holy carp Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 First off - not 100% sure the ID forum is most appropriate, but posting here since it involves some unknown algae... Ever since I got my chaeto at my LFS, it's had some small clumps of some red algae in it. They were usually not that noticeable and the chaeto was pretty densely wound. I took my first vacation since starting this tank, and before I left I cut out half the chaeto to give it room to expand. When I came back after a week, this is what my chaeto looked like... WTF? top illumination as is typical (8pm-9am) with 8W PAR20 5000˚K grow lamp: illuminated from front for photo: Is chaeto being dominated by another algae? I thought it was supposed to be super fast growing and would out-compete others... What is this other algae? What should I do about it? I have noticed this red algae is also growing on the side of my MarinePure block which is behind the chaeto, but I haven't seen any evidence of it anywhere in the DT. params: pH 8.3 Mg 1360 dKH 7.6 Ca 420 NO3 0.00 PO4 0.02 sg 1.025 I left the A/C on in the room, so the temp was probably between 79 and 80˚F the whole time I was away. Link to comment
HarryPotter Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 COTTON CANDY ALGAE! Link to comment
holy carp Posted September 13, 2015 Author Share Posted September 13, 2015 No way, that was WAAAAYYYY tooooo fast! Is it bad? What should I do about it? Link to comment
HarryPotter Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 No way, that was WAAAAYYYY tooooo fast! Is it bad? What should I do about it? Yeah its sort of a pest... Is there any in your display? Snails munch on it luckily- so its not a big deal. http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-12/nftt/index.php Personally I would trash all the chaeto, wait a week or so to make sure most of its gone, and start over with new (Maybe from different LFS or from a NR member) chaeto. Link to comment
metrokat Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 Is it actually fuzzy algae or just redish bubbly film? Link to comment
amphipod Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 If it is the cotton candy algae, realistically it Can have the same function as the chaetomorpha, a nutrient sink. So maybe you can have the first tank that uses cotton candy instead of chaetomorpha. Link to comment
holy carp Posted September 13, 2015 Author Share Posted September 13, 2015 Is it actually fuzzy algae or just redish bubbly film? It sometimes has bubbles in it, but it really doesn't look like a film. It looks very fuzzy. However, it seems to be either a rusty red color or almost colorless, but never looks pink like the other cotton candy algae photos I've come across. Here's a better closeup, but you still may need to zoom in on it to see the fuzzy fibers: If it is the cotton candy algae, realistically it Can have the same function as the chaetomorpha, a nutrient sink. So maybe you can have the first tank that uses cotton candy instead of chaetomorpha. Maybe that stuff is why my nitrates have always been 0.00 no matter how much I feed? Should I start selling the stuff? And can it be contained?... I don't know, but if anybody can spare some clean chaeto in NYC, I think I'm interested... Link to comment
amphipod Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 containment is relative, this algae can and will reproduce, you just need to be prepared for when it gets in your display tank. Turbo snails, sea urchins, some hermit crabs, and sea hares are known to destroy this algae, so as long as your display is prepared you won't see more than a few tufts there. This cotton candy seems to have a bad rep with reefers, so you probably won't be able to sell it, but it is demonstrating an enormous nutrient uptake, and grows quicker than chaetomorpha in your setup. Link to comment
metrokat Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 It's the chaeto - sucks nitrates like a boss. Not the cotton candy. OP- you can cull the cotton candy and toss it. Or send it to me I agree with Amphipod however, it's helping control your nutrients, treat it like export and cull it. Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 Yes a Metrokat states indeed Link to comment
holy carp Posted September 13, 2015 Author Share Posted September 13, 2015 Turbo snails, sea urchins, some hermit crabs, and sea hares are known to destroy this algae, so as long as your display is prepared you won't see more than a few tufts there. This cotton candy seems to have a bad rep with reefers, so you probably won't be able to sell it, but it is demonstrating an enormous nutrient uptake, and grows quicker than chaetomorpha in your setup. In my little 12G, I think the urchins and sea hare would be too big, but I'll keep my eye out for some Mexican turbos and red legs. It's the chaeto - sucks nitrates like a boss. Not the cotton candy. OP- you can cull the cotton candy and toss it. Or send it to me I agree with Amphipod however, it's helping control your nutrients, treat it like export and cull it. I guess we'd have to have a race to see which adds more dry weight in a given period. Instead of chucking it, I added a filter floss barrier between the algae and return pump... And I'll keep my fingers crossed. It blocks a lot more light than chaeto, which may be why it's winning. I may have to prune it more often, but just another biology experiment. :-) Kat, you can have all you want. Cotton Candy will make your nook sweeter, for sure! Link to comment
holy carp Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 So here's a little update - I took out half the chaeto, shook it vigorously in RODI for a few minutes and then put it in about a half gallon of tank water on the window sill. No aeration, no circulation. After about 5 days, all the cotton candy was gone. Chaeto remained, but was weak and thin. Meanwhile, back at the sump, I turned the light cycle from 13 hrs/day (8pm-9am) back to 9 hrs/day (10pm-7am). The cotton candy waned, but didn't die. The unfortunate (and presumably related, though not scientifically proven causality) result was that my tank started to grow GHA. It hasn't been a catastrophic outbreak, but it is appreciably considering I hadn't had any for the last month in the tank. (Disclosure: the tank was launched on 6/15/15 with dry rock that had been curing for 2 months prior) And a question for the experienced... Has anyone else noticed that GHA seems to LOVE LOVE LOVE growing on crazy glue? Without question or contest, those have been the most intensely affected spots in the tank. Link to comment
amphipod Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 You shouldn't have attacked the cotton candy, you are unfortunately paying the price for the nutrients not being taken out of the system in the sump. Link to comment
holy carp Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 Clearly cotton candy is vengeful, but it is far from gone, so maybe it will forgive me. The chaeto in the sump is still full of it, just not being dominated by it. The portion of chaeto that I had removed and 'cleaned' has already been pretty well repopulated by the pink fuzz... Fortunately, the filter floss seems to be doing a sufficient job of keeping it out of the display (fingers crossed, knock wood, etc. etc. etc.). Last night I turned the sump lighting back up to a 12 hour period, so we'll see over the next week or two if the GHA retreats and how much that cotton candy grows again. Ideally a balance where it grows and removes nutrients without light-starving the chaeto would be great. Can't they all just get along? On a related note, the isopods seem to love living in the cotton candy. They are all really plump looking these days. And they definitely crawl through the filter floss. Link to comment
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