NOT About To Give Up On My System(Thanks to the folks on this forum)

[sunburn]

Don't get Nerites. They'll just spend all day climbing out of your tank.

 

Not all Hydrogen Peroxide are the same. Most have additives and some even contain phosphates. You should only buy "food grade" and it should be refrigerated. Once opened, it expires very quickly.

 

Have you thought about dosing peroxide? Some people dose 1ml per 10 gallons, for a couple of weeks. It might be something to look into.

 

There's always been rumors about white egg crate leaching phosphates. Some salt mixes also contain Phosphates. Be sure and test your clean saltwater and see if it contains any.

 

Personally, I think EVERYTHING leaches some amount of phosphates. Pumps, silicone, plastics, salts, food, additives. It all adds up.

[Steensj2004]

So negitive on the Nerite snails then? Funny, wonder why Reef cleaners suggests them? I'm sure I'm getting some phosphates, but they are being used up before I can read them via test. After some brewskis I was able to sit back and reorganize. Thanks for all the help guys. Anyone care to weigh in on my cleanup crew choices? So far I've got one person saying no nerites? Anyone else wanna give opinion on CUC? Order goes in tommorow! I will wait till lunch for others to give input!

 

The peroxide thread doesn't mention food grade? Brandon never mentioned food grade either....... where do you buy this specific peroxide? And most guys reccomend not dosing the whole tank unless it's a last resort. I'd love to avoid all chemical additives as much as possible.....if at all possible. Feel I have already exceeded the amount of chemical BS added in my tank with my reef.....

[Sunar357]

I say add nassarius also as they stir up the sand which may help though I don't think they will eat the algae itself. Plus they are the coolest snails! Zombie snails! You can email RC and he will personalize your order and give advice too. Great guy!

[djfrankn]

Looked at reefcleaners. They have ,"Quick crews" based on tank size. I put in a request for a custom crew. I already have nassarius snails, so I copied the quick crew minus the nassarius snails, and added a few other things that based on the description would benefit me. 85.00 shipped overnight. Only problem is I need it delivered Saturday, and my order requires overnight due to some of the stuff in the package. Problem is anything ordered today ships Wednesday. Finger over the by button but i need it shipped Friday overnight, otherwise it could all be dead. I just called my boss and we have this Saturday off, which is SUPER rare. After seeing the suggested CUC from RC, i am WAAAAAAAY behind the power curve on a CUC..... Can you select a day for them to ship your order?

 

As far as cleaning the sand, I do siphon the surface, but I end up sucking up tons of sand if i get to aggressive.....

 

 

Right now I am looking at :

 

75 Dwarf Cerths

25 Florida Cerths

2 Fuzzy Chitons*

1 Fighting Conch*

22 Nerite Snails

10 Limpets*

 

85.00 shipped overnight to my door. The stuff with a star are things I added to the basic 75 cleaner pack the offer. I added these based on their description of algae consumption...The seem to be a good addition. Any objections to this? I would wait for the custom suggestion from them, but want to order asap to ensure Friday shipment overnight as long as the will do that? Anyone want to weigh in on this? The site says anything ordered today ships Wednesday, will they ship on Friday for me so the arrive Saturday?

Holllddddd it right there!.

Why is anybody asking you about how much you feed? livestock (everything in your tank)? Lights you use in there? Photoperiod? Water changes? Water source? What do you feed? If frozen, do you thaw it before you pour it in the tank?

 

First, apparently, you have a nutrient problem here (dah!). Why are you going to add a bunch of animals that will poop, pee and create organics when your bacteria population (the one that is supposed to break down the organics in your tank) is currently low and giving you problems in the first hand. Yes, I agree that there are organisms that may take care of the algae problem, BUT WON'T TAKE CARE OF THE SOURCE PROBLEM.

Second, anyone, anyone around here has at some point (being 5+ years in this hobby) algae problems. It happens to most of us at one point (happened to me). The real solution: It will take time (weeks and probably months).

Do not start jumping into a quick fix. It will always come back to you. Address the root of the problem first. That is the source that is fuelling your GHA and apparently, cyanobacteria.

Common causes: poor flow, overfeeding, poor nutrient export mechanisms.

And, one more thing, nobody mentioned this, do not believe that just because your PO₄^3- is 0 in your test kit, is just not there. Nuisance algaes adsorb PO₄^3- faster than what you can measure for.

 

Take a look at this...

 

http://bcn.boulder.co.us/basin/data/NEW/info/TP.html

[Steensj2004]

All of the above was addressed already in this thread. I feed a few , small pinches of pellets which is waaaaaaay under feeding once a day. My photo period has been reduced on my Radion to only about 4 hours full intensity. Water is tested at store using TDS meter and Salifert test kits. I am running MORE than enough RowaPhos for the system in a reactor....and my tank is so lightly stocked its isn't over bioloaded. Should have read the whole thread before commenting the above.... apparently I'm leeching phosphate from somewhere, I don't over feed. All my frozen has always been thawed, strained, rinsed, and strained a second time. My source for water is as reliable as it gets. Furthermore I have been through testing, blackout a, and nearly every method on this site. More than one person has mentioned my CUC is lacking horribly. Obviously flow and a upgraded CUC is a must. The MP10 arrives Saturday, the CUC will also be ordered as planned as per the suggestion of multiple people. As far as my,"Bacteria population," it isn't lacking.... otherwise my other water perams would be a mess. Phosphates are obviously the problem here, where its coming from I don't know. What I DO know is what has ALREADY been addressed.... I have no cyano....nothing I described even REMOTELY resembled cyano.

Holllddddd it right there!.

Why is anybody asking you about how much you feed? livestock (everything in your tank)? Lights you use in there? Photoperiod? Water changes? Water source? What do you feed? If frozen, do you thaw it before you pour it in the tank?

First, apparently, you have a nutrient problem here (dah!). Why are you going to add a bunch of animals that will poop, pee and create organics when your bacteria population (the one that is supposed to break down the organics in your tank) is currently low and giving you problems in the first hand. Yes, I agree that there are organisms that may take care of the algae problem, BUT WON'T TAKE CARE OF THE SOURCE PROBLEM.

Second, anyone, anyone around here has at some point (being 5+ years in this hobby) algae problems. It happens to most of us at one point (happened to me). The real solution: It will take time (weeks and probably months).

Do not start jumping into a quick fix. It will always come back to you. Address the root of the problem first. That is the source that is fuelling your GHA and apparently, cyanobacteria.

Common causes: poor flow, overfeeding, poor nutrient export mechanisms.

And, one more thing, nobody mentioned this, do not believe that just because your PO₄^3- is 0 in your test kit, is just not there. Nuisance algaes adsorb PO₄^3- faster than what you can measure for.

 

Take a look at this...http://bcn.boulder.co.us/basin/data/NEW/info/TP.html]http://bcn.boulder.co.us/basin/data/NEW/info/TP.html[/url]

[Dufus6384956]

I had an algae problem when I put grape calerpa in my sump. The brown algae began to form there and spread to the DT. At one point I totally cut off the lighting to the sump and it helped a bit, but the algae in the DT was unbearable. I removed all the calerpa and two weeks later the brown algae began disappearing. Never used any calerpa/chaeto since and it's been great!

[djfrankn]

I am trying to help you. But apparently you took it the other way. Good luck shopping for a lawn mower @ Sears...

[spazizz]

Nerites suck at eating algae for me., they use to crawl out all the time too. The florida ceriths are the best snails, they ate every kinda of algae I had, even cynano. I wouldn't get to many of the dwarf ceriths though, they don't really do a whole lot for algae eating.

So negitive on the Nerite snails then? Funny, wonder why Reef cleaners suggests them? I'm sure I'm getting some phosphates, but they are being used up before I can read them via test. After some brewskis I was able to sit back and reorganize. Thanks for all the help guys. Anyone care to weigh in on my cleanup crew choices? So far I've got one person saying no nerites? Anyone else wanna give opinion on CUC? Order goes in tommorow! I will wait till lunch for others to give input!

The peroxide thread doesn't mention food grade? Brandon never mentioned food grade either....... where do you buy this specific peroxide? And most guys reccomend not dosing the whole tank unless it's a last resort. I'd love to avoid all chemical additives as much as possible.....if at all possible. Feel I have already exceeded the amount of chemical BS added in my tank with my reef.....

[Steensj2004]

I am trying to help you. But apparently you took it the other way. Good luck shopping for a lawn mower @ Sears...

 

No, I took it as you weighed in without reading the thread. Which was especially annoying as you came in with,"Wooooooah, wait right there." Which implied you had some breakthrough info not covered, which you didn't........ thus the annoyed response.. Thanks, I love Sears! Have enough respect to read the FIRST post and avoid pissing people off next time.

Nerites suck at eating algae for me., they use to crawl out all the time too. The florida ceriths are the best snails, they ate every kinda of algae I had, even cynano. I wouldn't get to many of the dwarf ceriths though, they don't really do a whole lot for algae eating.

. Gotcha! Thanks!

[metrokat]

I forgot to ask, if you think your rocks are leeching phosphates? An easy way to test would be to take out one of the rocks and put it for a couple of days in a new bucket of saltwater. Then test the water for phosphates. If it reads higher than your tank then you found your source.

[markalot]

I am trying to help you. But apparently you took it the other way. Good luck shopping for a lawn mower @ Sears...

 

Why do you do this? You did the same thing in the peroxide thread when I got upset at you. Anti-social behavior will will not win you any friends.

 

Steensj, it's a learning process so have fun with it. No solution is perfect, but each improvement gets you closer and closer. The extra flow, picking out the clumps, and a more robust cleanup crew will do wonders. If you can find Trochus snails get them as well. These guys are hard workers. Nothing will clean a tank faster than a Mexican Turbo snail, but then they'll starve due to lack of algae. These suckers get pretty big as well.

 

If you have a rock that insists on growing hair algae then it may have a phosphate issue and you might consider replacing it. I have replaced a couple of these in my 40 over a year or so, but now I have too many encrusted corals to take out most rocks.

 

Don't sweat the posters who insist you are doing it all wrong.

[sunburn]

Dwarf Ceriths tend to crawl in the overflows, so I wouldn't recommend them either. The best snails that I have had were Ceriths, Nassarius, Turbos, Astreas. The worst were Nerites and Dwarf Ceriths. I can't give you opinions on any other snails because these are the only ones I've had.

[Steensj2004]

I forgot to ask, if you think your rocks are leeching phosphates? An easy way to test would be to take out one of the rocks and put it for a couple of days in a new bucket of saltwater. Then test the water for phosphates. If it reads higher than your tank then you found your source.

 

I'm not sure MetroKat, it has been mentioned.....that is an Excellent Idea. Gonna have to try that. Anything leeching phosphates will eventually stop, or will it. Maybe I should go buy a law mower, hehehe

[Psychosis]

Dwarf cerith make great LPS snacks if nothing else...you don't even need to involve yourself in the process, they feed themselves to the coral. I also feel the make an impact on film algae, but wouldn't be my first choice for any thing else. Still, all told, I like the dwarf cerith. Just be careful when you order then from reef cleaners, they trend to fill your order 3 times over. It's not a bad thing, but I received something like 115 for a 16 gallon, which was excessive.

 

Nerites, like wise, only seen to be efficient at removing film algae and making daring escapes. I still add them for the sake of diversity (something will eat it some time). On the other notes, you know the score on your tank. Keep doing what your doing consistently, the system will stabilize, and then you can start feeding a little heavier week by week. I'd also say wait a couple of weeks after you're battle with the algae (our microorganism as the case may be) has been won before adding any additional fish, but that's notably conservative if you're feeling confident. I apologize for the run on text and occasionally odd word choices, my smart phone doesn't agree with N-R and I'm to lazy to correct Swype some times.

[jedimasterben]

Do you not have any pictures?

[markalot]

I think another issue that is overlooked is the nighttime cleanup crew that has hitched a ride in and goes mostly unnoticed. If you look at my tanks at night you'll see many critters on the rocks eating things. I've often wondered if people that try and start a clean tank (dead rock with an ammonia source) don't suffer from more algae problems due to the lack of critters.

[Steensj2004]

Dwarf cerith make great LPS snacks if nothing else...you don't even need to involve yourself in the process, they feed themselves to the coral. I also feel the make an impact on film algae, but wouldn't be my first choice for any thing else. Still, all told, I like the dwarf cerith. Just be careful when you order then from reef cleaners, they trend to fill your order 3 times over. It's not a bad thing, but I received something like 115 for a 16 gallon, which was excessive.

 

Nerites, like wise, only seen to be efficient at removing film algae and making daring escapes. I still add them for the sake of diversity (something will eat it some time). On the other notes, you know the score on your tank. Keep doing what your doing consistently, the system will stabilize, and then you can start feeding a little heavier week by week. I'd also say wait a couple of weeks after you're battle with the algae (our microorganism as the case may be) has been won before adding any additional fish, but that's notably conservative if you're feeling confident. I apologize for the run on text and occasionally odd word choices, my smart phone doesn't agree with N-R and I'm to lazy to correct Swype some times.

Haha, I understand the smartphone disliking NR. Jedi Ben, I can get some pictures up asap, only problem is since I have been super agressive with manual remova, the peroxide treatment, and total liverock scrubdown there isn't much to see. I could show some pictures of the sand when I get home, but most the rest has been removed. Although, it usually makes a quick comeback! The GHA really seems to love the extra hermit shells on the sand too? MetroKat, I start all my tanks with a mix of about 60-40 ratio of liverock to dryrock, sometimes even more LR than that.

 

Side note, Reefcleaners package ordered. The items should arrive via overnight mail tommorow if John is indeed able to ship today as he mentioned. My fiance will be home and she has been taught how to acclimate already from past stocking.

 

I want to also give some props to John at Reefcleaners. He does an amazing job between his informitve website and excellent customer service!!! I can only imagine the livestock is top notch as well. Thanks to everyone for all the help and suggestions! From here I believe my plan of action will be as follows:

 

1. Increase water changes to several smaller changes weekly to try and export more of whatever this stuff is feeding on.

2. Continue agressive manual removal

3.I am installing another circulation pump(MP10) when it arrives Saturday for increased flow

4. I am going to remove the one large rock that seems to be the most apt to grow GHA, place into a bucket of saltwater as suggested by metro. After a while I will test and see if it is leeching phosphates.

5. If needed I will continue with spot treating peroxide as needed along with manual removal daily. I will consider starting to dose Peroxide in a maintainance level as a last resort if all above fails.

[GHill762]

you're going to love the mp10..

[jedimasterben]

The algae that you suspect to have been dinoflagellates - is that what keeps coming back? Does it look anything like this?

 

 

 

[Sunar357]

My kingdom for Tapatalk support for nano-reef! Bad when i'm visiting other forums more when mobile because the mobile site for this stinks compared to Tapatalk. =(

[Steensj2004]

you're going to love the mp10..

I had one I bought used....I crapped out, stupid move. I love everything Ecotech. Can't wait to get all this in motion!

[Steensj2004]

The algae that you suspect to have been dinoflagellates - is that what keeps coming back? Does it look anything like this?

 

 

 

Meh.....not really. The stuff I assumed was dinos is gone. This is almost dry and powder like when scrubbed off. It feels unlike the assumed dinos when between your fingers. It looks similar to whatever is on that Goregonian... At least kinda. I assume its another diatom bloom, the snails LOVE it and with a potential phosphate issue...it would make sense

[Polarcollision]

I had good results with a large sea hare eating GHA and a turf-like algae in my retired 29 gallon. When it ate everything, I just passed it on to the next person who needed it.

[jedimasterben]

Meh.....not really. The stuff I assumed was dinos is gone. This is almost dry and powder like when scrubbed off. It feels unlike the assumed dinos when between your fingers. It looks similar to whatever is on that Goregonian... At least kinda. I assume its another diatom bloom, the snails LOVE it and with a potential phosphate issue...it would make sense

If it were dinoflagellates, those snails would be dead. Dinos are toxic to inverts. I lost a battalion of snails and herbivores.

[Steensj2004]

If I end up finding what MetroKat is thinking to be true, and my rocks are leeching Phosphates, I may replace the rock with Reefcleaner's Base rock. It is supposed to leech no phosphates per thier curing process. If I replace it, I am unsure of the effect on the tank. The Sump will still have a good Bacteria poulation as well as the water colum. For about 150.00, it would be worth it to stop leeching. I could leave some liverock in to seed and scrape a bunch of Coraline off to seed as well.

If it were dinoflagellates, those snails would be dead. Dinos are toxic to inverts. I lost a battalion of snails and herbivores.

Right, I believe the algae I had before is gone, the stuff I believed to be Dinos. This stuff now fits the bill for diatoms