should i remove algae?

walkman2001 · 08/25/2011, 06:33 PM

new tank, about 3~ weeks old

40 lbs live sand
40 dead sand

20lbs live rock
70lbs dead

water 79*F
9 hour HID
14 hour T5
12 hour LED night light

Should i remove the algae? its been getting worse and the snails i got are not eating it.

BCreefmaker · 08/25/2011, 06:38 PM

Nope, leave that, blooms are completely normal at that stage. IMO, you might want to look into starting to add a complete clean up crew. Slow and steady wins the race.

lolows · 08/25/2011, 06:43 PM

Well, a couple of things here. How much flow do you have? What are your parameters? Can't really tell the color of the algae, but it looks like cyano and not typical diatoms at this tank's stage. Also, it's usually on the rocks as well. I would siphon it off at your next water change and increase flow and turn down the light intensity, since I see no corals in the tank yet.

sporto0 · 08/25/2011, 06:44 PM

That appears to be Cyano Bacteria, if you can syphon it out with an airline tube, do so, if not, it will eventually go away on its own, however it is a bit unsightly. This is a very common thing to have in a new tank.

lordofthereef · 08/25/2011, 06:50 PM

Looks like cyano (although it looks kinds green but that may just be the picture). Can be normal (and likely is based on the age of the tank).

BCreefmaker · 08/25/2011, 06:56 PM

cyano is green too?

sporto0 · 08/25/2011, 07:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BCreefmaker

cyano is green too?

Actinic lighting is affecting the color scheme.

vwwanksta69 · 08/25/2011, 07:11 PM

Looks a lot different from last weekend. Hope the new lighting schedule works out.

walkman2001 · 08/25/2011, 07:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vwwanksta69

Looks a lot different from last weekend. Hope the new lighting schedule works out.

Thanks Chris.

Update:

My light schedule was too long, turned it all back.

Yes, the T5 are making the algae look blue.

Its Green Algae.

Thank for the help, ill keep you guys posted.

Carl

fender4string · 08/25/2011, 07:38 PM

+1 for adding flow. What have you got turnover wise in your tank?

Also, sweet random fact: Cyano bacteria, even though it looks like crap, was the organism responsible for beginning the oxygenation of Earth's atmosphere (i.e. conversion of carbon dioxide). It's beyond ancient. It may be ugly but to me it's a damn cool thing to have in your tank (temporarily of course!!).

walkman2001 · 08/25/2011, 08:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fender4string

+1 for adding flow. What have you got turnover wise in your tank?

Also, sweet random fact: Cyano bacteria, even though it looks like crap, was the organism responsible for beginning the oxygenation of Earth's atmosphere (i.e. conversion of carbon dioxide). It's beyond ancient. It may be ugly but to me it's a damn cool thing to have in your tank (temporarily of course!!).

cool fact, thanks! Now when people ask what that ugly stuff is, i will tell them this

islandzavage · 08/26/2011, 09:13 AM

I'm new to this as well. Can someone explain what role flow has to do with it?

vwwanksta69 · 08/26/2011, 11:07 AM

^^Flow is key for a reef tank. Carl has a 120g tank with a MAG18 in his sump. He has two overflow boxes in the back corners of his tank where the returns are plumbed. Due to the placement of the returns, there might not be enough flow in some of the bottom corners of the tank. This can cause "dead spots" along with unwanted growth of algae. Although this is probably just a issue with the tank being so new, he is going to be buying additional powerheads inside the tank to help keep up the flow.

brewski4u1 · 08/26/2011, 11:11 AM

is that a clown i see in a 3 weeks old brand new tank ! i really hope you cycled before you added the clown !!

ReefWhoDat · 08/26/2011, 11:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fender4string

+1 for adding flow. What have you got turnover wise in your tank?

Also, sweet random fact: Cyano bacteria, even though it looks like crap, was the organism responsible for beginning the oxygenation of Earth's atmosphere (i.e. conversion of carbon dioxide). It's beyond ancient. It may be ugly but to me it's a damn cool thing to have in your tank (temporarily of course!!).

This! I explained to my wife when my new tank got it that it was fitting that cyano was the first life in my tank since it's basically the oldest life on earth, and she called me a nerd and rolled her eyes...which is cool because that's what she normally does when I say really interesting things...

vwwanksta69 · 08/26/2011, 01:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brewski4u1

is that a clown i see in a 3 weeks old brand new tank ! i really hope you cycled before you added the clown !!

thats a negative and its a pair

walkman2001 · 08/26/2011, 01:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brewski4u1

is that a clown i see in a 3 weeks old brand new tank ! i really hope you cycled before you added the clown !!

Good eye sir. Cycle for a week with two blue damsels, which all they did was fight with each other, here is a video of them

So got rid of them and got the clown fish a week ago, which are doing great! I know im going a little fast but all well. Thats what she said.

you guys might crash my sever, but here is a web cam of my tank, which I watch all day at work.

http://carldurr.com:8081/

Northstar24 · 08/26/2011, 02:33 PM

The fact that you're moving fast is also one of the reasons you're getting the cyano. Hopefully cutting back on your lighting will resolve the issue, in the mean time, try to syphon as much of that out as you can. I fought real bad cyano in my tank at about the 6 month mark

socalsalttank · 08/26/2011, 05:51 PM

I would test the water. Use the tds meter and test your rodi water before mixing.

fender4string · 08/26/2011, 06:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ReefWhoDat

This! I explained to my wife when my new tank got it that it was fitting that cyano was the first life in my tank since it's basically the oldest life on earth, and she called me a nerd and rolled her eyes...which is cool because that's what she normally does when I say really interesting things...

Haha, yeah I get the eye roll a lot from my girlfriend too. She's been with me so long she's stopped asking "How/why do you know that...?"

08/25/2011, 06:33 PM	#1
walkman2001 Registered Member. Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 11	should i remove algae? new tank, about 3~ weeks old 40 lbs live sand 40 dead sand 20lbs live rock 70lbs dead water 79*F 9 hour HID 14 hour T5 12 hour LED night light Should i remove the algae? its been getting worse and the snails i got are not eating it.

08/25/2011, 06:38 PM	#2
BCreefmaker Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: B.C. Canada Posts: 1,129	Nope, leave that, blooms are completely normal at that stage. IMO, you might want to look into starting to add a complete clean up crew. Slow and steady wins the race. __________________ To make apple pie from scratch, You must first create the universe.

08/25/2011, 06:50 PM	#5
lordofthereef One reef to rule them all Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Leominster, MA Posts: 5,299	Looks like cyano (although it looks kinds green but that may just be the picture). Can be normal (and likely is based on the age of the tank). __________________ "A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than you love yourself" ~ Josh Billings Visit My Home page for current build thread (click my user name and select "Visit LordoftheReef's Homepage" in the drop down menu!

08/25/2011, 06:56 PM	#6
BCreefmaker Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: B.C. Canada Posts: 1,129	cyano is green too? __________________ To make apple pie from scratch, You must first create the universe.

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08/25/2011, 06:43 PM	#3
lolows Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 4	Well, a couple of things here. How much flow do you have? What are your parameters? Can't really tell the color of the algae, but it looks like cyano and not typical diatoms at this tank's stage. Also, it's usually on the rocks as well. I would siphon it off at your next water change and increase flow and turn down the light intensity, since I see no corals in the tank yet.

08/25/2011, 06:44 PM	#4
sporto0 Moved On Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Pittsburgh, Pa. Posts: 2,924	That appears to be Cyano Bacteria, if you can syphon it out with an airline tube, do so, if not, it will eventually go away on its own, however it is a bit unsightly. This is a very common thing to have in a new tank.

08/25/2011, 07:11 PM	#8
vwwanksta69 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Malvern Posts: 357	Looks a lot different from last weekend. Hope the new lighting schedule works out.

08/25/2011, 07:38 PM	#10
fender4string Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Novi, MI Posts: 1,550	+1 for adding flow. What have you got turnover wise in your tank? Also, sweet random fact: Cyano bacteria, even though it looks like crap, was the organism responsible for beginning the oxygenation of Earth's atmosphere (i.e. conversion of carbon dioxide). It's beyond ancient. It may be ugly but to me it's a damn cool thing to have in your tank (temporarily of course!!).

08/26/2011, 09:13 AM	#12
islandzavage Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 6	I'm new to this as well. Can someone explain what role flow has to do with it?

08/26/2011, 11:07 AM	#13
vwwanksta69 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Malvern Posts: 357	^^Flow is key for a reef tank. Carl has a 120g tank with a MAG18 in his sump. He has two overflow boxes in the back corners of his tank where the returns are plumbed. Due to the placement of the returns, there might not be enough flow in some of the bottom corners of the tank. This can cause "dead spots" along with unwanted growth of algae. Although this is probably just a issue with the tank being so new, he is going to be buying additional powerheads inside the tank to help keep up the flow.

08/26/2011, 11:11 AM	#14
brewski4u1 Registered Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: West palm beach FL Posts: 308	is that a clown i see in a 3 weeks old brand new tank ! i really hope you cycled before you added the clown !!

08/26/2011, 02:33 PM	#18
Northstar24 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Milwaukee, WI Posts: 56	The fact that you're moving fast is also one of the reasons you're getting the cyano. Hopefully cutting back on your lighting will resolve the issue, in the mean time, try to syphon as much of that out as you can. I fought real bad cyano in my tank at about the 6 month mark

08/26/2011, 05:51 PM	#19
socalsalttank Moved On Join Date: Apr 2011 Posts: 59	I would test the water. Use the tds meter and test your rodi water before mixing.