Hi all

I have a 10g tank and there is some algae growing everywhere.... including sand. I have seen hair algae before but I dont think this looks like it...

Could be Bryopsis, but let's hope that it's not.

+1 to bryopsis.

WHATS THAT!!!

ohh please dont scare me!

Looks like bryopsis

Looks like the tank is still new so you'll have a good chance at irradiating it before the addition of livestock. Elevated Kent Marine Tech-M Magnesium seem to be the best measure for nano systems. I would do a search on the forum for Bryopsis and go from there.

I will start searching

oh god, I just added 2 sps frags and now this

+1

you can dose magnesium to raise your levels up to 1500ppm and it should go away. Make sure to test for magnesium if dosing though.

You can just use epsom salts. But epsom salt will raise both your magnesium and your salinity, so make sure not to raise your SG. Add some epsom salt, but then you may want to take out some of the salt water and replace it with RO to keep your SG from getting too high.

Or you can just get a magnesium suppliment. This will cost more, but will not effect salinity as far as I know.

I don't see any type of CUC on your tank thread. Do you have any snails, etc?

no, no clean up crew yet..

But you have SPS frags?

I'd suggest you get a small, varied CUC (a few ceriths, astreas, trochus maybe, nerites, possibly a turbo) see if they'll chow down. If none of them will touch it at all, then consider more drastic measures like Kent Tech M. If it truly is bryopsis, it's poison to your CUC and they'll refuse to eat it.

no fish either, not allow of waste..... I wanted to "Test" the led fixture that I built recently (a couple of months ago) and there was a good deal on Mr.Coral (its local to me) so I bought two sps frags for $10...

The thing is that I keep hearing bad things about all types of CUC and there is not alot of selection nearby... I guess that I should have waited before adding anything...

I have had the rocks for a while (maybe 3 years) but the tank had to re-cycle due to a crash.... Its been up since early JAN.

Well, from my personal experience (and I've only had them for over a month), I really like Astreas, ceriths, and trochus the best for algae eating. (I don't mind my hermit crabs but I won't suggest them if you are concerned about them eating snails as they likely eventually will eat some.) I like my relatively small turbo too, but I picked him small and I don't know what he'll be like when he's bigger. I had the biggest algae bloom, I swear, and they've gone to town on it. It's definitely getting under control, but I'm still fighting it daily with the CUC and every so often some manual removal.

What's weird is everyone keeps talking about astreas and how they keep falling over - I've got seven of them and I had to right one up maybe once or twice tops in the last month. Maybe I just got some smart ones that don't fall down, LOL.

For the guys above, I would not say one bad thing about them. Really. My nerites are efficient also, that is when they're actually working and not huddled in a corner at the top of the tank.

Is it maybe dying? I see this white spots on the tank background and I think that it might be the algae dying or something...

I don;t think it is bryopsis. That looks exactly like what I had (See my thread http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...;#entry2686240)

I added an emerald crab and 24 hours later it was gone. I physically saw him eating it off the glass. He even made sure to grab the holdfast.

it does look like the branches have branchlets...bryopsis doesnt have that...hard to see though

thats EXACTLY what I have. John, what could it be then if the branches have branchlets????

eh...maybe they dont. i am going to see an optometrist...

ROFL yea I just went and double checked my tank too. You got my hopes up n everythang!

just the midrib and the branches then huh?

yea it kinda structurally resembles the "foxtail" freshwater plant, only more ferny/feathery/bendy. From searchin online, it seems like Bryopsis IS the only choice. D:

I don't think that is Bryop, imo. How old is this tank?

i had the same in my 10g right after the cycle. just be patient and get a good cuc. i dont have a speck of that stuff now.

tank has been setup for 1.5 months, but the rock was on my previous tank, which I had for 4+ years but it crashed so it had to re-cycle. I bought new sand and re-used the rock.

So new tank, new sand, new pumps, new sump.



thanks for responding!

it is actually turning kinda yellowish... I will have to double check today.

I will get a good cuc soon

I had some and 2 turbo snails in a 20 gallons took care of it in a few days. I had to give back the snails because after a few days they had nothing left to eat..those are real tornado.

I had them at the end of my cycle as well. Look back at the thread I linked in my earlier post. You'll see I had the same thing and an emerald crab ate it. Nothing to worry about.

Will do, thanks!

I will buy an emerald crab today.

man there is alot of bryo in MD...never had problems with it in TN

So I bought 2 emerald crabs locally for $10 (great deal) and maann they are like a lawnmower!!! They started eating the stuff right away..

I will post pics of the progress tomorrow

WOOHOO!!!

Have the same stuff in my tank right now, but I'm definitely still cycling so I'm trying not to stress about it. Going to start manually picking it out today, and hope that once I get my media rack set-up (will cut out some of the nutrients it's feeding on) and my clean-up crew going, it won't be such a bother. Definitely following this thread to read further developments!

I will post updates soon. I bought some astreas snails also to help. I did removed alot manually but I see the CUC working on it.

I added only two astreas snails and they seem to be eating the stuff. I have to add more though, they are slow.

knew it wasnt bryopsis...if you can get detail on the branching on the macro it might be something that can get a positive id for future reference

Not tryin to threadjack but here is a more closeup of mine. I am wondering though if mine IS like his because everything I have put in the tank wont eat it.

yours is closer to byropsis, but i am not sure it is either. definitely not the same algae as his, he has that snowflake like branching going on...not that I have ever seen snow or anything like that...

well Kent Tech-M dosing is seeming to start to work now that I have worked my way over the "1300" hump So no tellin ROFL

95% of mine is gone!!!!! I just added two emerald crabs, 2 astreas and mannnn those eat like piggggssssss....

The emeralds started eating the stuff right away, the astreas cleaned the back glass and the rocks.... They are still working though.

I will take pics soon.



BTW, I use Oceanic salt and its high on mg... So maybe thats why its working? Alot of it turned white (Dead)