Purple looking algea?

svenom · 01/22/2011, 10:58 PM

Hi all, I am fairly new to this hobby, I have been running my tank pretty successfully for just over two years now. and my only big concern is this purple looking algea, that is spreading everywhere. I have tried removing it by hand and doing a few water changes a month, and it seems to go away for a while then comes right back. I also am only feeding the fish about three times a week. Can anyone shed some light on what I might be doing wrong?

wbdevers · 01/22/2011, 11:12 PM

Looks like a cyano outbreak to me. Best way to treat is reduction of nutrients (like all algae probs) and increased water flow. What do you have for water flow right now? The way to reduce nutrients of course is water changes, skimming and macro algaes in the sump.

svenom · 01/22/2011, 11:17 PM

I have a skimmer running in my sump and two power heads in the tank.
You think macro algaes in the sump might help? I'll give that a try next time i head up to the store.

wbdevers · 01/23/2011, 12:06 AM

Sure won't hurt. Use Chaetomorpha though. Culerpa scares me. I don't want something that could go sexual and poison my tank. Got enough problems as is with normal everyday stuff!

Go ahead and post all of your tank params: WQ readings, size, equipment etc. Will help with other posters reading the thread.

AaronM · 01/23/2011, 01:54 AM

Things that helped me re. cyano: less feeding (tick), washing frozen food with tankwater b4 using it, using GAC and GFO!!, and keeping up with regular water changes/cyphoning. I guess those are some ongoing strategies.

Also, using rodi rather than tap water for top up can be a cause, supposedly flow and supposedly old bulbs might be factors to consider.

I found cutting the lights, incl. making sure there wasn't much ambient light in the tank room, for 3 days really hurt the cyano, approx 60% cut back. Didn't hurt coral or fish at all. I reckon its a good first punch leading into a nice flurry of ongoing stuff...

yeah whats your nitrate abnd phosphate atm?

timistim · 01/23/2011, 08:09 AM

I got two pieces of rock from a friend that had that stuff on it, my snails put the hurt on it in a mater of days. Do you have any snails or any kind of clean up crew?

GT3 · 01/23/2011, 08:58 AM

Change the schedule feed you fish once a week instead with minimal amount of food, they will not die. That decrease a lot of nutrient input to your tank.

Palting · 01/23/2011, 10:08 AM

Don't know if I would consider anyone running a tank successfully for over 2 years should consider themselves "new" like you said above

.

Cyano outbreak in a 2 year old tank. What kind of lights and how old are your bulbs? How big is your tank and what kind of flow? What's your pH, alk, nitrate?

Michael7979 · 01/23/2011, 11:49 AM

You need to find the reason it is being caused.
Could be feeding, lighting, a death, maintance, but once you find the issue you can start to correct it.

Syphon as much as you can when doing water changes.
Check your lights. How old are they?
Missing any fish or some of your CUC?
How often are you doing WC's?

svenom · 01/31/2011, 07:46 PM

I just replaced my lights about a week ago. So that could be part of my problem.
PH-8.2,Ammonia-0,Nitrite-0,Nitrate-40,Phosphates-2(API testers)
The return pump has a max flow of 775.

I am running a 75gallon corner tank, with a 15 gallon sump. I have two fluorescent 20W lamps, one white and one Actinic.

svenom · 01/31/2011, 07:48 PM

I guess what I ment by new is I am not to familure with all the terminology yet.

5ft24 · 01/31/2011, 10:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by svenom

I just replaced my lights about a week ago. So that could be part of my problem.
PH-8.2,Ammonia-0,Nitrite-0,Nitrate-40,Phosphates-2(API testers)
The return pump has a max flow of 775.

I am running a 75gallon corner tank, with a 15 gallon sump. I have two fluorescent 20W lamps, one white and one Actinic.

if phosphates are 2, and not 0.2, that is a huge contributor... Phos should be as close to 0 as possible... are you using tap water, or RO/DI? Tap water can have large amounts of phosphates (And other undesirables...)
Some GFO will help drop the phosphates, but you need to find the source and eliminate it.

Felixc395 · 01/31/2011, 10:30 PM

Are you dosing carbon or are you running biopellets? I have heard many adverse effects of running carbon, etc. including cyano outbreaks. Those high phosphates probably aren't helping either.

Anyways, good luck solving your problem!

svenom · 02/28/2011, 07:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Felixc395

Are you dosing carbon or are you running biopellets? I have heard many adverse effects of running carbon, etc. including cyano outbreaks. Those high phosphates probably aren't helping either.

Anyways, good luck solving your problem!

I am using the Biopellets.

svenom · 02/28/2011, 07:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 5ft24

if phosphates are 2, and not 0.2, that is a huge contributor... Phos should be as close to 0 as possible... are you using tap water, or RO/DI? Tap water can have large amounts of phosphates (And other undesirables...)
Some GFO will help drop the phosphates, but you need to find the source and eliminate it.

I have been using an RODI system. I guess I just need to narrow down the source of my high phosphates. I'll try the GFO and see how that helps until i can find the source of high phosphates...thanks.

01/22/2011, 11:12 PM	#2
wbdevers Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: MS Gulf Coast Posts: 754	Looks like a cyano outbreak to me. Best way to treat is reduction of nutrients (like all algae probs) and increased water flow. What do you have for water flow right now? The way to reduce nutrients of course is water changes, skimming and macro algaes in the sump. __________________ Wes Beatings will continue until morale improves!!! "I've sentenced boys younger than you to the gas chamber. Didn't want to do it. I felt I owed it to them."--Judge Smails Current Tank Info: 125g ML dual corner OF mixed reef, Custom stand and canopy, 40g custom sump, lighting (in flux :( )

01/23/2011, 12:06 AM	#4
wbdevers Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: MS Gulf Coast Posts: 754	Sure won't hurt. Use Chaetomorpha though. Culerpa scares me. I don't want something that could go sexual and poison my tank. Got enough problems as is with normal everyday stuff! Go ahead and post all of your tank params: WQ readings, size, equipment etc. Will help with other posters reading the thread. __________________ Wes Beatings will continue until morale improves!!! "I've sentenced boys younger than you to the gas chamber. Didn't want to do it. I felt I owed it to them."--Judge Smails Current Tank Info: 125g ML dual corner OF mixed reef, Custom stand and canopy, 40g custom sump, lighting (in flux :( )

01/23/2011, 08:58 AM	#7
GT3 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2010 Posts: 294	Change the schedule feed you fish once a week instead with minimal amount of food, they will not die. That decrease a lot of nutrient input to your tank. __________________ 20G Reef Tank, DSB, 25lbs of live rocks. Spec: Ph 8.2, >520 cal and 8 kh, Temp 77F, SG 1.026 Equip: Coralife 24x2 T5HO, 2x Koralia 425 powerheads, no skimmer. 2L HOB Sump: Cheato, feather dusters, copepods, bristleworms Livestock: 4 blue-legged hermits, 2 nassarius snails, 1 astra snail, 1 Argent Mono, 1 FireGoby Corals: Mushrooms, yellow polyps, zoanthids

01/23/2011, 10:08 AM	#8
Palting Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Ohio Posts: 6,912	Don't know if I would consider anyone running a tank successfully for over 2 years should consider themselves "new" like you said above . Cyano outbreak in a 2 year old tank. What kind of lights and how old are your bulbs? How big is your tank and what kind of flow? What's your pH, alk, nitrate? __________________ Anything I post is just an opinion. One of many in this hobby. Believe and follow at your own risk of rapid and complete annihilation of all life in your tank :) Current Tank Info: Incept 3/2010, 150 RR, 50g sump, 20g fuge, 150w 15K MH x3, T5 actinics x8, moonlight LED x6, 1400gph return, Koralia 1400 x4, 300 g skimmer, 4 tangs, 2 mandarins, 2 perc, 6 line, 3 cardinals, 2 firefish, SPS, LPS, zoas, palys, shrooms, clam

01/23/2011, 11:49 AM	#9
Michael7979 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Keizer,OR Posts: 923	You need to find the reason it is being caused. Could be feeding, lighting, a death, maintance, but once you find the issue you can start to correct it. Syphon as much as you can when doing water changes. Check your lights. How old are they? Missing any fish or some of your CUC? How often are you doing WC's? __________________ MIKE THERE IS ALWAYS MORE TO LEARN!! 240 RE-build in progress!.....(slowly) Current Tank Info: 240g, 4- 400w Radiums on PFO HQI ballasts, 4- 110w VHO on IceCap 660 ballast, Euro-Reef Skimmer

01/22/2011, 11:17 PM	#3
svenom Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Chicago Posts: 9	I have a skimmer running in my sump and two power heads in the tank. You think macro algaes in the sump might help? I'll give that a try next time i head up to the store.

01/23/2011, 01:54 AM	#5
AaronM Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Sydney Posts: 480	Things that helped me re. cyano: less feeding (tick), washing frozen food with tankwater b4 using it, using GAC and GFO!!, and keeping up with regular water changes/cyphoning. I guess those are some ongoing strategies. Also, using rodi rather than tap water for top up can be a cause, supposedly flow and supposedly old bulbs might be factors to consider. I found cutting the lights, incl. making sure there wasn't much ambient light in the tank room, for 3 days really hurt the cyano, approx 60% cut back. Didn't hurt coral or fish at all. I reckon its a good first punch leading into a nice flurry of ongoing stuff... yeah whats your nitrate abnd phosphate atm?

01/23/2011, 08:09 AM	#6
timistim Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Houston Posts: 113	I got two pieces of rock from a friend that had that stuff on it, my snails put the hurt on it in a mater of days. Do you have any snails or any kind of clean up crew?

01/31/2011, 07:46 PM	#10
svenom Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Chicago Posts: 9	I just replaced my lights about a week ago. So that could be part of my problem. PH-8.2,Ammonia-0,Nitrite-0,Nitrate-40,Phosphates-2(API testers) The return pump has a max flow of 775. I am running a 75gallon corner tank, with a 15 gallon sump. I have two fluorescent 20W lamps, one white and one Actinic.

01/31/2011, 07:48 PM	#11
svenom Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Chicago Posts: 9	I guess what I ment by new is I am not to familure with all the terminology yet.

01/31/2011, 10:30 PM	#13
Felixc395 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Posts: 1,612	Are you dosing carbon or are you running biopellets? I have heard many adverse effects of running carbon, etc. including cyano outbreaks. Those high phosphates probably aren't helping either. Anyways, good luck solving your problem!

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