Green Hair Algae die-off...

AngeloM3 · 05/03/2006, 04:45 PM

Hello everyone.... a month or so ago i finally got my MH fixture. I had the light on a 12hr schedule. I had no corals in the tank so it grew nothing but green hair algae. Within a couple of weeks the algae covered about %80 of my LR and had to clean the glass every two days.

What I did is buy two small corals, turn the MH light off completely, actinics are on only 8hrs a day.

What is the die-off rate with algae? Fast, moderate or slow?

Alaskan Reefer · 05/03/2006, 05:01 PM

Pretty slow, even the actinics can support it although not as well. The problem is that even if you kill it now with lighting off, you still have the same problem -- nutrient overloaded water. As soon as you turn the lights on it's coming back unless you get the phosphate out of the system... Your most likely sources for excess phosphate are overfeeding, feeding solely shrimp based foods, not rinsing the binder out of frozen foods, or saturated LR that is now leaching.

AngeloM3 · 05/03/2006, 05:04 PM

Its not overfeeding.... I was very careful of that.
But I was feeding for about a month and a half without rinsing the binding off of the frozen food.... I since have made sure to rinse and repeat

kyleka. · 05/03/2006, 05:19 PM

I had that problem before, clean crew was my fix.

TracyJean · 05/03/2006, 05:21 PM

I am having the same hair algae problem...thanks to my son who dumped 1/2 bottle dry fish food in the tank

I dont' even use that dry food, I use frozen.

I didn't know you were supposed to rinse the binding off the frozen food. How exactly do you do that without losing half the food down the drain

Danster · 05/03/2006, 05:46 PM

It has to be a nutrient problem. Have you checked your phosphate levels? Are you skimming heavy? These are the top few reasons for excessive algae.

TracyJean · 05/03/2006, 06:10 PM

I haven't tested phosphates, I am just assuming they are high from the whole over feeding incident. I am skimming heavy, and using phosphate remover, and I added chaeto to my sump.

My question is about how to remove the binding from the frozen fish food? I hadn't heard to do that before.

jerehmy · 05/03/2006, 06:13 PM

is skimming heavy good or bad? And how do you rinse the binding?

Silverado · 05/03/2006, 07:35 PM

I also would like to know how to rinse the frozen food.

ister98 · 05/03/2006, 07:39 PM

Yeah, I also wasn't aware that you need to rinse frozen food. So, how do you rinse it off w/o loosing half the food? Do you use a cloth?

twnship · 05/03/2006, 07:45 PM

i too would like to know how to rinse the food

someone who does it pls answer

TracyJean · 05/04/2006, 06:47 AM

bump

AngeloM3 · 05/04/2006, 07:58 AM

take a pinch of mysis or what ever your using....
put it in a net... run it under warm water

there ya go....

you can either pick it out of the net and place in tank... or put the net in the tank just enough so the food can get out and use a baster to suck up the food and squirt it where you need it.

Randall_James · 05/04/2006, 08:25 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Silverado
I also would like to know how to rinse the frozen food.

Break off a chunk of your food (mysis in my case)
In a dixie cup (better half will not let me use real dishes) add the frozen food and fill about half way with ro/di (do not warm) and allow to thaw

you will see the mysis sinks to the bottom as it thaws very nicely, pour off the top water and refill with fresh water. Pour off and repeat a couple times, the mysis will be cleaned of the "murky" binding water after a couple rinses and you will lose virtually none of the good mysis.

I go one step further (and this really is pain but seems to help volumes)
I have feeding tongs that I pull the cleaned mysis out of the cup with and add a little at a time to the tank (all pumps off)

the fish will eat all of it before it reaches the bottom (they will learn quickly it is time to eat)
I keep adding these pinches of mysis until it starts to reach the floor of the tank (fish full) This process takes about 10 minutes a day so is not that bad. The tank stays clear of feed however (no nutrient to feed nuisance algae)

This also provides the time for my LPS to consume their mysis bits I drop on them.

Since going to this rather burdensome process, my algae problems are almost Nil.

zeblisik · 05/04/2006, 10:38 AM

cleaning frozen food:

you could use a small plastic seive or a net, thaw your food and run tap water over it. i dont think filtered water is needed(do you rinse your nets and buckets and everything in filtered water? its just overkill)

Randall_James · 05/04/2006, 10:43 AM

I do store my nets in water actually

, but no it really is not necessary to use RO/DI for everything, I just do because I can. It also eliminates another source of "undesireable" elements that "could" be introduced

TracyJean · 05/04/2006, 10:47 AM

Thnaks so much everybody...Sorry Angelo for highjackin' your thread

zeblisik · 05/04/2006, 10:48 AM

algea outbreak..... how bad is the outbreak? there's always going to be algea. you're always going to have to scrape some algea. some algea eating critters should always be used.

you shouldnt starve algea by withholding light(unless youre giving way too much) in a running tank. algea can get by much better with less light than most other organisms.

if theres an algea problem...
1. increase protein skimming(also make sure its running efficiently, clean the skum off the sides)
2. consistently do weekly water changes
3. feed less. (animals rarely do badly for having a little less food)

i think these 3 things will help. alternatively for a long term solution you could make use of a rigorours nutrient export refugium. but i think the first 3 things will help, algea will go haywire if nutrients reach a certain threashold, so long term solutions may not be needed to acheive balance.

zeblisik · 05/04/2006, 10:55 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Randall_James
I do store my nets in water actually , but no it really is not necessary to use RO/DI for everything, I just do because I can. It also eliminates another source of "undesireable" elements that "could" be introduced

I guess it depends on the quality of ones tap water. The minute amounts of the undesireables you would introduce by rinsing your net in tap water, diluted in your aquarium is, i think, negligible.

Consider that many people use tap water to fill up their aquariums initially.

Rinsing everything in filtered water is only required in Mexico

Randall_James · 05/04/2006, 11:10 AM

Quote:

Rinsing everything in filtered water is only required in Mexico

egads man I did not say "Required"

I only stated that I do it because it is right there, my RO/DI faucet sits 3" from my tap water. If your RO/DI is as easy to use as tap water, why would you use tap water?

I said I do it because I "Can"...

Now if I had to crawl under the sink, out in the garage, after I move the car, after I put my shoes on, well the story would most certainly be different.

AngeloM3 · 05/04/2006, 11:21 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by TracyJean
Thnaks so much everybody...Sorry Angelo for highjackin' your thread

hahaha

dont worry about it

05/03/2006, 04:45 PM	#1
AngeloM3 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Rhode Island Posts: 1,016	Green Hair Algae die-off... Hello everyone.... a month or so ago i finally got my MH fixture. I had the light on a 12hr schedule. I had no corals in the tank so it grew nothing but green hair algae. Within a couple of weeks the algae covered about %80 of my LR and had to clean the glass every two days. What I did is buy two small corals, turn the MH light off completely, actinics are on only 8hrs a day. What is the die-off rate with algae? Fast, moderate or slow?

05/03/2006, 05:01 PM	#2
Alaskan Reefer Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Eagle River, Alaska Posts: 2,360	Pretty slow, even the actinics can support it although not as well. The problem is that even if you kill it now with lighting off, you still have the same problem -- nutrient overloaded water. As soon as you turn the lights on it's coming back unless you get the phosphate out of the system... Your most likely sources for excess phosphate are overfeeding, feeding solely shrimp based foods, not rinsing the binder out of frozen foods, or saturated LR that is now leaching. __________________ Unattended children will be given double shot espresso and a free puppy. Current Tank Info: 125g FOWLR -- Conversion Back To SPS In Progress

05/03/2006, 05:04 PM	#3
AngeloM3 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Rhode Island Posts: 1,016	Its not overfeeding.... I was very careful of that. But I was feeding for about a month and a half without rinsing the binding off of the frozen food.... I since have made sure to rinse and repeat __________________ "I'm sick of chasing my dreams. I'm just going to ask them where their going and catch up with them later." -Mitch Hedberg R.I.P

05/03/2006, 06:13 PM	#8
jerehmy Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: san diego Posts: 511	is skimming heavy good or bad? And how do you rinse the binding? __________________ Fish are the best medecine for body and mind Current Tank Info: 55g, 40g, 29gx2, 60g, 10g African Cichlids (Breeders) 40g SW Reef with a 20g sump/refugium 75lbs prime LR Mag 9.5 SCWD and Remora skimmer, 2x96w PC's

05/04/2006, 07:58 AM	#13
AngeloM3 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Rhode Island Posts: 1,016	take a pinch of mysis or what ever your using.... put it in a net... run it under warm water there ya go.... you can either pick it out of the net and place in tank... or put the net in the tank just enough so the food can get out and use a baster to suck up the food and squirt it where you need it. __________________ "I'm sick of chasing my dreams. I'm just going to ask them where their going and catch up with them later." -Mitch Hedberg R.I.P

05/03/2006, 05:19 PM	#4
kyleka. Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 51	I had that problem before, clean crew was my fix.

05/03/2006, 05:21 PM	#5
TracyJean Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Illinois Posts: 57	I am having the same hair algae problem...thanks to my son who dumped 1/2 bottle dry fish food in the tank I dont' even use that dry food, I use frozen. I didn't know you were supposed to rinse the binding off the frozen food. How exactly do you do that without losing half the food down the drain

05/03/2006, 05:46 PM	#6
Danster Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Georgia Posts: 161	It has to be a nutrient problem. Have you checked your phosphate levels? Are you skimming heavy? These are the top few reasons for excessive algae.

05/03/2006, 06:10 PM	#7
TracyJean Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Illinois Posts: 57	I haven't tested phosphates, I am just assuming they are high from the whole over feeding incident. I am skimming heavy, and using phosphate remover, and I added chaeto to my sump. My question is about how to remove the binding from the frozen fish food? I hadn't heard to do that before.

05/03/2006, 07:35 PM	#9
Silverado Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Esperance, NY Posts: 151	I also would like to know how to rinse the frozen food.

05/03/2006, 07:39 PM	#10
ister98 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Hacienda Hts, CA Posts: 48	Yeah, I also wasn't aware that you need to rinse frozen food. So, how do you rinse it off w/o loosing half the food? Do you use a cloth?

05/03/2006, 07:45 PM	#11
twnship Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: greenville south carolina Posts: 202	i too would like to know how to rinse the food someone who does it pls answer

05/04/2006, 06:47 AM	#12
TracyJean Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Illinois Posts: 57	bump

05/04/2006, 10:38 AM	#15
zeblisik Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Brooklyn, NY USA Posts: 393	cleaning frozen food: you could use a small plastic seive or a net, thaw your food and run tap water over it. i dont think filtered water is needed(do you rinse your nets and buckets and everything in filtered water? its just overkill)

05/04/2006, 10:43 AM	#16
Randall_James Premium Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 6,727	I do store my nets in water actually , but no it really is not necessary to use RO/DI for everything, I just do because I can. It also eliminates another source of "undesireable" elements that "could" be introduced __________________ "It's a dog eat dog world and I feel like I am wearing milkbone underwear"

05/04/2006, 10:47 AM	#17
TracyJean Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Illinois Posts: 57	Thnaks so much everybody...Sorry Angelo for highjackin' your thread

05/04/2006, 10:48 AM	#18
zeblisik Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Brooklyn, NY USA Posts: 393	algea outbreak..... how bad is the outbreak? there's always going to be algea. you're always going to have to scrape some algea. some algea eating critters should always be used. you shouldnt starve algea by withholding light(unless youre giving way too much) in a running tank. algea can get by much better with less light than most other organisms. if theres an algea problem... 1. increase protein skimming(also make sure its running efficiently, clean the skum off the sides) 2. consistently do weekly water changes 3. feed less. (animals rarely do badly for having a little less food) i think these 3 things will help. alternatively for a long term solution you could make use of a rigorours nutrient export refugium. but i think the first 3 things will help, algea will go haywire if nutrients reach a certain threashold, so long term solutions may not be needed to acheive balance.