Help with film algae on glass.

lpsouth1978 · 10/09/2015, 08:56 AM

We have been getting A LOT of film algae on the glass lately, I have been scraping the glass twice a day. I am not sure why and am looking for a solution. I am running GFO, Carbon, and Biopellets. GFO was changed about 2 weeks ago, and carbon was replaced about a week ago. This i not a big issue, just annoying having to scrape the glass constantly. My parameters are:

Temp - 78
SG - 1.025 (calibrated Refractometer)
Ammonia - 0 (Red Sea)
Nitrate - 0 (Red Sea)
Phosphate - 0 (Hannah Checker)
Calcium - 480 (Nyos)
Alk - 9.3 (Lamotte and Salifert)
Mag - 1275 (Nyos)

DrBoxedWine · 10/09/2015, 09:26 AM

A nitrate/phosphate issue is my guess. You're getting a zero reading because the algae is consuming them. Try cutting feedings? I'm having an algae issue as well, I've begun vinegar dosing and cut feedings to every other day, as well. If you have an ato and a skimmer, it seems that there. Is almost no downside to vinegar dosing from what I have read.

I also found that a uv sterilizer helps with glass cleanings. But MI e was like $300 for my 75g tank, and comes with its own maintenance routines itself. I had to get a big one to keep ich in check until life allows me a bit more free time to quarantine everything properly. Maybe a smaller one would help with algae?

lpsouth1978 · 10/09/2015, 09:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DrBoxedWine

A nitrate/phosphate issue is my guess. You're getting a zero reading because the algae is consuming them. Try cutting feedings? I'm having an algae issue as well, I've begun vinegar dosing and cut feedings to every other day, as well. If you have an ato and a skimmer, it seems that there. Is almost no downside to vinegar dosing from what I have read.

I also found that a uv sterilizer helps with glass cleanings. But MI e was like $300 for my 75g tank, and comes with its own maintenance routines itself. I had to get a big one to keep ich in check until life allows me a bit more free time to quarantine everything properly. Maybe a smaller one would help with algae?

I have a hard time believing that with all of the equipment I have that nitrates/phosphates are an issue. I also have a relatively lightly stocked system. If this is the issue, I think I would rather have fat, healthy fish and have to scrape the glass, than to limit the intake of food to limit film algae.

I have considered a UV sterilizer, but the cost vs benefits just does not add up. It would cost me around $700-$1000 to get an appropriately sized unit, and they are not very efficient for the money.

As for Vodka dosing, I have done a decent amount of research on that and the concensus seems to be that, when using biopellets, vodka dosing should not be used.

I should add that I also dimmed the red LED's down a great deal last night. I am hoping this will help with the film algae.

skiwez · 10/09/2015, 12:54 PM

Are you sure it's film algae? I ask because I recently started biopellets and the glass builds up a bacterial film pretty quickly since then. Not to the point where i have wipe down twice a day, but definitely once a day

lpsouth1978 · 10/09/2015, 01:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skiwez

Are you sure it's film algae? I ask because I recently started biopellets and the glass builds up a bacterial film pretty quickly since then. Not to the point where i have wipe down twice a day, but definitely once a day

That is a good question. It looks like film algae to me, but I am not sure what it would look like if it was a bacterial film. How would I know for sure? It is brown and comes off easily without becoming stringy or anything. You can see all of the snail tracks in it as well.

I have had the biopellets since day one (approximately 6 months), but this has become worse lately. The only real change that we have made was to employ a doser to keep the Alk stable. It was added just over a week ago.

Pife · 10/09/2015, 01:05 PM

I think it comes and goes with the seasons to a point. You don't have much flow in a tank that size imho . Maybe its time to clean your skimmer? Or freshen up carbon or gfo.

lpsouth1978 · 10/09/2015, 01:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pife

I think it comes and goes with the seasons to a point. You don't have much flow in a tank that size imho . Maybe its time to clean your skimmer? Or freshen up carbon or gfo.

We have considered adding more flow, just not sure how to do it. It is already impossible to keep the sand where we want it. Adding more flow would only make it more difficult. We get great PE on most corals and all fish seem happy. We also get good movement from LPS without totally blasting them with flow. Any suggestions here would also be appreciated.

It may very well be time to clean the skimmer, but the GFO and carbon were both replaced within the last 2 weeks.

Reef Frog · 10/09/2015, 09:28 PM

I've found that the standard mag cleaners leave residue that's barely visible but where new growth will grow from. Try using a thin strip of the Mr Clean Magic eraser, original without chemicals. It will remove everything. For me, it significantly increases the time between cleanings.

It's also possible your GFO is exhausting before you change it out.

10/09/2015, 08:56 AM	#1
lpsouth1978 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Arizona Posts: 915	Help with film algae on glass. We have been getting A LOT of film algae on the glass lately, I have been scraping the glass twice a day. I am not sure why and am looking for a solution. I am running GFO, Carbon, and Biopellets. GFO was changed about 2 weeks ago, and carbon was replaced about a week ago. This i not a big issue, just annoying having to scrape the glass constantly. My parameters are: Temp - 78 SG - 1.025 (calibrated Refractometer) Ammonia - 0 (Red Sea) Nitrate - 0 (Red Sea) Phosphate - 0 (Hannah Checker) Calcium - 480 (Nyos) Alk - 9.3 (Lamotte and Salifert) Mag - 1275 (Nyos) __________________ Current tank: 40B work in progress w/20L sump

10/09/2015, 01:05 PM	#6
Pife Registered Member Join Date: May 2013 Posts: 7,408	I think it comes and goes with the seasons to a point. You don't have much flow in a tank that size imho . Maybe its time to clean your skimmer? Or freshen up carbon or gfo. __________________ Brandon I'm not saying let's get rid of all the stupid people.* I'm just saying let's remove all the warning labels and let the problem work itself out. Current Tank Info: 150g DT plumbed to an 80g frag tank and 220g sump in the basement. ~6-MP40s ~ 12 ATI powered t5s ~ Reefbrites and Radions supplementing ~ Custom GEO Skimmer ~ GEO CA Reactor 6x24~ Iwaki 70 Return ~

10/09/2015, 09:26 AM	#2
DrBoxedWine Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Denver, CO Posts: 899	A nitrate/phosphate issue is my guess. You're getting a zero reading because the algae is consuming them. Try cutting feedings? I'm having an algae issue as well, I've begun vinegar dosing and cut feedings to every other day, as well. If you have an ato and a skimmer, it seems that there. Is almost no downside to vinegar dosing from what I have read. I also found that a uv sterilizer helps with glass cleanings. But MI e was like $300 for my 75g tank, and comes with its own maintenance routines itself. I had to get a big one to keep ich in check until life allows me a bit more free time to quarantine everything properly. Maybe a smaller one would help with algae?

10/09/2015, 12:54 PM	#4
skiwez Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Queens, NYC Posts: 160	Are you sure it's film algae? I ask because I recently started biopellets and the glass builds up a bacterial film pretty quickly since then. Not to the point where i have wipe down twice a day, but definitely once a day

10/09/2015, 09:28 PM	#8
Reef Frog Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Maryland Posts: 3,121	I've found that the standard mag cleaners leave residue that's barely visible but where new growth will grow from. Try using a thin strip of the Mr Clean Magic eraser, original without chemicals. It will remove everything. For me, it significantly increases the time between cleanings. It's also possible your GFO is exhausting before you change it out.