Algae Blooms Annoying Much...but is it Dangerous?

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Pazzoman

Piranha
MFK Member
Apr 5, 2009
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New York
Hey Everybody,

Just curious on a few things,

I have some corals in my tank however suddenly (few weeks ago) I've been getting major algae blooms guess it was because of the new leds compared to the T5s...however i think it was also because of how long my lights were on (Should have followed what you've said nonstop, instead of caring about "what looks good".) I had my blue leds on for about 12 hours and my whites on for about 10 hours and the refugium on for 24 hours...now that I found the thread once again and fed up with the fact that I clean off the rocks and the very next day it would be covered with more!

The lights starting tomorrow will be: Blue leds on for 10 hours and white leds are on for 8 hours and the refugium is on for 14 hours when the leds are off

Would this be efficient enough to help stop the build up of algae?

How long until I can up the amount of led lighting for the corals? Unless this is good as a permanent schedule lighting.

Can having lots of algae be problematic to corals?

Btw my phosphate level is 2.0

Thanks for any inputs
 
Theres no one single reason algae blooms it is a set of cicumstances - Light, water, protiens, nitrogen, phosphates, and Co2. Longer durations of Light and excess protiens + gases will help it grow faster. Removing the Po4 and shaving the light expossure will definately help slow it down, an increase in 02 will reduce Co2,nitogen is the end of the cycle less nitrate less nitrogen, by lowering total dissolved protiens it will help get rid of excess nitrogen, lower co2, and lower po4.

Can algae be problematic - some most definately can, if they encrust corals the corals will starve. For hard corals po4 should be .04 or less.
 
What all do you have in your refugium? More macro-algae and/or plants in there will be a big help.

Also, how much coralline algae do you have in the main aquarium? Coralline algae love actinic lighting, so you could probably get away with 14 hours of the blue LEDs and eight hours of the white LEDs. If you can get that growing pretty good, then it will eventually displace the bad algae.
 
Otherone said:
Theres no one single reason algae blooms it is a set of cicumstances - Light, water, protiens, nitrogen, phosphates, and Co2. Longer durations of Light and excess protiens + gases will help it grow faster. Removing the Po4 and shaving the light expossure will definately help slow it down, an increase in 02 will reduce Co2,nitogen is the end of the cycle less nitrate less nitrogen, by lowering total dissolved protiens it will help get rid of excess nitrogen, lower co2, and lower po4.

Can algae be problematic - some most definately can, if they encrust corals the corals will starve. For hard corals po4 should be .04 or less.
Click to expand...

Hey otherone, thanks for the reply. Just recently my nitrates drop down to 0-10 ppm this amount, really happy lol. I'm assuming with the help of the protein skimmer, less duration of the lights (white leds especially), protein skimmer kicking, and O2 increased (I think thiers a lot of O2 as I have a sump set up so thier is lots of current) If needed should i place a bubble maker in the sump?

Good thing I have no hard corals, also this algae actually looks a bit furry (never seen this algae in my tank)..


Wiggles92 said:
What all do you have in your refugium? More macro-algae and/or plants in there will be a big help.

Also, how much coralline algae do you have in the main aquarium? Coralline algae love actinic lighting, so you could probably get away with 14 hours of the blue LEDs and eight hours of the white LEDs. If you can get that growing pretty good, then it will eventually displace the bad algae.
Click to expand...

I have about I'd say a 1/2 pound to a pound of Chateo and some plants for the naso tang. Id say thier is one rock at nearly 12 inches long covered in coralline (6-8 pound rock) however I purchased it like that...I think thier are other small rocks with coraline algae hidden.

My blue leds are on for about 10 hours one hour before the white leds turn on...and one hour after the white leds turn off.

So this is my lighting schedraul:

12:00pm (Blue Leds On) to 10:00pm (Blue leds Off)
1:00 pm (White Day Leds On) to 9:00pm (Day Leds Off)
10:00PM (Refugium Light On) to 11:00am (Refuge Light Off)

So should I put the blue leds on from 11:00am to 11:00pm? However keep the white leds the same and adjust the fuge to proper settings?

Thanks For The Input
 
What color is this algae?? Is it dark red? If you remove it and it is back the next day it doesn't sound like algae at all but cyanobacteria.

I wouldn't worry about your lights so much. Whites at 8 hours, blues at whatever you want.

Running a phosban reactor might be a good investment. Putting some GFO in there will really help bring your phosphates down. Phosphates are bad for a couple reasons, 1. They lead to algae. 2. They inhibit growth in corals. If you get it or not, for now I would run your refuge lights 24 hours. The macros in there will hopefully suck up more phosphates with the longer light cycle.

Putting an airstone in the sump couldn't hurt. Just put it somewhere where you don't end up with tons of salt creep. Making sure the surface of your tank is really agitated to increase O2 levels will also help.

It is possible your nitrate levels have dropped because the algae is consuming it fast and the tests aren't showing it.
 
When I bought my 150XH used as an upgrade for the 12" Piranhas I was very adimitt that the previous owner not clean it to preserve the BB that's been establishing for the 6 years he ran it. The rock sub. and glass was covered in green algae (really tough to get rid of). I used a bubble wand cut down to size to fit in a penguin 2 bay HOB, used a whisper 100gal air pump and added a small marineland powerhead facing the surface to increase 02. Witin 3 mo. the algae was 100% gone and I never cleaned the glass or sub. I'm not sure theres too many fish that can make as much of a mess of everything including water parameters as a shoal of huge Piranhas. The bubble wand was in use for a year then I turned it off with no repeat outbreak.
At 1st I noticed a ton of microbubbles this lasted a week or 2 but inorder to achieve dissolved 02 the bubbles must tumble in fast moving water, not sure air stones or wands in sump will achieve this with great efficience.

Something else also came to mind - increase the amount of hermits in the tank, they should help to clean up any mess + eat the algae.
 
nonstophoops said:
What color is this algae?? Is it dark red? If you remove it and it is back the next day it doesn't sound like algae at all but cyanobacteria.

I wouldn't worry about your lights so much. Whites at 8 hours, blues at whatever you want.

Running a phosban reactor might be a good investment. Putting some GFO in there will really help bring your phosphates down. Phosphates are bad for a couple reasons, 1. They lead to algae. 2. They inhibit growth in corals. If you get it or not, for now I would run your refuge lights 24 hours. The macros in there will hopefully suck up more phosphates with the longer light cycle.

Putting an airstone in the sump couldn't hurt. Just put it somewhere where you don't end up with tons of salt creep. Making sure the surface of your tank is really agitated to increase O2 levels will also help.

It is possible your nitrate levels have dropped because the algae is consuming it fast and the tests aren't showing it.
Click to expand...

Here are epics of the algae:

IMG_0891.JPGIMG_0890.JPGIMG_0889.JPGIMG_0888.JPGIMG_0887.JPG


Hope fully these pics will help find the solve proof solutions, also otherone hermits will be purchased.


Btw nonstop, what is GFO?

IMG_0891.JPG

IMG_0890.JPG

IMG_0889.JPG

IMG_0888.JPG

IMG_0887.JPG
 
Otherone said:
When I bought my 150XH used as an upgrade for the 12" Piranhas I was very adimitt that the previous owner not clean it to preserve the BB that's been establishing for the 6 years he ran it. The rock sub. and glass was covered in green algae (really tough to get rid of). I used a bubble wand cut down to size to fit in a penguin 2 bay HOB, used a whisper 100gal air pump and added a small marineland powerhead facing the surface to increase 02. Witin 3 mo. the algae was 100% gone and I never cleaned the glass or sub. I'm not sure theres too many fish that can make as much of a mess of everything including water parameters as a shoal of huge Piranhas. The bubble wand was in use for a year then I turned it off with no repeat outbreak.
At 1st I noticed a ton of microbubbles this lasted a week or 2 but inorder to achieve dissolved 02 the bubbles must tumble in fast moving water, not sure air stones or wands in sump will achieve this with great efficience.

Something else also came to mind - increase the amount of hermits in the tank, they should help to clean up any mess + eat the algae.
Click to expand...

I see, I have few air pumps that will be installed, will give it a shot in the sump...probably in the center of the first chamber so no salt creep
 
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