a tough call and a risk, but I never see my urchins on my glass since it's always kept clean.

08/07/2009, 11:04 AM	#11
rendogg Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Abbotsford, B.C. Posts: 578	My Scopas tangs would take care of that.

08/07/2009, 11:09 AM	#13
aquariumclown Moved On Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Irvine, CA Posts: 3,356	Just from my experience, I have a large hippo, clown tang, purple tang, and unknown bristletooth black tang. None of them touches the stuff.

08/07/2009, 11:35 AM	#14
rendogg Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Abbotsford, B.C. Posts: 578	^Try a Scopas tang, results may vary, I had red turf algae exactly like that on a piece of coral that was damaged, put it in the tank with 4 Scopas, it was gone in minutes. My Yellow tangs and Powder Blue even got involved in the frenzy. No algae except Coralline and Halimeda survive in that tank..... knock on wood. I also have a couple Rabbits and some snails to round out the crew.

08/07/2009, 04:49 PM	#17
impur Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Eugene, OR Posts: 4,262	I have this stuff as well. Turbos just keep it mowed down. I'm working on a new tank and plan to cook all my rock before it goes into the new tank. I will also have to scrape it off the frag plugs i've got. Its gonna be fun!! I'll probably start dosing vodka as well. I hate this stuff. __________________ Great spirits often encounter violent opposition from mediocre minds. Current Tank Info: 75gal, 20gal sump, 6-54w T5 TEK