algae bloom

[logbook]

i've been cycling my 25 gal for 6 weeks now and i've noticed some (actually not just some.... ) algae on the rocks and glass.

 

how do i get rid of these things? i've scraped most of the ones growing on the glass but i havent touched those on the rocks yet.

 

btw, my lights (actinic only) are on for about 8 hours a day

[Smokin-Reefer]

You could perform a water change to export some of the excess nutrients in your water, but that could make your cycle last longer.

 

What kind of source water are you using? I would highly suggest RO/DI water, it can be found at some LFS, and walmart and grocery stores sell RO water out of a self-serve machine, just make sure it isn't DISTILLED water, because sometimes they use copper in the distillation process, and that is bad news for your reef!

[logbook]

im using ro/di water....

 

made a mistake of running full lights (20000k and actinic) for the first 2 weeks....that's probably where the algae came from...

 

i'll be checking my levels soon.....i think my cycle is about to end in a few weeks...

[anonymous]

hi, im a newbie on this. just like to check if lighting is necessary for cycling of tank? i thought it is not necessary to turn it on?

 

for myself, i fill a huge bucket of water will air bubble thru an air pump over night and add in PRIME. and add in salt to mix with a power head overnight again. this is how i prepare the water to prevent the algae from growing.

 

at the same time i add in ROWAphos to control the PO4 level.

 

any expert can guide if im doing it alright?

 

thanks

[logbook]

lighting during the cycling process depends on who you talk to. some would say yes, turn on your lights....other won't.

 

turning on your lights will help maintain light loving creatures that might be hitch hiking in your rocks/sand. the drawback is what i have...algae bloom.

 

no lights means a lot more die off coming from your creatures not recieving the light they might need

[freakaccident]

I vote for lights on.