Nitrates and Phosphates zero, but hair algae

[wobar]

I bought a Hanna low range phosphate checker because I have been having a bad hair algae problem in my tank. The Hanna checker has never shown anything other than 0.00.

 

I just have an API nitrate test, and it always reads at 0 for nitrates as well.

 

I have resorted to doing a water change every 3 days followed by a dose of AlgaeFix, but that doesn't seem to be helping either.

 

I have a 40 breeder with 4 fish

• clown
• pajama cardinal
• 2 chromis

I feed about half a cube of mysis when I feed or a pinch of Hakari pellets. I feed every other day.

 

I also run carbon, GFO, and skim

 

Please help me get rid of this hair algae. It's driving me insane.

[Sunstar]

What is your water source, possible silicates?

[Fnard]

It could be that your algae is consuming all the nitrates giving you a false reading of 0. Had a similar problem awhile ago, GHA and cyano everywhere. Give it a good manually cleaning ripping all you can off and using a toothbrush to scrub and then a WC to siphon all the loose stuff out that you missed. You can follow that up with a black out period of a couple days. If it persists, can try using PhosphateX (used with good results) or some peroxide treatments (plenty of threads around).

[Sunstar]

That too. ALgae eats nitrates, which is why chaeto is often employed.

[wobar]

What is your water source, possible silicates?

 

I use RO/DI water. It test 0 TDS when I make it. I am currently using HW Marinemix Reefer salt.

[makokak]

How about your live rocks? is it re-use from dry?

[Newstead]

I also run carbon, GFO, and skim

 

Please help me get rid of this hair algae. It's driving me insane.

I had sort of the same situation this summer in my biocube 29. Tests were great but I had some hair algae and cyano was everywhere. FWIW, I had a box of Algone I had bought several years ago and never tried. I stuck a bag in the media rack for 5 days and the algae and cyano disappeared. I think it seems to be barley (interesting history on how they discovered it inhibits algae).

Just my experience. Still no algae in tank except for coralline and some brown dust on a bit of sand. And boy did it polish the water!

[ninjamyst]

what's your clean up crew looking like? best thing is manual removal as much as possible and get adequate clean up crew to mop up what's left.

[wobar]

How about your live rocks? is it re-use from dry?

The rock is pukani dry rock from BRS. The tank has been up for over a year, so it should be established by now.

what's your clean up crew looking like? best thing is manual removal as much as possible and get adequate clean up crew to mop up what's left.

 

I have the 40 breeder snail only pack from reefcleaners. I've noticed that the snails don't really touch the hair algae once it is established.

[brandon429]

Regarding hair algae and nutrients I would ask these questions

 

when searching around the various articles, what do they show regarding algae growth in oligotrophic (extremely clean) natural reefs? Is algae growing by the tonne on natural reefs to support grazers, in seemingly perfect waters? if so, that has direct application to your thread. reef aquarists cannot and will not see algae growth as anything but an indication of nutrient imbalance, so im curious as to how one rectifies that against natural algae control methods

 

if tonnes of algae grow in low nutrient waters, yet the reefs typically remain in balance as long as we don't boost farm runoff nutrients (or kill off certain grazers) to me that has vast implications for your tank. and those implications will arrive at peroxide HA heh but that's just my bias.

[Bingo1213]

I'd try and get something to eat the algae. Try a lawnmower blenny, sea hare or turbo snails. Good luck!

[supertech99]

I have used algone in the past to clean up a cynao issue. I dont really know what is in it but it helped me get over the hump once i had done everything else people here said to do. If you run gfo I can't see how you could possibally have any phosphates. I have had luck dripping some mrs wadges limewater for 3 days, made the gha a lot easyier to pull off.

[RG Rude]

I had this problem and 6 Red Banded Trochus cleared it up in a 29 gal. AGA. Turbos would do it too but the Trochus can right themselves if they tumble over. I've had the same 6 for quite a while now. They also don't bulldoze your display tank like the Turbos.

[makokak]

The rock is pukani dry rock from BRS. The tank has been up for over a year, so it should be established by now.

 

I have the 40 breeder snail only pack from reefcleaners. I've noticed that the snails don't really touch the hair algae once it is established.

 

sometimes you have to step back to see more of the picture.

[uwdanno]

 

sometimes you have to step back to see more of the picture.

 

[wow.such.chris]

Listen to Brandon, although he can be a bit confusing hahaha! Be the tanks grazer.

 

You need to be the grazers that your tank doesn't have. Snails prefer new sprouting algae, microfilm etc. They won't touch the long stuff. You can pluck it off and they will help though. Manual removal and peroxide is your best bet, but it will come back!

 

To me, it seems like you're feeding a bit much. Maybe you could try an urchin? They do work but I had one that munched on acropora.

[Bingo1213]

Plus one for the urchin. I'd shoot for a tuxedo urchin since they stay small. You could get a pincushion but may have to remove it once it gets bigger.

[Dolomiteclay]

I had this same issue too with my Hannah meter testing 0 for Phosphate but I was still getting little amounts of hair algae in spots and cyano on the substrate. I backed off the lighting, got a halloween Urchin and a lawnmower Blenny to help out with the hair algae and it seemed to help for a few weeks. However, two weeks ago I decided to get an Acropora and I increased my output on my lights increasing the peak output up~30 % from what it was. 2 days later everything was back in full force. I've since cutback the light output to what it was and that has helped a great deal.

[Butchy21]

Following this topic- I am having the exact same problem and it is driving me nuts.

 

Major hair algae outbreak even though I am reading 0 phosphates with Salifert test kit. Just set up a GFO media reactor this week, cut back feeding, light intensity/duration and trying to keep up with manually pulling out the algae. All of my water parameters are really good and I've attempted to get large CUC additions to the tank twice- and every fricking snail (turbos, ceriths, and astrea) has died within 24hrs and a hairy pincusion urchin as well, even though my peppermint shrimp and hermit crabs are doing great! So it cant be a copper issue right? FYI, I had my water tested a few months back and no copper.

 

Im running out of guesses as the issue- only thing I can think of is slightly higher Magnesium? The tank is reading 1500ppm currently.

 

It is a real challenge getting the hair algae under control without the help of any snails!

[Dolomiteclay]

Butchy...you do use RO/DI water I take it? I was using a test kit to test phosphates and it was reading 0, then I got the hannah checker and it showed that my phosphates were anywhere between .1 to .3.

[Butchy21]

Butchy...you do use RO/DI water I take it? I was using a test kit to test phosphates and it was reading 0, then I got the hannah checker and it showed that my phosphates were anywhere between .1 to .3.

 

For sure- I replaced all of my filters and water coming out is 0TDS.

 

Ya I should have pulled the trigger on one of the hannah checkers- everyone tells me that no test kit is accurate and that basically, if you have algae- you have phosphates. I would imagine with GFO now- it's just a matter of time that it slowly goes away. But it would be much faster if snails would survive in my tank!

[Dolomiteclay]

My snails don't die but they like to climb out which effectively means they will die if I don't find them.

 

I used GFO too in a reactor but I got a good deal on phosguard and have started using it.

[Tamberav]

The rock is pukani dry rock from BRS. The tank has been up for over a year, so it should be established by now.

 

I have the 40 breeder snail only pack from reefcleaners. I've noticed that the snails don't really touch the hair algae once it is established.

 

Pukani is known to have dead organics inside it which can cause phosphate issues.

 

Did you cure the rock before adding it to the tank?

 

My guess is the pukani got the GHA started and now it is feeding off w/e is available a year later.

 

Do you have corals?

 

Manual removal, possibly peroxide treatment (depending on what inverts you have) and a tuxedo urchin would be my suggestions.

[wobar]

I did not cure the rock before adding it to the tank. I'm sure that the Pukani has attributed to the issue, at least at first, but the tank has been established for well over a year. Who would cure the rock for that long anyway?

 

I have about 25 corals in the tank, so I need to be careful with any chemical treatment I do. I have read about peroxide treatment, but I am unclear if it is safe to dose the whole tank. Most people talk about taking rocks out and spot treating which would be difficult for me with my coral load.

[StinkyBunny]

I have 50 lbs of Pukani curing in the dark right now and it's LOADED with phosphates. My tests are showing .18-.22 and I'm running a cup of Phosguard on the vat as well as skimming. Granted it's only been in the vat for 2 weeks, but damn that's a lot.