algae question

[whooozyooodady]

I just finished battling a bubble algae problem. And now I have this green cotton and moss looking algae that's growing all over my rocks. :*( Is this a bad thing?

[BCOrchidGuy]

Bad? well I guess it depends on whether or not you want an algae farm.

 

What lights are you using, how old are they, water parameters?? Nitrate and Phosphate levels especially. Is the tank new? How long are the lights on every day. Does the tank get direct sunlight? What do you have for algae control, IE blue legged hermits??? how many?

[Pikelet]

Keep up the water changes, maintain your lighting, use good quality salt and RO/DI source water and eventually you will prevail. Algae succession is something most of us have to deal with one way or another. You might want to invest in some more algae eaters too!!!

[ross76053]

Welcome to Ross' world. I breed algae - not by choice. Like BCOrchidGuy mentioned, pay special attention to phosphates. They'll screw ya if they're too high, and it's the DI in RO/DI that filters 'em.

 

Oh, and if you want to add to your algae collection, I have several varieties available.

 

Good luck.

[luv2jeep]

SeaChem PhosGuard works well too. I just had a HUGE bloom after adding the 96W Quad on my 10-Gallon. And of course feeding the tank phosphates with my RO (lack'o'DI!) system.

 

I did a 50% water change with AragaMight buffer and added a packet of PhosGuard to the Hagen Mini. Next morning, 1/2 the algae was gone! I still have some left, but doing another 50% water change this weekend with the new DI filter after I get some BioSea salt. I'm ditching IO salt for good! I've had it ...

 

Good luck Man! It's a sh*tty battle!!!

[whooozyooodady]

I have a 7 gallon nano with 22 watts of PC lighting(27 watt quad is on its way). I do a gallon water change every week. Right now I have 2 baby clowns, one austria snail, 2 blue leg crabs, star polyps, pink xenia, peach xenia, hairy mushroom, orange, pink, purple zoo'z. Maybe I have all this algae because I use filtered water (the ones on the refrigerator) then I add tap water to the water. I thought about getting an RO system but they cost like 250$$$. Its going to take me more then a year to get that much money (im only 15). Do you guys know if aquarium stores in LA (818) that sell RO water? If so do you know how much it costs per gallon. Because I know they sell saltwater that goes for .70$ per gallon.

 

THANKS

[Bonster]

So how did you get rid of your bubble algea??? I have a small amount of that at the moment and I don't want it to get out of control. I also was beginning to have a problem with red slime so I went to the LFS this morning and got some of that red slime stuff. I was dreading using it but the red slime looked gross. Before I left I had turned up my powerheads and by the time I got home from work the stuff was almost gone. It was floating on the water so I skimmed it off and things look great. I am so glad I didn't have to use the red slime stuff. I know what caused the problem. I got a very fussy pajama cardinal and was trying everything to get her to eat. I know I over fed the tank. So know I have cut feedings to 1 per day and have done a few water changes. Live and learn. I thought this was going to be a much bigger problem but now I suppose something else will come up. It always does.

[whooozyooodady]

I took out my old week power head. And I added a stronger one. All the algae floated to the top. And then I skimmed it from

the surface. But now the green cotton like algae is taking over. I need RO water. Does anyone have an old system they want to sell?

[Bonster]

Are you saying the bubble algea floated to the top??? Never heard of that. That's cool! Mines definatley not floating anywhere. Just sitting there looking at me!

[BCOrchidGuy]

Depends on what kind of filter your fridge uses, alot use a Ion exchange which is not a good one at all for your tank.

 

You didn't mention your water chemistry/parameters other than a 1 gallon change once a week.

[bautin2]

I've got basically the same set up you've got (10 gal AGA, 96w quad, 14 lbs LR, 15 lbs LS, 5 astreas, 5 turbos, red and blue hermits) and I just began my tank about a month ago. I run my lights 12 hours a day. I use RO water from the local grocery store. At 30 cents a gallon, I can't justify spending even a 100 bucks on a RO/DI filter, maybe later....After searching the board, if you're just beginning your cycling, the majority opinion on the board is just to let nature run its course. I have had all the algaes (algi?) you mentioned....red slime, green hair, bubble, etc.....and they've all come and gone over the course of a week or so. I guess what I'm recommending is to just take it easy and let nature run its course. Unless of course, you're not in your beginning cycling stages....