2000geeksUNDERtheSEA Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 Not sure if this is the right place to post this topic. Any way, my tank is exactly 1 mont old, specs below. My LFS told me it was cycled after 1 week. Like most Newbs, I think I have been rushing it a bit. At first I bought 11 blue legs, 2 turbos, and 3 astrea snails. About a week after I added 2 mithrax crabs along with 2 damsels (rookie mistake) Between week 2 and 3 I began a green algae bloom, I would scrub it off the glass and it would be back in a matter of hours. During this time one damsel killed the other. So I removed the lone damsel and made another rookie mistake and ordered a Red Spotted Blenny from Liveaquaria, along with.. 4 super tongan nassarius snails (only asked for 2) 5 cerith snails 5 nerith snails in my tank I already had... 2 emerald crabs 11 blue legs (got rid of all except 1) 1 turbo snail 3 astrea snails the other day I noticed some hair algae on my rocks, at first I was kind of happy, because my red spotted blenny doesnt seem to be interested in any of the food I have tried, he picks at the rocks and seems to be eating micro algae. However, I don't think he is eating the hair algae and I want to get rid of it before it gets out of hand. Can any one help me with this? Tank Specs... SG 1.025 PH 8.2 Nitrate 5 Ammonia 0 Nitrite 0 (dont have phosphate or calcium kit yet) 29 Biocube Nova Extreme Pro HO 20" Tunze 9002 skimmer intank media rack -filter floss on top -chemi pure elite in middle -cheato on bottom w/underwater light Rio 6hf return pump Koralia 1 stealth pro heater Link to comment
nanoreefer4life Posted February 17, 2010 Share Posted February 17, 2010 Not sure if this is the right place to post this topic. Any way, my tank is exactly 1 mont old, specs below. My LFS told me it was cycled after 1 week. Like most Newbs, I think I have been rushing it a bit. At first I bought 11 blue legs, 2 turbos, and 3 astrea snails. About a week after I added 2 mithrax crabs along with 2 damsels (rookie mistake) Between week 2 and 3 I began a green algae bloom, I would scrub it off the glass and it would be back in a matter of hours. During this time one damsel killed the other. So I removed the lone damsel and made another rookie mistake and ordered a Red Spotted Blenny from Liveaquaria, along with.. 4 super tongan nassarius snails (only asked for 2) 5 cerith snails 5 nerith snails in my tank I already had... 2 emerald crabs 11 blue legs (got rid of all except 1) 1 turbo snail 3 astrea snails the other day I noticed some hair algae on my rocks, at first I was kind of happy, because my red spotted blenny doesnt seem to be interested in any of the food I have tried, he picks at the rocks and seems to be eating micro algae. However, I don't think he is eating the hair algae and I want to get rid of it before it gets out of hand. Can any one help me with this? Tank Specs... SG 1.025 PH 8.2 Nitrate 5 Ammonia 0 Nitrite 0 (dont have phosphate or calcium kit yet) 29 Biocube Nova Extreme Pro HO 20" Tunze 9002 skimmer intank media rack -filter floss on top -chemi pure elite in middle -cheato on bottom w/underwater light Rio 6hf return pump Koralia 1 stealth pro heater Well...where do i start... you might have jumped the gun a lil bit. tanks take time to mature...i think everybody has done what you have done at one point or another. however, whats most important is that you learn from your mistake. now lets fix this problem. how much live rock do you have? whats your flow like? did you take out our bioballs in the back? your filter system in the back make sure you keep it clean...its a nitrate factor back there...as for flow, do you just have the one factory pump? you might wanna add one more. how is your live rock? is it dense or does it have lot of pores? Link to comment
ReefEscape Posted February 17, 2010 Share Posted February 17, 2010 First things first - Don't Panic. Most new tanks will have some hair/micro algea, that is what you have a cleanup crew for - let them do their jobs. You may want to add a few more ceriths and a few more blue leg hermits, but the rest are fine. As for the Blenny, keep your eye on him if he doesn't start eating, take him to your lfs and see if they will either hold on to him for you until your tank stabilizes (1-2 months) or get credit (or try to get credit from LiveAquaria). Your Nitrate readings may be higher than zero because the algea is using it up. What type of test kits are you using and how old are they? It would be a good idea to get a phosphate test kit. Are you using RO/DI or distilled water for your water changes and what is your schedule and volume? I would suggest 20% water changes 1 to 2 times per week for a few weeks to lower any nutrient levels which will help to control the hair algea. How long is your lighting schedule? You can reduce it by a few hours a day for a month or go dark for a few days to limit algea growth. If the hair algea gets too long you can pick it off of the rock which will help your cuc to mow it down. I would suggest taking th rock out of the tank to do that. Good Luck and Welcome to NanoReef Link to comment
farkwar Posted February 17, 2010 Share Posted February 17, 2010 Your LFS are a bunch of idiots. One week? But anyway. Stop rushing things. No real harm done with your live(dead) stock. You may just consider them part of the cycling process, if you will. Get your algae problem solved before you start adding corals though. Just try and keep up with your water changes. Scrub the glass with mag float before you do. Siphon out the detritus before or during water changes. Stir up water before water changes. Increases the export of detritus. Let the GHA grow to where you can pull it out. And export it it that way too. Put a refuge on it and grow chaeto. If the chaeto grows it's using nutrients your nuisance algae would otherwise use. Big Als is selling the AC 70 for 20 with a ten percent discount. Try othe macro algae in your display. Don't feed the tank. And eventually your tank will finish cycling. Link to comment
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